The Legacy of Two Generations
by LadyoftheLake
Summary: Lily and James started dating in their last year at Hogwarts, but that is only the beginning. Now, what will happen to their notorious son? Rated PG13 for some language. Harry's 6th year has begun & new adventures. PreHBP. Please r&r :ON HOLD! For the
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: All HP Characters, places and vocab belong to JK Rowling, I do not own them only the plot and secondary characters.  
  
A/N: This is my first ff, please make sure that you review, I look forward to reading your comments. (  
  
~ The Legacy of Two Generations ~  
  
  
  
  
  
Chapter 1 ~ A Ride to the Train Station  
  
  
  
Lily Evans seemed like any ordinary 17 year-old girl. She loved to shop with her friends, go to the movies, and listen to music. But above all, she loved to read. She could always be found in the sitting room, curled in one of the chairs, reading. She had read most of the books in her father's book room by the age of 11, and every year she was the only student of her school who knew the schoolbooks from memory. As much as Lily enjoyed the summer vacations, she liked her time in school more. This school was what made her different from other girls around her neighborhood. Lily was a witch and she attended Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft. Of course family and friends were told that she was going to an exclusive boarding school in Scotland and nothing more.  
  
Lily remembered very well the day she found out she was a witch. All her life strange things happened around her whenever she was scared or angry. One time her older sister Petunia took away her doll and her hair turned bright orange. Of course Petunia never forgot this and hated Lily for it. Another time in grammar school she was being teased by a group of boys when suddenly the windows nearby exploded all over. Nobody knew why strange things happened to Lily, her parents couldn't explain it, until the morning of her eleventh birthday. That morning Lily had woken up to find a letter awaiting her; it stated that she was witch and that she had been accepted to attend Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft. She was very surprised by these news but it certainly explained all the strange things that occurred around her.  
  
Lily was now ready to start her seventh year at Hogwarts and she was really looking forward to it, specially since she got a letter from the Deputy Headmistress, Professor McGonagall, stating that this year she was chosen as Head Girl. She was happy about this and her parents were very proud of her, the only thing that cast her down about this was the Head Boy, James Potter, whom she thought was unworthy of the position. But she didn't want to think about it.  
  
On this cloudy day, September 1, she was pacing around the sitting room waiting for her parents to get ready. Her trunk, packed with all her school things, stood by the door and above it was her owl's cage with a red covering and inside it was Iocasta, her tawny owl. She couldn't wait until to meet her friends at King Cross Station by the platform 9 ¾, where they would board the Hogwarts Express, which would take them to school.  
  
"Are you ready Princess?" Said Mr. Evans coming into the room.  
  
"Dad, I've been ready for ages! What took you so long?"  
  
"Sorry, but a call from work distracted me. Here let's take this out to the car."  
  
Lily and her father took her trunk and Iocasta's cage out to the car. As Mr. Evans made sure that everything was secure, Mrs. Evans exited the house.  
  
"Petunia isn't coming, she's meeting someone at the mall later today." Mrs. Evans said as she sat on the front seat.  
  
"That's fine mum, I didn't want to hear her complaining all the way to the station anyways."  
  
"Lily! That isn't nice."  
  
"But it's the truth mum, you know she's always complaining."  
  
"That's enough Lily."  
  
"What happened?" Asked Mr. Evans as he entered the car.  
  
"Nothing dear, is everything ready?"  
  
"Yes, we can go now. Lily, are you sure you're not leaving anything behind?"  
  
"I'm sure daddy."  
  
"All right then, here we go."  
  
"Why aren't you wearing your Head Girl badge Lily?" Asked Mrs. Evans.  
  
"I'll put it on when I change into my robes in the train."  
  
"We're so proud of you Princess, first Head Girl in the family."  
  
"What makes you say that daddy, I could be the only witch in the family you know."  
  
"Oh no. Once you marry, your kids are bound to go to Hogwarts as well."  
  
"Mum!"  
  
"It's true Hun. You don't think that your kids wouldn't inherit the magical blood do you? And I'm sure that they'll make us just as proud."  
  
"Mum, I don't even have a boyfriend, I don't want to think about kids yet."  
  
"That's right Princess, take your time. Stop giving her ideas Rose, she's too young for that."  
  
"Oh piffle! We're never too young to think about the future."  
  
"Piffle?"  
  
"Yes piffle."  
  
"Can we just get there fast, please?" Said a resigned Lily.  
  
"She's at that age when she should be going out with boys and having fun. You should have a boyfriend Lily."  
  
"Mum, I don't want to hear this."  
  
"Leave her alone Rose, she doesn't want a boyfriend, fine, she'll have one whenever she's ready."  
  
"But she should at least have some male friends. How is she supposed to meet any nice boys if she doesn't even notice them."  
  
"She's not ready for that. She'll eventually meet a nice boy. Besides, it's not like she's going to an all-girls-school, I bet she knows some nice boys at that school."  
  
"Then how come she doesn't have a boyfriend, if she knew some nice boys, she would've had at least one boyfriend after all these years."  
  
"She has been studying instead. For my part, I'm glad she has paid more attention to her classes than to boys, I'm not spending all this money for her to meet boys, I'm paying for her to get an education."  
  
"I'm not saying she shouldn't study, after all she'll need her education when she leaves school and goes out to look for work. But how is she supposed to meet the man she'll eventually marry if she doesn't keep her nose out of her books once in a while? We're not getting any younger Edward. I don't know about you, but I want to be able to enjoy my grandchildren before I get too old I can't do anything with them."  
  
During this conversation was taking place, Lily sat in the back seat trying to keep out of it, but when her mother reached this point Lily couldn't help but butt in.  
  
"Fine mum, I promise to get a boyfriend this year, are you happy now? Can we stop this conversation please?"  
  
"I'll hold you to that promise Lily."  
  
"Rose! Lily, don't you go and do any thing rash young lady. But we'll stop."  
  
"Thank you." Said Lily with a sigh of relief.  
  
"So, what is a Head Girl supposed to do?" Asked Mr. Evans trying to start a new subject.  
  
"Well, I'm supposed to uphold the rules of the school and make sure that all the students follow them, I'm sure that I will also have to plan for any events that will take place this year. Of course, I get to delegate some of these duties to the prefects; after all, I can't be everywhere at once."  
  
"But, isn't there anybody else to help you besides the prefects?"  
  
"The Head Boy woks alongside the Head Girl. But this year's Head Boy is such an immature prankster I don't really expect any help from him but quite the contrary."  
  
"How did he become the Head Boy then?"  
  
"I suppose it is because he is the top male student of our year and he is considered a role model by the younger students."  
  
"He cannot be that bad then, he actually sounds like a nice boy, what's his name?" Asked and intrigued Mrs. Evans.  
  
"James Potter, but don't you get any ideas mum."  
  
"I'm just curious. What about his family?"  
  
"I don't know, I've heard that his family is considered among the most respected and wealthiest families in the Wizard World, besides that I don't know anything."  
  
"Hmmm."  
  
"Rose!"  
  
"What? I'm not saying anything."  
  
"Are we near dad? We were already kind of late when we left and the train will leave in half an hour."  
  
"Almost there Princess."  
  
"Good, I want to meet my friends. We're supposed to meet below the platform sign and I don't want to be so late that we won't be able to get an empty compartment."  
  
"Don't worry Princess, we're here."  
  
While Mr. Evans piled all of Lily's belongings on a cart, Mrs. Evans took Lily aside.  
  
"Remember your promise Lily. I want you to have fun this year."  
  
"Mum! I don't need a boyfriend to have fun, I'm happy as I am."  
  
"I know Hun, but you need to learn how to enjoy life; I don't want you to end up as a prude, bitter, old maid."  
  
"I promise to spend less time with my books and socialize more often, will that make you happy?"  
  
"Yes it does. Now let's get you to the barrier. Are you ready Edward?"  
  
"Yes, what were you saying to Lily?"  
  
"Just to have fun at school. Come she'll miss the train if we stay here much longer."  
  
  
  
While Lily was going through this embarrassing conversation, in her point of view, her counterpart, Head Boy James Potter, was going through one of his own.  
  
"Mum can we please hurry up, if I miss the train I'm blaming you for it."  
  
"Calm down James, you're not going to miss the train. Are you sure that you have everything?"  
  
"Yeah, I checked, the only thing I'm missing are my tricks set, but Sirius has that. Are we leaving soon?"  
  
"Yeah, don't be so impatient. About those tricks and pranks with Sirius, I wanted to talk to you about that."  
  
"Mum, can we do that while we drive to the station?"  
  
"All right, let's go, but don't think that you're going to change the subject. Did you put everything in the car?"  
  
"Yeah, Martin helped with it, I was just waiting for you. Where's father, is he going with us?"  
  
"No dear, he was planning to but an owl from the Ministry came a while ago and now he's in his book room taking care of business."  
  
"Oh, ok. Here let me help you with the bag. Martin is waiting in the car for us."  
  
"Very well let's go."  
  
"Here Madam." Said the driver as he opened the door to her.  
  
"Thank you Martin."  
  
Martin closed the door after James got in the car, and went to sit at the driver's seat. As the car drove out of the driveway, Mrs. Potter turned to her son and said:  
  
"James, your father and I were talking last night. We're very proud of you, Head Boy and all. But you really have to stop this pranks and tricks business. You're 17 years old now. This is your last year at Hogwarts and I'm sure you don't want to be remembered for your pranks but because of your intelligence. You're a great athlete, but I want you to put more attention to your books, specially your Charms class, I can't tell you how disappointed I was by your notes from last year. And remember you have the N.E.W.T.s at the end of this year I really expect more from you."  
  
"I know mum, don't worry, I'll work harder on Charms this year."  
  
"I really hope so. I owled Dumbledore about this and asked him if you could have a tutor for this class. He said there are no assistant tutors this year, but that he would talk to one of the students about tutoring you, I think her name was Lily something or other, I really can't remember now."  
  
"Lily Evans! But she's such a know-it-all mother! I just know she's going to rub her knowledge of Charms in my face. Can't I have someone else, she's going to drive me bonkers if I have to work with her."  
  
"No, you can't. According to Dumbledore she's the best and that's what you need. Besides, from something he said I gather that she's Head Girl this year, you're going to have to work with her through out the year anyways, so you might as well get used to it."  
  
"Oh mum! But she's no fun. All she does is read and study, what's the fun in that?"  
  
"Have you tried talking to her, you might find that she's a nice girl. Dumbledore said that she comes from a Muggle family but according to him a very good family, wealthy and respected in their community, so I must assume that this girl knows how to comport herself. I'm sorry to say that I can't say the same thing about you. We have paid to give you the best tutors before you left for Hogwarts, you didn't lack for anything we gave you everything you needed, and you can't say that we left it to the servants to raise you, and you know that it happens a lot in out society, we gave you attention and we spend a lot of time with you as you grew up. But every year we receive so many owls describing your behavior, we expect more from you James. Your father is going to retire soon from the Ministry and you know that the estate is entailed and that you will be in charge after your father. We do not want everything to go to waste. You are old enough to start thinking about your future, what are you going to do after you leave Hogwarts? Have you thought about that? What about a family? Do you know what kind of girl you want for a wife?"  
  
"Now mother, don't start thinking about matchmaking I don't want to return at the end of the school year and find the whole place full of girls waiting to be paraded in front of me so I can choose a wife among them."  
  
"Now there's a thought."  
  
"Mother don't! I promise to think about what you have said. I still have a whole year to make a decision on this subject. But really mother, you can get the idea of a wife out of your head. I'm way too young for one and I really don't want to deal with a wife and children any time soon."  
  
"Very well, but we will talk about it in the future."  
  
"Yes mother."  
  
"Don't yes mother me James. But enough of this. What does Sirius have to say about his summer?"  
  
"You know Sirius mother, but he seemed to love spending time in Greece with his father. He said that the Greek Ruins were a great place to play hide and seek in."  
  
"That's Sirius, leave it to him to think of playing hide and seek among one of the marvels of the ancient world."  
  
"Well yeah, he does know how to have fun. He says he brought a lot of souvenirs from his trip that he wants to share with us."  
  
"We're here madam."  
  
"Thank you Martin, can you help James with his things please, he has to be inside the barrier in less that 10 minutes if he doesn't want to miss the train."  
  
"Yes madam."  
  
"Come James, help Martin, you can't stay here just standing."  
  
"Yes, mum."  
  
As James and Martin piled his belongings on a cart, Mrs. Potter saw as a young lady with red hair passed by with two adults who seemed to be her parents, she was pushing a cart with a trunk and a covered cage, which Mrs. Potter was sure contained an owl. When James was ready he stood beside his mother.  
  
"Who's that young lady walking in front of us James?"  
  
"Where?"  
  
"There, with the red hair."  
  
"Oh, that's Lily Evans mother. The one you want to hire as my Charms tutor."  
  
"Hmmm.She's very pretty."  
  
"I suppose so, if you like them with red hair and slim. But don't worry mother her looks won't distract me from my Charm lessons."  
  
"What a pity." Mrs. Potter muttered.  
  
"What was that mother."  
  
"Nothing dear. Let's get you to the barrier, I'm sure you're looking forward to meeting with Sirius and the rest."  
  
  
  
The Evans stopped in front of the barrier between platforms 9 and 10.  
  
"Now Lily dear, remember to have some fun, this is your last year at school and you should enjoy yourself before going out into the world when you're done this year."  
  
"Yes mum, I'll try to be less uptight."  
  
"Take care Princess, and remember don't do anything rash."  
  
"I know daddy. I'll owl you once I get there."  
  
"Bye Hun."  
  
"Bye Princess."  
  
"Bye." Said Lily just before she crossed the barrier.  
  
"Mother, don't worry. I'll try to behave myself, but I can't guarantee anything."  
  
"James, you better try hard, remember you're a Head Boy you're supposed to lead by example, I don't want to receive any more owls from Professor McGonagall."  
  
"All right mum, don't worry. I'll owl you when I get there."  
  
"Bye dear."  
  
"Bye mum." James said just before he crossed the barrier.  
  
Mrs. Potter saw the couple that had walked by her with the girl James said was Lily Evans. Intrigued she approached them.  
  
"Hello, I'm sorry to approached you like this but I saw your daughter earlier and my son said she was the new Head Girl. You must be very proud."  
  
"Oh yes we are. She's just a very special girl." Said Mr. Evans.  
  
"I'm sure she is, it is a great privilege to be Head Girl, your girl must be and exceptional student."  
  
"Sometimes I wish she would pay attention to her social life as she does to her books."  
  
"And I wish my son would do just the opposite. But where are my manners I didn't even tell my name. I'm Susan Potter and my son, James Potter, is the Head Boy this year."  
  
"I'm Edward Evans and this is my wife Rose Evans."  
  
"Very pleased to make your acquaintance. Maybe you would like to join my husband and me this weekend for dinner. After all if our children are going to be working together, I'm sure we would like the families to know each other."  
  
"We would love to join you. Our older daughter will be with her friends this weekend and we don't have anything planned, if you give me your directions we'll be there." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Good, I'll owl you with the details. Have a good day."  
  
"Same to you." Responded Mr. Evans. "What are you doing Rose?"  
  
"Just getting acquainted with the world our daughter belongs to. I don't know about you, but I want to know how a wizard family lives; specially one that is considered to be among the top families."  
  
"Rose, don't you start matchmaking. My little girl doesn't need that right now."  
  
"Edward, Lily is not a little girl anymore. I know that you wished she was but she isn't, and if I can make her way a little easier I will. If you don't want to go this weekend fine, I'll go on my own."  
  
"I'll go, I never said I didn't want to. I am curious about wizard families too you know, just wanted to know what is on your mind." 


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own HP and all the characters, places and words related to it, they belong to the wonderful JK Rowling.  
  
~The Legacy of Two Generations ~  
  
Chapter 2 ~ Meeting on the Train  
  
As Lily crossed the barrier she noticed that her friends Katie and Emma waited for her below the platform sign.  
  
"There you are, what took you so long? We thought you were going to miss the train." Said Katie as she spied Lily looking for them. Katie was a petite, slim girl, hazel eyes and black hair, her skin was often described as milky white.  
  
"I know, I thought the same thing, but you won't believe my parents. I swear, every year they get more weird." Said Lily as she joined her friends.  
  
"What did they do now?" Asked Emma as they started to push their carts to the train and look for a compartment. Emma was a tall, slim girl, brown hair, tanned skin and gray eyes.  
  
"Mum, starting going on about how I should have a boyfriend and not spend all my time behind my books. Really, is not like I actually spend all my time with my books. I mean, during the past two years as a prefect I had to deal with unruly students, and making sure first years were settled. It's not easy being in charge of many kids."  
  
"But she is right, you know. Maybe you don't spend too much time with your books, at least not as much as you used to before you became prefect, but you don't anything else but read on your free time. Maybe you do need a boyfriend to take your mind away from your books." Said Emma as they started to get settled in an empty compartment near the back of the train.  
  
"That's a good idea, let's see now, who are the available guys in our house?" Said Katie as they say on the benches."  
  
"Oh, not you too!" Moaned Lily.  
  
"Let's see, well the most popular are Sirius Black, Remus Lupin and, of course, James Potter." Said Katie.  
  
"Oh please!"  
  
"No Lily is too level headed for them." Responded Emma.  
  
"Thank you!"  
  
"Well what about Chris Lanthman? He's good looking and smart." Said Katie.  
  
"And dull. Come on Katie, Lily can do better than that." Said Emma.  
  
"Lily can choose on her own. Come on guys, I don't want to get a boyfriend, not now at least we have the whole year to think about this. Besides you're starting to sound like my mother. I just hope that when I go back for summer she doesn't have a line of boys lined up for me to meet." Said Lily in an exasperated tone.  
  
"She just wants the best for you, and after all, we are leaving school this year, we do have to start thinking about our future. What do you want to do after school Lily?" Asked Emma.  
  
"I don't know, I would like to become a teacher at Hogwarts, maybe I'll ask Dumbledore if I can stay as a Professor Assistant. The last one they had left last year, and they will need someone to work with the students who need help."  
  
"You'll be good at that, after all you are good in class. I'm sure Dumbledore will let you stay. I have to go back home after school, after all I am being presented to wizard society on my eighteenth birthday." Said Katie.  
  
"You'll have me for company. My mum has even started the preparations for my presentation ball." Said Emma.  
  
"I suppose mum would like to do that but as she belongs to Muggle society I don't think she would feel comfortable doing a presentation ball for her witch daughter, after all I don't think she would like to disclose that I'm a witch." Said Lily in a cheerful tone.  
  
"Don't underestimate your mother, if she wants to present you to society, muggle or wizard, she'll do so, I bet she's as stubborn as you." Said Emma.  
  
"I'm not! But we'll see, she'll let me know before Christmas if she plans a presentation." Said Lily.  
  
"How was your sister's presentation last year?" Asked a curious Katie.  
  
"I told you about it last year. I didn't attend of course, but mother was ecstatic, she said it was a big success and that everybody who was anybody in the neighborhood attended. It didn't really matter, my sister got a new boyfriend this summer and he's not as high up as mother would wish. Vernon Dursley, his family is good I guess, he's a Business Major at the university. But mother says that as long as Petunia is happy, she'll accept him. He looks like a pig to me, I don't know what she sees in him, and in my opinion she could do a lot better." Said Lily.  
  
"All mothers are like that, they expect great things for their children but at the end they always end up happy with their children's choice. I know mother won't mind if I choose a poor man over a wealthy man, as long as I'm happy. She would never say so of course she just says that I could do well in society. Personally, I don't want to become a socialite I would prefer to marry somebody who works hard and who will let me carry on with my art. As long as I can paint I'm happy." Said Katie.  
  
"In my case, is father the one with the expectations. He wants me to marry someone from the Ministry, can you picture me taking tea with the Ministry wives and planning political parties? I think he's mad! I just want to marry somebody who loves me, anything else doesn't matter." Stated Emma with great conviction.  
  
"Well we certainly want different things don't we? We have to make a pact, that in 10 years we'll get together and see if our wishes came true. What do you say?" Said Lily.  
  
"Deal, we'll meet in Diagon Alley at Wizard Paradise Restaurant on our tenth year graduation anniversary at 6 p.m. And we'll catch up on anything we might've missed." Said Katie.  
  
"We'll be still in touch after school, I don't think that we might get separated after graduation. But I'll go, at least I can shop until I have to meet at the restaurant." Said Emma.  
  
"Let's talk about something else. Do you think we'll have the Graduation Ball in May or June?" Asked an excited Katie.  
  
"I think it will be in June, it usually is after we're done with exams." Said Lily.  
  
"That's right, and Lily you'll be part of the planning committee, you have to make sure that there are a lot of slow dances, I plan to enjoy myself at the dance." Said Emma.  
  
"Oh, what do you think we should wear?"  
  
"Girls! We're getting ahead of ourselves, we still have 10 months to plan this, don't worry, when the time is right, we'll be ready." Said Lily in a soothing tone.  
  
In that moment a witch opened the door.  
  
"Anything off the cart dears?"  
  
On the next compartment, four boys sat eating the sweets they had just bought.  
  
"And then mothers starts this lecture on how I must be prepare to take on after father dies, which means that I have to start thinking on what kind of girl I will marry. Can you imagine me with a wife? No thank you, that will certainly take the fun out of life." Said a slim, tall boy, with messy black hair.  
  
"Don't worry James, you'll see that by summer she has forgotten about all of it." Said the boy sitting across from him. He was very similar to James, they shared the black messy hair with Sirius wearing a longer hair style curling at the ends, sometimes people confused them and didn't know who was who.  
  
"Sirius is right James, you knew that your mother would eventually nag you about getting a wife, but don't worry, your sister is pregnant again you said, your mother will probably be too busy for her to pay any attention to your social life for the next couple of years." Said the boy sitting next to James.  
  
"You still have time to enjoy yourself, besides, your mum can't do anything while you're at school." Said another boy. He was different from his companions, they were tall and slim, he was short and portly.  
  
"That's right Peter, we have the whole year to enjoy ourselves, and after all this is the year we have to leave our legacy behind." Said Sirius.  
  
"Legacy? You're crazy Sirius." Replied Remus.  
  
"Speaking of legacies, Peter I think you should transform now." Said James.  
  
"Transform, why? And what does that have to do with legacies?" Asked a confused Peter.  
  
"Just do it and you'll see." Said James.  
  
"Oh very well." Peter disappeared and in his place a fat rat appeared.  
  
"Now watch this." Said James as he picked Peter from the bench.  
  
James carefully opened the door of their compartment and saw the witch with the candy cart leaving from the next compartment; he heard female voices, and chuckling he whispered to Peter. He then put Peter on the floor and saw him going into the compartment of the girls. Three female screams were heard from the compartment, Sirius and Remus stood behind James laughing and patting James on the back.  
  
"Nice Prongs, I should've thought of that." Said a laughing Sirius.  
  
"I think we should go and rescue Wormtail, the girls will kill him if we don't." Said a chuckling Remus.  
  
"All right, let's go." Said James going to the next compartment.  
  
The sight that met their eyes, made them laugh even harder. They saw Lily Evans, bookworm and Head Girl, kneeling on the bench searching for something on the floor. Emma Holmes, one of the most popular girls in the school was standing on one of the benches telling Lily to "Get it, get it." And Katie Bennet, the girl most guys in school wanted to date, standing on the other bench with an expression of fright.  
  
"I assume our rat friend made his way in here." Said a laughing James.  
  
"Potter, you better get that thing out of here or I'm going to turn you into a toad." Said an angry Lily.  
  
"Really Evans, he's just a rat he isn't going to bite." Said Sirius as James kneeled looking for his friend.  
  
"We don't care, just get it out." Said a nervous Emma, who really hated rats.  
  
"Here Wormtail where are you?" Crooned James.  
  
"Hurry!" Said a frightened Katie.  
  
"There he is James, get him." Said Remus as he spied his rat friend just below Lily.  
  
"Got him!" Said James triumphantly.  
  
"Good, now get out!" Said Lily, pushing them out of the compartment.  
  
"We're going. You know Evans you need to work in your manners, that is no way of treating a gentleman."  
  
"The moment I meet a gentleman, Potter, I'll treat him as such. Now go!" And Lily closed the door on their faces.  
  
"That was brilliant James." Said a grinning Sirius.  
  
"That's easy for you to say, my ears are ringing from their screams." Complained Peter who had transformed back.  
  
"It was funny, did you see their faces?" Said a chuckling Remus.  
  
"Of course I did, it was priceless." Said James.  
  
"And our friend Moony here couldn't keep his eyes from Emma, I know you wanted to go to her and calm her down." Teased Sirius.  
  
"I did not, besides how could you notice anything when you were ogling Katie, I know you liked her mini skirt."  
  
"Of course I liked her skirt, makes her legs look nice, and she does have nice legs."  
  
"Oh just stop. It isn't news that Sirius likes Katie; he's been trying to date her since our fifth year. She has always said no though." Said James. Peter was trying to make his ears stop ringing.  
  
"This year will be different, I'll get her to say yes."  
  
"Dream on Padfoot. She won't date you"  
  
"Yes she will Moony, you'll see."  
  
"Do you want to bet on it?"  
  
"You're on James. What shall we bet?"  
  
"Argh! Can you believe them? I wager it was James the one who thought of it." Said a very angry Lily. Her face was flushed and her breathing fast.  
  
"Calm down Lily, it's past. At least they didn't hex us or anything; I really hate it when they do that. I wonder where they got the rat?" Said Emma trying to soothe Lily's temper.  
  
"Besides it's not like you were really scared by the rodent, it brought James in here and that certainly lighted up your whole countenance. You try to deny it but I know you fancy him." Teased Katie.  
  
"I do not!"  
  
"Do to!"  
  
"Do not!"  
  
"Do to!"  
  
"I do not!"  
  
"Do to!"  
  
"Girls!" Screamed Emma. "You're acting like children. Katie really! She could tease you about Sirius if she puts her mind to it."  
  
"I don't deny that I like Sirius."  
  
"You're crazy for him!" Exclaimed Lily. "But you have to be a tease and say no every time he asks you out. Humph!"  
  
"I'm not a tease, I just don't want to go out with him."  
  
"Ha! You are dying to go out with him, you just want to play hard to get."  
  
"Yeah, that's right! You've gone out with others, like that seventh year a couple of years ago, what was his name? ... Oh yeah, Patrick ... Patrick Flannery. You went out with him for two weeks before you dumped him."  
  
"And after him it was Jacob Wood, remember him? He also lasted two weeks."  
  
"Yeah I remember, and then it was..."  
  
"Enough!" Exclaimed an exasperated Katie. "Are you going to make a list of all the boys I've dated?"  
  
"We don't have that good a memory." Said Lily as Emma giggled.  
  
"I don't see where this conversation is leading."  
  
"The point is that you've dated a lot of guys, even some that you didn't particularly liked I might add, but the one you really want to go out with, you keep denying him."  
  
"Exactly! What are you playing at? You know you want to go out with him."  
  
"Yes, happy? I do want to go out with him."  
  
"But?" Pressured Lily.  
  
"But ... What if it doesn't work out and he breaks my heart? I've dated those other guys because I felt safe with them none put my heart in danger, but with Sirius is different, my emotions would be involved and I don't want to take any chances."  
  
"But the point of dating is to take chances, that's how you fall in love and meet the boy you want to marry." Said the rational Emma.  
  
"I don't know, I'll think about it."  
  
"Fine, but don't wait too long, he might get tired of asking." Replied Emma.  
  
"Who do you like Emma?" Asked a curious Lily.  
  
"Oh she likes Remus." Giggled Katie, pay back time she thought. " How come you haven't gone out with him?"  
  
"Because he hasn't asked, I wager he hasn't even noticed that I exist." Responded a sad Emma.  
  
"Oh, he has noticed." Said an amused Katie.  
  
"How do you know?" Questioned Emma.  
  
"I know"  
  
"But how?"  
  
"I just know."  
  
"But..."  
  
"And," interrupted Lily, "if he has been too thick and stupid to notice, we can make him notice."  
  
"Don't call him that!" Chided Emma, "do you think we can?" "Of course we can, after all we're the Hogwarts Sirens!" Said Katie while Emma and Lily giggled.  
  
  
  
Don't forget to review! ( 


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: HP characters, places, and certain words, belong to JK Rowling, I do not own them only the minor and secondary characters.  
  
~ A Legacy of Two Generations ~  
  
Chapter 3 ~ Meet the Hogwarts Sirens and the Marauders  
  
  
  
"Is it just me or does the banquet get longer every year?" Said Katie as the girls entered their dormitory.  
  
"It's you. It always ends at the same time." Said Lily as she walked to her bed.  
  
"I don't know how you can eat so much and not gain any weight Katie. I can't even eat half of what you eat with out feeling full." Said Emma.  
  
"I don't know, I think I might me charmed or something because I'm always hungry."  
  
"I can't eat much in the evenings, I never could." Replied Lily.  
  
"I wonder how our schedules will be. I swear, if I get another double Potions and Care of Magical Creatures with the Slytherins I will scream." Said Katie as she finished getting ready for bed.  
  
"You know we will, we've always had Potions with the Slytherins as well as Care of Magical Creatures for the last years; I don't see what is going to change that." Said Emma as she got into bed.  
  
"Well thank you for busting my bubble, now I have nothing else to dream about." Said Katie from her bed.  
  
"Oh don't worry, Sirius might help you get new dreams." Said Lily turning off the lights.  
  
"Lily!" And a pillow hit Lily as she settled into bed. Only giggles could be heard in the room after Lily threw back the pillow to Katie.  
  
"Do you reckon we should use this spell on the Slytherins tomorrow?" Asked Sirius as he sat on his bed.  
  
"We used it in our fourth year remember? We can't use it again, we have a reputation to protect." Said James as he finished getting ready for bed.  
  
"You're right, let's see..."  
  
"Do you have the feeling that we've run out of tricks?" Asked Remus from his bed.  
  
"Don't even say that Moony!" Exclaimed a flabbergasted Sirius.  
  
"Careful, you'll give Padfoot here nightmares." Laughed James.  
  
"Hahaha...the day Sirius here stops thinking of pranks will be the day one of us turns to the Dark Side." Said an amused Peter from his bed.  
  
"Farfetched indeed." Said a chuckling Remus.  
  
"This is no laughing matter! We can't be out of ideas, Oh Lord, what are we going to do?" Said a worried Sirius.  
  
"Calm down Padfoot, just go to bed and sleep on it. You'll se that by tomorrow morning you'll have thought of something." Said James.  
  
"Prongs is right Paddy, just go to bed." Said Remus as he rested his head on his pillow.  
  
"Don't call me Paddy! You know I hate it when you call me like that!" Said Sirius as he settled in bed.  
  
"Yes Paddy." Three voices said in unison as dark swallowed the room.  
  
"Get up, we'll be late!" Said Lily trying to wake Katie up.  
  
"Honestly! You would think that after six years she would be used to waking up early." Said an exasperated Emma.  
  
"Don't just stand there, help me!"  
  
"What do you think I was doing while you were in the bathroom?"  
  
"What should we do? She's not waking up."  
  
"I have an idea." Said Emma as she approached the sleeping Katie.  
  
"Katie, Sirius is here, he wants to talk to you, should I let him in?"  
  
"What? No way, you should've woken me earlier. Oh my God, I'm still not dressed." Screamed Katie as she abruptly woke up and left the bed with an alacrity Emma and Lily didn't know she possessed.  
  
"Well, she is awake now." Said Emma, turning to look at a laughing Lily.  
  
"Katie, calm down, Emma just said that to see if you would wake up."  
  
"That was a nasty trick!" Said an indignant Katie.  
  
"Well, now you are up. Get ready or we'll be late." Said Lily trying to take control of the situation.  
  
"Oh all right, but don't do that again!" Said a pouting Katie as she grabbed her clothes and walked into the restroom.  
  
"Really Emma! That was bad of you." Chided Lily after Katie had left the room.  
  
"I know!" Said a grinning Emma, and both girls burst into laughter.  
  
"Sirius stop pouting. So what if we didn't think of a prank to pull this morning? We'll think of one sooner or later." Said James as he tried to get his friends to move faster out of the room.  
  
"Yeah, don't worry just do as Professor Misticity says 'open your Inner Eye to find what is within you.'" Said Remus as he imitated their Divination teacher, making the rest of the boys laugh at his accuracy.  
  
" Don't worry Sirius, maybe we just need a break to recoup from all that we have done for the last six years. You'll see that we eventually will think of something, and be back the way we were, maybe even better." Soothed Peter as they descended the stairs to the common room.  
  
"Oh, I suppose..." Said a morose Sirius.  
  
"You better perk up Sirius, Katie is coming down." Warned James as he saw the girls coming down the stairs right behind them.  
  
The warning certainly cheered up Sirius and the four boys turned to wait for the girls.  
  
"Good morning ladies, I hope you had an uneventful evening." Said Sirius as he courtly bowed to them. The girls giggled, except Lily who, James noticed, just smiled amusedly.  
  
"Silly Sirius," giggled Katie, "and yes, we had an uneventful evening. Rodent free at least." The boys chuckled and furtively glanced at each other. Lily saw the looks the boys turned to each other and thought I knew they had something to do with the rat incident yesterday, and I bet that they're up to something. Katie's giggles broke through her thoughts and saw Sirius offer his arm, which she took, and waked through the portrait hole and turn to the Great Hall. The rest followed them, eager to start a new school year, even if it was their last. James glanced at each of the girls as they made their way to the Hall. Each girl was different in looks as well as in personality. Lily with her 5'5" height, mossy green eyes and slim body, was smart, witty and took things a bit too seriously, but James thought that her red hair hinted to her passionate nature, somebody eager to embrace life to its fullest. Emma had raven black hair, she was the shortest of the group with 5'4" but her body was proportionate to her height that many called her a pocket Venus. She was also clever, full of common sense, but she also had a great sense of humor and ready to laugh at life's absurdities. Katie was the odd ball of the group, as her friends were dark she was light, blond curly hair, well endowed 5'6" body that drove many to madness. While her friends were serious, she in turn liked to tease and joke, she was vibrant and energetic, someone who liked to live for the moment without thought of what might come. But James knew that despite the differences in their personalities, they shared a bond of friendship that nothing could break. Each was beautiful in their own way and the striking contrast of their appearance had gotten the attention of the male population at Hogwarts. The Hogwarts Sirens was the name given to them by the boys at school, and appropriate name, James thought. It was given to them during their fifth year, when boys suddenly realized that the trio of girls nobody had paid any attention to had blossomed into beautiful young women.  
  
The group had finally arrived at the Great Hall and walked toward the Gryffindor table. The boys were happy to notice the envious looks thrown their way by their male peers, while the girls could feel the envy radiating from the female population.  
  
"Who are they?" Asked an awed first year to his third year neighbor as he saw the group pass by.  
  
"The girls are called the Hogwarts Sirens and the boys are the Marauders, they're all seventh years, Lily Evans, the red head, and James Potter, he's the one with the glasses and messy hair, are this year's Head Boy and Girl." Whispered the third year.  
  
"Well I can see why the girls are called Sirens, but, why are the boys called the Marauders?"  
  
"According to rumor, during their first year they were caught by the caretaker out of their room in the middle of the night, he called them 'a wild lot of marauders that needed to learn a lesson,' and since then everyone has called them the Marauders, and it's easier to remember instead of their names."  
  
"Right!" Said the first year as he turned his attention back to his food.  
  
"Oh isn't he dreamy!" A Hufflepuff fifth year said as she saw the group sit at the Gryffindor table.  
  
"Which one?" Asked her friend sitting beside her.  
  
"James of course, I like his hair, makes me want to be the one to tame it." She was longingly looking at James, who with his messy black hair, deep blue eyes covered with round glasses, athletic body and 6'1" tall didn't pay much attention to the flirtatious looks were throwing his way.  
  
"You're fanciful today. He's fine I guess."  
  
"Fine? He's gorgeous, and did you see him play Quidditch last year? I think he's the best above all of them. There simply isn't a chaser in any of the teams that can compete with him."  
  
"I don't know I think Sirius is very good, in fact I think he's better than James, in looks and in athletic abilities." Sirius was similar to James in looks, wild black hair, dark gray eyes, a couple of inches taller than his friend made him the tallest of the group.  
  
"He is not, you take that back!"  
  
"I will not, it is the true and I don't lie."  
  
"You better take it back or I'll make you!"  
  
"You and what army?"  
  
Unaware of the commotion they had caused, the Sirens and the Marauders just noticed an altercation taking place at the Hufflepuff table, Lily was getting set to get involved when they saw a prefect taking care of the matter and silence being restored.  
  
"Can anyone pass me the toast please?" Asked Lily as the rest of the group started to pile food on their plates.  
  
"Here." Remus handed her the plate of toast before he reached the plate of bacon. Remus was very different in looks compared to his dark haired friends. He had dark blond hair, same height as James, but it was his eyes that grabbed the attention of the girls, they were a clear gray which tended to change color in the light and according to his mood. Peter, sitting beside him at the table, was the shortest of the group with 5'6" tall, thin blond hair, watery blue eyes, and unlike his friends, whose bodies were on the athletic side, his was rather on the portly side. But despite all their differences, they were very good friends and liked to have fun with each other.  
  
"Miss Evans, Mr. Potter, I will need you to meet with me tonight after dinner to discuss your duties. Please don't be late." Said Professor McGonagall as she passed by distributing the schedules.  
  
"Don't worry Professor, I'll be there." Said Lily and then turned to look at James waiting for his response.  
  
"Right, me too." He said after he quickly swallowed. Professor McGonagall seemed please by their answer and resumed down the table handing out the rest of the schedules.  
  
  
  
A/N: Sorry it took me a while to upload this, hopefully I will be able to upload more often. ;) 


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: You know it, all the HP related characters and places belong to JK Rowling, I do not own anything that you might recognize so please don't sue me. ;)  
  
~ A Legacy of Two Generations ~  
  
Chapter 4 ~ Duties and Expectations  
  
  
  
Their first day of classes passed uneventful. Lily spent most of the time in between classes trying to help first years to find their way around the school. James on the other hand, spent the day trying to cheer up Sirius who was still upset for not being able to think any new pranks.  
  
"Well, what did you expect Sirius? We have spent the last six years pulling every prank we could think of, and after the Animagus spell and the Marauder's Map there isn't much left to do." Said Remus as the boys entered their room to leave books and bags before going down to dinner.  
  
"Yeah, we knew the time would come when we wouldn't be able to come up with anything. Our thinking well is dry." Said Peter as he threw his things on his bed.  
  
"Thinking well?" Sirius lifted an eyebrow as he sat on his bed. "I suppose you are right, my mum gave me such a scold on our way to the train. She said that I was old enough and should act my age and if they got another owl from school they would stop my allowance."  
  
"Stop pouting Sirius, we can still have fun, maybe not in the same way we are used to, but, there are other things we can do." Said James.  
  
"Like what?"  
  
"What about...hmm...never mind, I don't think you will want to do it."  
  
"What James?"  
  
"Do you remember I was telling you about the planning for the seventh year farewell ball?"  
  
"Yeah." Three heads nodded.  
  
"You could join the planning committee, I'm sure you can think of several ways to make it a memorable event." Urged James.  
  
"Are you sure you want to give that kind of responsibility to Sirius?" Asked Remus.  
  
"Hey!" Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Yeah! I mean, he's not the most responsible person we know, and when it comes to decorating and stuff I don't think he can be very creative, he's more likely to disregard it as a girl's job." Said Peter. " We could find the Great Hall in chaos the night of the Ball and I don't think Lily would be too happy about it."  
  
"She's not our keeper! Besides, the committee is open to all seventh years, he doesn't need to ask for her permission to join. And, why can't he be in it? He can be creative even if he's not a very constructive person. I mean, he's most likely to destroy things than to build them." Said James.  
  
"Thanks a lot. And here I thought you were putting a good word for me." Was Sirius sarcastic reply. "But you'll see. I'll join this committee and show you how creative I can be!" And with this parting shot he stormed out of the room.  
  
"Whew! I'm glad that worked!" Sighed Peter.  
  
"Sirius is very predictable, if he's told that he can't do something he goes off and does it just to prove that he can." Chuckled Remus.  
  
"Yeah, and this will keep him out of our hair for a while. I was getting tired of seeing him moping around." Said James walking toward the door. The boys left the room congratulating themselves for a work well done.  
  
"Ugh! I never imagined how often first years could get lost. Honestly!" Complained Lily as she took off her shoes and wiggled her toes while sitting on her bed, waiting for her friends to go down to dinner.  
  
"The same thing happened to us as first years. And, if I remember correctly, it was the Head Girl who helped us find our way." Said Emma as she sat on her bed facing Lily.  
  
"Besides, after a while, they'll get used to things around here and you won't have to worry about them anymore." Said Katie as she walked to the restroom.  
  
"I suppose. But it would've been much easier if James could've helped." Said Lily looking at the mirror to check her hair.  
  
"It seemed to me that he had his hands full with Sirius." Said Emma.  
  
"It certainly looked that way. I wonder what is wrong with Sirius, he hasn't been his cheery self since yesterday." Commented Lily.  
  
"Do you know what is wrong with Sirius, Katie?" Asked Emma as Katie returned to the room.  
  
"No, but something happened, did you noticed the lack of pranks from last night and this morning?"  
  
"I noticed. Do you think they finally noticed how they were and decided to grow up?" Asked a hopeful Lily.  
  
"They might. This is going to be a very interesting year if it is so."  
  
"I can't imagine the Marauders being anything but their playful selves. I never thought that they would grow up."  
  
"It was about time if you ask me." Exclaimed Lily. "They're 17 for Pete's sake, they can't continue being children for long. And maybe now James will pay more attention to his duties instead of horsing around."  
  
"But it was fun!" Whined Katie.  
  
"I'm sure they'll find a way to keep us entertained. If there is something I learned from them after all these years, is that you can never underestimate them." Replied Emma.  
  
"I hope so, it's their spirit that has made Hogwarts so much fun."  
  
"If you two are done. We can go down to dinner. I have a meeting with McGonagall tonight." Said Lily as she made her way to the door.  
  
"I'm glad you didn't take long in coming. If you could take a seat?" Said Professor McGonagall from behind her desk as Lily and James entered her office after lunch. They took a couple of chairs facing her. "I shouldn't have to tell you what an honor it is to be chosen Head Boy or Girl, you should know that by now. But the office also brings a large amount of responsibilities. When you accepted this position, you also accepted to carry out these duties; if you now believe that you cannot do so I urge you to tell me now while there is still time for someone else to be chosen, otherwise, I'll assume that you will continue on." She glared at both Lily and James; neither said a word, she nodded and continued. "Good! Now, your duties." At this she took a stack of parchments out of her drawer and handed some out to them, then she started reading.  
  
" 1. As Head Boy and Girl, you are allowed to give detention or to take points off from a house for any breach of conduct." She turned to take some more parchment and gave them some. "Just make sure that you fill out those forms and turn them in to me at the end of the day for the punishment to count.  
  
" 2. As Head Boy and Girl, you are expected to lead by example. This goes specially to you Mr. Potter." Said Professor McGonagall as she stopped reading to glare at James. "I will not tolerate any pranks from you this year, and please try to refrain yourself from taking part in any. I will really appreciate it if you could keep your friend under control. You are 17 years old, any childish tendencies should have been out of your system by now. If you think you can't contain yourself, please let me know. I don't want to strip you of this position but I will if it becomes necessary."  
  
"Don't worry Professor, you won't have to do that." Said James with a serious expression.  
  
"Good, I expected no less from you." And with this she turned back to the parchment in her hand and continued reading:  
  
" 3. You must keep peace among students at all times. Raucous parties after 11 will not be tolerated." She looked at James, then she continued. "Physical and Verbal confrontations must be avoided. If you see students taking part in any of these, you are allowed to use whatever means necessary to stop it.  
  
" 4. You must make sure that students do not use magic anywhere outside of class. As Head Boy and Girl, you may use magic only under special circumstances.  
  
" 5. Meetings with among professors, prefects and Head students will be held the third Friday of each month to discuss news and events. Head Boy and Girl will meet whenever you deem necessary. The Head Boy and Girl may call an emergency meeting with professors and prefects at any time under special circumstances.  
  
" 6. Head Boy and Girl will preside over any committees formed to plan upcoming events.  
  
" 7. The Head boy and Girl may be put in charge of the safety of all or some students under special circumstances. The Headmaster will notify them whenever this is necessary.  
  
" 8. Head Boy and Girl must make sure that prefects report all password changes. Head Boy and Girl must know the password to the four houses in case of emergencies. Passwords must be kept secret and cannot be discussed with anybody else.  
  
" 9. Before settling for the night, prefects will report to Head Students that all houses are safe and settled.  
  
" 10. Head Students will open the first dance at the Graduation Ball, and must also give a speech for the commencement ceremony."  
  
"Now that you have read the list of what is expected from you, I must ask if you have any questions." Finished Professor McGonagall.  
  
"I have none Professor, I understand perfectly." Said Lily.  
  
"So do I." Responded James.  
  
"Very well, I have nothing further to say, you may go to bed. Remember that the Planning Committee for the Graduation Ball must be formed as soon as possible." Said the Professor as they stood up.  
  
"Yes Professor, I know of some students who are interested in joining." Said Lily.  
  
"I do as well, in fact, Sirius is looking forward to join." Said James.  
  
"You are joking!" Gasped Professor McGonagall.  
  
"Are you serious?" Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"No, I'm James."  
  
"James!"  
  
"I was just teasing. I'm very serious. You see, Sirius has been a bit cast down lately because he hasn't been able to come up with any new ideas for pranks, and when I mentioned the committee he perked up. Now, he can't stop thinking about it"  
  
"Well I'll be..." Whispered Professor McGonagall.  
  
"It seems that the Marauders have finally grown up." Said Lily.  
  
"What do you mean finally? We've been grown up for quite a while." Said a peeved James.  
  
"It took you long enough to figure that out." Responded Lily as they left the room, leaving an astonished professor behind.  
  
A/N: There you go, hope you enjoy it. : ) 


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: Anything or any character that you recognize from HP belongs to JK Rowling.  
  
A/N: Hope you enjoy this piece.  
  
Chapter 5 ~ Confusion in the Tower  
  
"What do you mean they've grown up?" Asked Katie the following morning.  
  
"I mean that they are finally going to start acting their age. According to James, Sirius has been moping around because they haven't been able to pull a prank since the one they pulled on us on the train." Said Lily as she finished combing her hair.  
  
"If this is so, you know what this means?" Said Emma with a twinkle in her eyes.  
  
"It means that after putting up with their pranks for six years, now we can turn the tables on them." Squealed Katie happily.  
  
"Can you imagine what is going to happen once the whole school finds out about this?" Said Lily.  
  
"Oh Lord! They certainly have a lot to pay for don't they? It would be like Christmas has come early to Hogwarts." Chuckled Emma.  
  
"Oh, let's not tell anyone, let's just keep it between us for now, make it our little project. The rest of the school will eventually figure it out." Excitedly said Katie, jumping onto her bed.  
  
"Katie, you're acting as childish as they do. Stop jumping on your bed, you're going to hurt yourself." Chided Lily.  
  
"Yes mother."  
  
"So girls," cut in Emma before any dispute issued, "what should we do? It seems that we have some planning to do."  
  
"Let's get through the day before we start any planning, tonight would be soon enough. Tomorrow is Saturday so we have plenty of time to plan." Said Lily as they walked toward the door.  
  
"That's right! Sunday would be perfect to pull it off. James and Sirius will have Quidditch practice, which means that Remus and Peter will go along to watch. We'll have the whole morning to prepare and by the time they return we'll be all set!" Said Katie as she followed Lily.  
  
"Well it seems that we have the time, now the question is, what are we going to do?" Responded Emma as she closed the door behind them.  
  
"Can you believe that she actually called us childish?" Said and indignant James as he snapped shut his trunk.  
  
"Just because we like to have fun and live to the fullest doesn't mean we're childish!" Protested Sirius.  
  
"I think that she meant that we were acting childish not that we were childish. There's a difference." Said Remus trying to soothe the tempers of his two friends, which could be as bad as his during a full moon.  
  
"I'm sure that she didn't mean that we looked childish either, after all, she could not dismiss the fact that there have been several girls around specially those who always seem to follow you everywhere you go." Soothed Peter following Remus lead, he had reason to know how strong his friends' tempers could be.  
  
"I suppose, but still, she didn't have to make plain her skepticism. I'll show her, I'll be the best Head Boy this school has ever had, make her swallow her words then." Grunted James.  
  
"Yeah, and I'll join the committee and show them all what I can do!" Roared Sirius.  
  
"Ok. Now that we have established how determined you are, can we go down to breakfast? I'm hungry!" Said Remus.  
  
"So am I. I think I'll go down and chose seats for us, and when you are ready after determining how grown up you are then you can join me. Coming Remus?" Said Peter walking toward the door.  
  
"Yeah."  
  
"Ok, we're going, gees!" Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"So what have you girls planned for this weekend?" Remus asked politely as diner got underway.  
  
"We have some stuff to do, you know 'girl stuff' " Said Katie.  
  
"Oh, right." Responded Remus, he clearly didn't want to know what this 'girl stuff' was supposed to be.  
  
"We are going to practice, that Quidditch Cup is our!" Exclaimed an exuberant Sirius.  
  
"Will you calm down, you remind of my two nieces when they are told that they are going to the circus." Said James as he saved his cup from being pushed by Sirius elbow.  
  
"Is that all you boys will be doing this weekend?" Asked Lily as she looked at them.  
  
"Yep." Responded four voices in unison.  
  
"But Remus and Peter aren't in the team, why are they going to the practice?" Asked a curious Emma.  
  
"We're going to watch, then we'll fly around for a bit. We'll be back in time for lunch." Replied Peter.  
  
"Hmm. You better return to your room and shower when you're done then. I refuse to sit by a group of sweaty guys as I eat." Said Katie, turning up her nose at them.  
  
"Yes Your Highness, and I expect you want us to shave and primp ourselves up as well." Sarcastically said Sirius glaring at her.  
  
"No, I'm not asking that, just that you tidy up a bit before coming down to eat. The smell of sweat can be very nauseating at times you know."  
  
"Ok, we'll tidy up a bit before coming down to lunch." Intervened James as he noticed Sirius getting ready to start an argument.  
  
"Thank you."  
  
James woke up early on Saturday morning. He looked out the window and saw a sunny day greeting him, and the tree branches gently swaying from side to side because of the gentle breeze. [Perfect] He thought, [Great day for Quidditch Practice] He quickly gathered his clothing and ran to the restroom; making a lot of noise as he went, which woke up his roommates.  
  
"James!" Grunted Sirius. "Could you be any louder? I couldn't hear you while I was sleeping."  
  
"Will you lot get ready? We have practice, remember?" Yelled James from the restroom.  
  
"But it's so early! I thought we were meeting at the pitch at 7:30, is barely 6!" Whined Sirius.  
  
"You might as well get up, you know that you won't be able to go back to sleep after all the noise he made." Said Remus as he pulled back the curtains from his bed.  
  
"How can he sleep through it all?" Asked Sirius as he looked toward Peter's curtained bed.  
  
"He puts cotton in his ears. He said that someone among us snores, I think that he was hearing himself snore, because I haven't heard you two snore and I don't snore." Replied Remus as he started to get his things together.  
  
"Who snores?" Asked James while he was walking out of the restroom.  
  
"Peter. Did you notice the girls last night? They were acting very strange, they got really secretive after we returned from dinner." Commented Sirius as he started to get up from bed. Remus had gone into the restroom.  
  
"Do you reckon they're planning something?" Asked James as he walked up to Peter's bed. "Peter, wake up! You have to get ready." He said, shaking Peter awake.  
  
"I'm awake." Groggily said Peter.  
  
"They are planning something, I have a feeling that they are, but, what?" Pondered Sirius.  
  
"Who is planning what?" Asked Peter as he tried to stop yawning.  
  
"The girls, Padfoot here thinks that they are planning something." Responded James.  
  
"Of course they are planning something. They are planning on how to fix their hair, what color should they paint their nails, what are they going to wear this weekend, what." Remus was saying as he reentered the room but was soon interrupted by Sirius.  
  
"Ok, ok, we get it, don't know why I asked now." He mumbled as he made his way to the restroom.  
  
"How do you know that's what they are planning?" Asked Peter.  
  
"I asked last night if they had plans for this weekend and Emma said that they were going to be doing some 'girl stuff' I didn't ask what exactly, because frankly I don't want to know." Said Remus as he walked to his trunk and put away his pajamas.  
  
"I suppose that after living with four sisters you get a pretty good idea of what 'girl stuff' can be." Smiled James as he got his Quidditch robes and his broom out from his trunk.  
  
"Exactly!" Exclaimed Remus as he sat on his bed getting ready to wait for the rest to be done.  
  
"Why do we care for what they're up to anyways." Asked Peter as he leaned on the wall next to the restroom, waiting for Sirius to come out.  
  
"I don't know; Sirius started it." Joining Remus as they waited.  
  
"What did I do?" Said Sirius as he opened the door. "I didn't start anything."  
  
"We were just saying that you were the one who started the discussion about the girls' activities." Said Remus as he stretched upon the bed.  
  
"I was just curious." Said Sirius, walking to his trunk and dumping his pajamas, then he started to look for his robes and broom.  
  
"You should try being a little more organized, how can you find anything in there?" Commented James as he watched Sirius looking through his trunk.  
  
"I don't care about organization!" Scoffed Sirius as he finally found his robes. He took out his wand and whispered "Vaporus" immediately steam started to come out from the tip of his wand and with it he started to steam press his robes while his friends watched in amusement. "There, I'm ready." He said once his robes were pressed.  
  
"So am I." Said Peter as he walked out of the restroom.  
  
"Finally, let's go. We'll stop by the Great Hall to grab a couple of bites and from there to the pitch." Said James, walking out of the room.  
  
"Right!" Three voices said as the rest following him out.  
  
"They just left! I saw them leaving the common room." Reported Katie to her friends as she came in bouncing into the girls' dormitory.  
  
"Hopefully they will leave about the same time tomorrow. What we need to do today is to memorize our scrip so we know what we're doing, and also practice the charms to make sure that we have them right." Said Lily from the window enclosure where she was sitting.  
  
"Let's go to breakfast, then we'll return here. Nobody will bother us, Amanda and Gabrielle always leave before we wake up and they barely return during the day, they prefer to go to Professor Mysticity's office. I don't see why they're so into Divination, it's just rubbish in my opinion." Said Emma from her chair in front of the dresser.  
  
"They are as bird-witted as Professor Mysticity." Responded Katie.  
  
"Well we better get down, we have a lot to do this morning, and after the boys return from practice we won't be able to do much." Said Lily standing up and walking to the door.  
  
"You are right, let's go." Said Katie.  
  
"I'm coming." Emma followed.  
  
The rest of the day was uneventful around Hogwarts. The boys practiced throughout the morning and the girls stayed in their room making plans. The afternoon was no different; the boys were seen in the common room doing some class work, playing chess and joking among each other. This behavior surprised the other occupants of the tower; usually the Marauders were seen planning new pranks and playing tricks on someone or other, they were never quiet and didn't bother doing much class work, but this time it was different. Some thought it was a wager, see how long they could go without pulling a prank, others thought that they were just trying to make everybody feel safe from them and then they would do something. But no matter what they thought, everybody looked at the foursome with wary expressions waiting to see what they would do next.  
  
While everybody took note of the Marauders' behavior, nobody gave a thought to the one from the Sirens. It seemed that a switch in personalities had occurred, the girls were now acting the way everybody expected the Marauders to act. They were secretive, their work left undone, and were sitting at a corner of the room talking in whispers. Nobody noticed this change however, everybody was just too busy keeping an eye on the boys.  
  
The next morning was as sunny as the previous day. The boys woke up early once again to take advantage of the fair weather. But as they practiced, three students were making last minute plans in the Gryffindor tower.  
  
"All right, remember now, the charm will only work for 15 minutes so you'll have to get them out of the room fast. We all know what we need to say, so let's get our wands and start getting ready." Said Lily as the girls entered the common room after breakfast.  
  
"But are we going to do about the rest of the Gryffindors? Some will want to use the tower." Said Katie as she sat at one of the chairs flanking the fireplace.  
  
"We'll be using the Confundus Charm and we can use some repelling spells to keep then away for a while." Responded Emma as she followed Katie's example.  
  
"It's lucky we'll be using a bathrobe because I'm not taking my clothes off." Exclaimed Katie.  
  
"You don't need to, the robe is big enough to cover the whole body from neck to toes, besides, they don't need to see anything they just have to think that you're not wearing anything." Said Lily.  
  
"Oh, I can't wait to see their faces, I just hope they won't have a heart attack." Chuckled Emma.  
  
" Well, we have to get ready. Come on." Urged Lily as she walked toward the stairs.  
  
After a very excruciating session, the boys walked into the Gryffindor tower to clean themselves up.  
  
"I believe I have almost perfected that move, don't you think?" Asked James as they came to the painting of the Fat Lady. "Moonlight rendevous." Said James and the painting opened to reveal the entrance to the common room. " I think I just need to practice it a little more."  
  
"I think it's fine as it is, if you over practice it you're going to take the spontaneity out of it." Replied Remus as they started to climb the stairs. They really weren't paying much attention to their direction after six years they knew their way around Hogwarts quite well.  
  
"I think it's just the turn that needs a bit of practice, the rest is just fine." Wheezed Peter as he followed his friends.  
  
"That's what I think as well, I think the turn needs more work." Replied James as he turned to look back at his friends.  
  
"I think the turn is fine, but whatever you want. We know that when it comes to Quidditch, you have to have it perfect and our opinions are superfluous." Said Sirius.  
  
"James has always been a Quidditch freak, remember that week in our second year as we waited for the results of the team tryouts? I thought my mind would become unhinged by just seeing him so overexcited." Said Remus.  
  
"Oh Lord! I remember, and then the team had to go and make him Captain last year, I think they are starting to regret their choice." Said Peter.  
  
"You can say that again, I don't remember the time when I didn't feel so exhausted from practice." Said Sirius.  
  
"If you don't mind! I don't like being talked about as if I wasn't here." Grunted James as he opened the door to a set of dorms.  
  
They entered their room and started to get their things together to change out of their sweaty robes, as they were about to change they noticed something strange.  
  
"Is it just me or are the walls moving?" Whispered Peter.  
  
"They're not moving; they are changing color." Said Remus.  
  
"Were we hurt during practice? I don't remember getting hit by a bludger." Replied Sirius.  
  
"I don't remember getting hit either, but I'm getting dizzy." Said James.  
  
"Let's close out eyes and sit for a while, maybe it will pass." Advised Remus.  
  
"Good idea!" Said James as the rest made their way to stand by a bed, "let's close our eyes. Has everyone closed their eyes?" When he received three positive responses, he said: "all right, let's sit." Four thuds were heard as they all fell to the floor.  
  
"Ouch!"  
  
"How.?"  
  
"What.?"  
  
"Huh?"  
  
The four boys immediately opened their eyes and looked down on a bare floor. No beds, no trunks, no rugs, nothing was around them.  
  
"Where did the beds go?" Asked Sirius as he started looking around.  
  
"Not just the beds but our things as well, where are they?" Said James.  
  
"This is starting to get weird." Said Remus.  
  
"Uh, guys?" Tentatively said Peter.  
  
"Yeah." The others turned to look at him and saw him pointing to the ceiling. The boys looked up and surprised gasps were heard from them.  
  
"How did they get up there?" Said Sirius as they saw the four-poster beds, trunks, nightstands, books, everything standing up side down above them.  
  
"Maybe we should ask how did we get up here, there is no way somebody could've charmed everything in a matter of seconds, I mean, it took us a couple of hours to do the same thing to the Slytherin common room." Said James as he looked toward the door.  
  
His friends noticed he was looking at something and turned to see what had caught his attention.  
  
"Do you reckon we should try getting out?" Said Sirius as they all looked at the door.  
  
"We can try, I'm assuming that only the room is enchanted and that once we're out everything would turn back to normal." Said James as he carefully got up.  
  
"No charm is permanent, our room should be back to normal sooner or later." Said Remus as he also started to get up.  
  
"Well, I don't want to wait." Said Sirius.  
  
"Oh no!" Moaned Peter.  
  
"What?" Said the other three in unison.  
  
"The walls; look at the walls."  
  
The others turned to look at the walls and saw them moving around, then the walls started to close upon them, changing colors as they moved closer.  
  
"That's it, I'm getting out!" Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
The four boys ran toward the door, but no matter how hard they pulled or how many times they turned the knob, the door wouldn't budge.  
  
"This cannot be happening!" Whined Peter.  
  
"Damn!"  
  
"Open, you piece of ****!"  
  
"Let's calm down! Where are our wands?" Said James as he started going through his pockets.  
  
"Ugh! I had forgotten about that." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Here." Remus had found his wand and approached the door. "Alohomora" The door didn't open.  
  
"Now what?"  
  
"Let's all try it at once."  
  
"One, two, three."  
  
"Alohomora!" The door opened.  
  
"Quick, go!"  
  
Once all four were outside, they looked into the room, everything was back the way it should be.  
  
"That was creepy."  
  
"I'm not going back in there."  
  
"Do you think it's over?"  
  
"Let's calm down, we'll go to the common room and try to figure out what has happened." James said in a soothing voice even though he was feeling perturbed.  
  
The boys made their way to the common room, but once they reached it something made them stop at the entrance.  
  
"Aaaahhh!" A scream was heard through out the room. The boys turned to look at the three girls sitting on one of the couches, all three were looking at them.  
  
"How dare you?" Said a shocked Lily.  
  
"What?" The boys asked, they clearly had no idea what she was talking about.  
  
"Maybe you should take a look at yourselves." Said Emma who was trying to keep a straight face. Katie was openly giggling.  
  
The boys turned to each other and noticed that their clothing had turned transparent, as a result the only thing that was covering them was their underclothes, except for Sirius.  
  
"Sirius!" Gasped James.  
  
"Well, I don't like to wear anything underneath whenever I practice, it is more comfortable this way." Replied a blushing Sirius as he tried to cover himself.  
  
The girls were now laughing and the boys knew they had something to do with what had happened to them.  
  
"What did you do?" Asked James as the others were trying to make their clothes visible once more.  
  
"Just getting even for all the tricks you've played on us." Smiled Lily.  
  
"Well, ha-ha-ha, now can you please make our clothing visible again?" Urged Remus.  
  
"Sorry, it will last for at least 12 hours, there is no counter curse, and don't bother to change it won't help you." Said Emma.  
  
"We cannot stay like this!" Said Peter who clearly didn't want anybody looking at his stripped boxers.  
  
"I don't mind." Said Sirius with a mischievous smile, the others turned to glare at him.  
  
"Oh, no you don't." Said Katie as she pointed her wand to Sirius, instantly a pair of red boxers and an undershirt appeared on Sirius.  
  
"Hey, how come he gets a top?" Complained James.  
  
"Because I want him to." Said Katie as she crossed her arms.  
  
"One question, why did you wait until now to get even with us? You could've done it earlier." Asked Remus.  
  
"Because now you haven't been able to come up with any new tricks and you've given up on them." Said Emma.  
  
"Oh right! Rub it in my face why don't you?" Pouted Sirius.  
  
"I'm assuming that it's all done and nothing else will happen." Said Peter as he warily looked at the girls as they nodded yes to him.  
  
"If we could've know how crafty and tricky you were we would've asked for your help long ago." Said Sirius.  
  
"We can talk all about it later, it's time for lunch and I'm ravenous." Said James.  
  
"You are not going into the Great Hall like that!" Said a scandalized Lily.  
  
"Why not?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"You're indecent that's why!" Exclaimed Katie.  
  
"Well, it's your fault we're like this, we are hungry and I'm not going to miss my meal." Said James.  
  
"Couldn't you wait until we send an elf with a tray for you?" Asked Emma.  
  
"No we're hungry." Said Remus.  
  
"Oh, be reasonable, you are going to create a stir if you walk into the Great Hall like that, it won't take long for an elf to get here with a tray." Said an exasperated Lily, she didn't know what else to say to make them stay in the tower.  
  
"We are tired, hungry and it's already late if we don't go now we're not going to get anything to eat, I don't know about you but I want to get something to eat soon." Replied James.  
  
"Well, I refuse to sit by you, I will not be part of this scene." Snapped Katie.  
  
"Fine!" Said the boys as they walked toward the painting.  
  
"And keep away from us, we want to enjoy our meal." Said Katie getting out behind them.  
  
"Oh, so you don't want us near, do you?" Said Sirius with a wicked smile gracing his lips.  
  
"What are you up to?" Said Katie looking a little apprehensive.  
  
"Tell you what, I'll stay here in the tower if you give me a kiss." Smiled Sirius.  
  
"Are you crazy? I'm not coming anywhere near you." Said Katie as she tried to keep some distance from him.  
  
"Ah, but I'll make worth your while." He said rapidly walking after her.  
  
"You keep away from me." She squealed and giggling ran down the corridor.  
  
"Ah sweetheart, don't run away." Yelled Sirius as he ran after her. Moments later the rest could hear squeals of laughter, it seemed that Sirius had reached his target. 


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own HP, JKR does, I only own plot and secondary characters.  
  
Thank you to you those who reviewed. Hope you like what is coming next.  
  
  
  
Chapter 6 ~ The Planning Committee  
  
The boys did create a stir just as the girls predicted. Giggles filled the air as girls noticed the Marauders' unusual attire. Professor McGonagall was not amused, even though Professor Dumbledore thought otherwise.  
  
"Well, I think it would be best if you explained the reason for this unusual display." Asked Professor Dumbledore when he asked them to come to the front to the Staff Table.  
  
"We are the victims of a trick sir, and the charm will last for at least 12 hours, doesn't matter if we change clothes." Replied James.  
  
"Why can't you put something on, Mr. Potter, this is highly irregular." Said Professor McGonagall.  
  
"Our clothing is invisible professor." Responded Remus.  
  
"Couldn't you wait until an elf could bring you a tray to the tower, did you have to make fools of yourselves?" Professor McGonagall was clearly losing her temper.  
  
"But we're hungry Professor. I say, are you going to eat that?" Asked Sirius as he pointed to a piece of chicken left on Professor Dumbledore's plate. Dumbledore smiled as he passed the plate to him.  
  
"We'll let it pass this time, but I recommend that you four stay in your dormitories for the rest of the day, or until the charm wears off." Said Professor Dumbledore.  
  
"Yes sir." The four boys said and walked to the Gryffindor House. As the boys made their way to their table, girls all over the Hall craned their necks to take a better look, some were openly gaping at them.  
  
"Really Vivianne, close your mouth unless you want an insect to fly into it." Snapped Lily to a sixth year sitting next to her.  
  
"Louise please control yourself, you look like a gaping fish with your mouth open." Replied Katie to a girl sitting in front of them.  
  
"Oh, honestly!" Exclaimed Emma as she noticed that even though the boys were sitting piling food onto their plates, girls from all tables were still looking toward them.  
  
The boys were teased constantly by all their male peers for next couple of weeks, especially Sirius after it was found out that he wasn't wearing any undergarments the day the trick was done. But the trick served to bring the groups closer together, it became a common sight to see the Marauders and the Sirens working and spending their free time together. They were now on their second week of school, the Quidditch season was finally starting, the professors had started piling loads of work to the seventh graders in preparation to the N.E.W.T.S., and the Head Boy and Girl had finally settled into the hectic and stressful life that awaited them this year.  
  
The boys found out that the girls had great sense of humor and the girls found out the boys knew more about charms and hexes than anybody could imagine.  
  
"Do you mean to say, that you lot have known how to do this for a while now?" Asked Emma as the group sat at a table in the common room working.  
  
"Yes, it was very useful for a prank we played on the Slytherins." Said Remus.  
  
"You must help me with it then, I don't seem to be getting it right." She said looking back at her work missing the quick glance Remus threw her way.  
  
"Sure, it is very easy." He replied, smiling as he continued with his work.  
  
"Do you think we should hold the meeting this Friday or the next?" Asked Lily to James as she was making notes on her pocket calendar.  
  
"It's going to have to be this Friday, the next is the third Friday of the month and we have the meeting with the prefects and the professors." Responded James, as he looked through a pocket notebook where he was writing his notes.  
  
"Hmmm.you're right. This Friday it is then. We need a notice posted today if we want enough people to see it on time.  
  
"I can get a prefect from each house to post it on each of the common rooms' bulletin boards, and a copy of the notice could also be posted on the board outside the Great Hall."  
  
"That would work, we just need to write this notice then."  
  
"Here, you write it you have a nicer handwriting than mine."  
  
"Very well, what should it say?"  
  
"What about, hmmm.I got it! 7th years interested in joining the Graduation Ball Planning Committee must take note that the first meeting will take place this Friday October 18 at 9:00 p.m. in the . hmmm.where should we meet?"  
  
"I can ask Professor McGonagall if we can use the Transfiguration room, I'm sure that she will let us."  
  
"Ok, Transfiguration room it is then."  
  
"All right, that's done!" And with a flick of her wand Lily replicated the parchment.  
  
"Do you think this looks good, or will this one work better?" Asked Katie to Sirius as they worked together on their Divination work.  
  
"Hmm. this one. Why are you using colors for this chart? It doesn't matter what it looks like."  
  
"But I care, I like my work to look nice, there has to be something fun in this class."  
  
"Hmm.well I don't care, I can't even understand that this is supposed to be on."  
  
"That's because you were sleeping the whole time Professor Mysticity was explaining it."  
  
"Something good has to come out of this class."  
  
The notice for the planning committee appeared on all bulletin boards throughout the castle, making all seventh years buzz with excitement at the thought of the Ball that awaited them at the end of the year. Friday finally arrived and a small group of seventh years convened after dinner in the empty Transfiguration classroom.  
  
"Very well, if there is no one else we must wait for, I believe it's time to bring this session to order." Said Lily above the excited whispers of the occupants in the room.  
  
"First thing we must do is decide on the date for the Ball, any suggestions?" Asked James.  
  
"I propose that it should take place the week after the N.E.W.T.S., I don't want any distractions before those." Said a Hufflepuff boy.  
  
"I second that motion, if I get distracted before the N.E.W.T.S. I will not get enough and I know my parents will not be happy about that." Responded Katie.  
  
"If you agree say aye."  
  
"Aye" Several voices said.  
  
"If you disagree say nay."  
  
"Very well, everybody agrees. Let's make it the Saturday of the week following the N.E.W.T.S. that will give the girls enough time to get ready." Said James as he made notes, the boys nodded while the girls threw him angry looks.  
  
"Next question, should we make it formal of semi-formal?" Asked Lily.  
  
"I think formal will be better." Said a Ravenclaw girl. "I second that, but maybe not dress robes." Said Sirius.  
  
"I second that." Responded a Hufflepuf girl.  
  
"If not dress robes, then what?" Asked James.  
  
"Muggle clothing." Replied Katie.  
  
"Any ayes?"  
  
"Aye."  
  
"Nays?"  
  
"Nay." Said two Slytherins.  
  
"The majority voted for formal, no dress robes but muggle clothing." Said James as he continued to take notes.  
  
"Now we must decide if we should use the Great Hall or any other room in the castle." Said Lily looking up from her notes.  
  
"The garden would be nice."  
  
"Yes, that would be nice, but there is also the chance of rain or wind."  
  
"But by then it would be almost summer, the weather should be nice."  
  
"Why don't we use both, the dancing and dinner in the Great Hall with some tables out in the garden for those who prefer to have an al fresco dinner." Said Sirius.  
  
"And the gardens could be open for those would like to stroll and take some fresh air. Who would've thought that you can actually get a good idea now and then Sirius." Laughed Katie.  
  
"Hey!" Exclaimed Sirius while the rest of the group laughed with Katie.  
  
"It does sound nice." Said Lily trying to get the attention of the group.  
  
"All right, those who agree to use both the Great Hall and the gardens say aye."  
  
"Aye."  
  
"Any nays?"  
  
"Very well the Great Hall and the gardens it is." Said James returning to his notes.  
  
"Ok, it's getting late, let's decide on the date for the next meeting." Said Lily as she looked up from her watch.  
  
"Second Friday of each month sounds good."  
  
"Everybody agrees?"  
  
"Aye."  
  
"Very well, let's reserve the second Friday of each month for the Planning Committee meetings." Replied James turning back to his notes.  
  
"Now let's do an outline of what we want to discuss for in our next meeting." Said Lily.  
  
"I reckon the next thing would be decorations."  
  
"I agree, we need to begin early on decorations in case we cannot get what we planned and we need to change it at a later date."  
  
"We would need to talk about entertainment as well."  
  
"Yes, that will give us time to hold auditions or to look for bands."  
  
"Very well next meeting come prepared with ideas on decorations and entertainment." Said Lily.  
  
"We will give you copies of the notes from this meeting next week, please make sure that you do not leave it in plain sight of anybody else and do not discuss this with anybody that is not part of the committee, we want to keep this a surprise to our fellow seventh years." Urged James.  
  
"All right."  
  
"You can count on us."  
  
"I'll keep it in mind."  
  
"Very well, good night, and if you have any questions don't hesitate to ask me or James."  
  
"Good night."  
  
"Night!"  
  
"See you."  
  
"Bye."  
  
As everybody stood up and got ready to leave the room, Lily turned to James to compare notes.  
  
"That went well." Said James as they were left alone in the empty Transfiguration class.  
  
"I thought so. Do you reckon it will continue to be like this?"  
  
"I hope so otherwise we'll have trouble getting this ball ready."  
  
"Well what we have so far is enough. I'm glad they agreed to do it after the N.E.W.T.S. I was worried about that."  
  
"Yes, so was I, my parents are expecting them to be better than my O.W.L.s."  
  
"But they weren't so bad."  
  
"My parents expect perfection."  
  
"I'm glad my parents are muggle then, they don't understand anything about N.E.W.T.S or O.W.L.S or anything magical for that matter."  
  
"You're lucky, mine are perfectionists."  
  
Lily and James left the classroom behind as they made their way to Gryffindor tower.  
  
  
  
~~~~~ I know, not too exciting, but I wanted to write this little scene. : ) 


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: This is a repost of this chapter, after some of my readers complained about the way this chapter looked I took a look at it and agreed that indeed, it needed to be replaced. Hope you like this chapter.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not anything in the HP world, only minor characters that appear in this story.  
  
  
  
Chapter 7 ~ Halloween Planning  
  
  
  
Halloween was approaching fast and everybody was looking forward to it, especially the seventh years as it was the last they would be celebrating at Hogwarts.  
  
Lily and James met with the House prefects and Professors McGonagall and Dumbledore to do last minute planning for the Halloween Feast.  
  
"Well then, now that everyone is here, any more recommendations for the Feast? Remember that there are only 6 days left to go." Commenced Professor Dumbledore.  
  
"Professor, I thought about this the other day," started James but Lily cut in with a comment that was heard by all.  
  
"You actually thinking? Really James your brain is not used to it, you're going to overwork it and you'll get sick, maybe you should take it easy." Exclaimed Lily.  
  
James glared at her while the rest present chuckled. James cleared his throat and continued. "As I was saying." he glared at Lily again who just turned to look innocently at him. "This Halloween is the last we would be spending here at Hogwarts, and I thought it should be special. Usually, all the students over third year go to Hogsmead to spend the time until the Feast while the younger students spend the day doing work or anything else that takes their fancy. So I thought why not create a series of activities to bring all students together, the morning to do as they wish but the afternoon all taking part of the festivities. This way every one will have fun and will keep students entertained and won't have time to think of doing mischief."  
  
"And so says the voice of experience!" Said a Hufflepuff prefect making the rest chuckle even James smiled at this.  
  
"Because I know how much mischief somebody is capable of in just one afternoon is that I propose it. And it will keep Sirius entertained and out of my hair, he's starting to make plans for further pranks."  
  
"That's reason enough to have it then, when Sirius is happy and busy elsewhere we are all happy." Exclaimed a Ravenclaw prefect.  
  
"Too true." Smiled Professor Dumbledore, "and I think it a great idea. Does anybody have any suggestions for activities?"  
  
"When I was in America some while ago, I saw a game at a harvest fair, they had this big barrel full of water with apples in it, 'Apple Bobbing' or something similar I think they called it. They put their arms behind his back and try to catch as many apples possible in a limited amount of time with the mouth. I had never seen anything like it, it was much fun." Said a Hufflepuff girl.  
  
"I've seen that in the summer festival in the town near my home, I agree it is fun." Responded another prefect.  
  
"Just make sure Sirius doesn't get anywhere near it, he will want to make it more interesting by putting a firecracker in the apples."  
  
"That settles it, bad idea."  
  
"No it's a good idea, we can have it, we just have to make sure that Sirius has no time to sabotage it."  
  
"If we start to think of all the things Sirius might do," said James, "we'll be here all night and nothing will be done."  
  
"Right, we just need to think of things that will keep Sirius entertained and that is relatively safe." Said Lily.  
  
"What about a pie eating contest?"  
  
"He can do that, he eats more than the whole school put together."  
  
"That's one, it will not keep him entertained the whole afternoon however."  
  
"We can have some dancing on the grounds, maybe near the lake."  
  
"That's good!"  
  
"Yeah, he likes to dance."  
  
"Quidditch contest! See how many goals in a certain amount of time, or how fast the snitch can be caught, or how far the bludger can be hit."  
  
"I like that! I wouldn't mind entering myself." Exclaimed James.  
  
"We can do all three, and you cannot enter James because you will be too busy supervising it." Said Lily.  
  
"That's good enough I suppose." Grudgingly said James.  
  
"I think all of these activities would be fun and keep out students entertained before the Feast. I leave it to you to do the planning, and as Lily has been making notes, and James came out with this idea, I think it should be their privilege to organize it. I expect all you, prefects, to help and follow their directions. I recommend that you get the planning done this weekend to have it all set by Thursday. Now if you will all excuse me, I will retire. Have a good night." Said Professor Dumbledore.  
  
"Good night Professor!"  
  
"I will retire as well, please make sure you leave everything the way you found it, good night." Replied Professor McGonagall.  
  
"Good night!"  
  
"All right you lot! Let's meet at the Quidditch field after lunch tomorrow, it will be relatively quiet and nobody can hear us." Said James to the group as they prepared to leave the room.  
  
"All right."  
  
"Meet you there then."  
  
"See you."  
  
"Night."  
  
"Do you think this is a good idea?" Asked Lily to James as they prepared to leave behind the group.  
  
"Yes, I do. I reckon it will be fun, and I plan to enjoy it as much as possible, after all, this is the last Halloween we'll be spending here at Hogwarts."  
  
  
  
Next afternoon, a small group could be seen at the bleachers of the Quidditch field. If anybody would have paid closer attention, they would've noticed that this group was formed by the House Prefects and the Head Boy and Girl.  
  
"Very well this is the list of activities that we thought could be good for the Festival." James was passing around a copy of the list to everybody, the parchment read:  
  
"FIVE MAJOR COMPETITIONS  
  
The four major contests will be:  
  
1. The Pie Eating Contest.  
  
2. The Dance contest.  
  
3. The Quidditch Contests  
  
a. Catching the Snitch  
  
b. Bludger Hitting  
  
c. Goals tryouts  
  
MINOR CONTESTS  
  
1. Apple bobbin'  
  
2. Fishing  
  
3. Ring Tossing  
  
MISCELLANEOUS  
  
1. Open dance floor (before competition)  
  
2. Food and snack stands  
  
3. Memorabilia stands"  
  
"I thought it would be a good idea to forbid the use of the wands during the Festival, we don't want things to get out of control." Said Lily as they finished reading the parchment.  
  
"Does anybody want to add something or take something out to this list?" Said James looking at the prefects.  
  
"No this looks good."  
  
"This should be enough."  
  
"This is going to be fun."  
  
"Very well, let's decide on who is going to be in charge of which activity." Said James.  
  
"It really doesn't matter."  
  
"I don't care."  
  
"Can I do one of the Quidditch competitions?"  
  
"I want to do the food and snack stands."  
  
"All right, I have it!" Said James. "Marianne," he said addressing a 6th year Ravenclaw Prefect, "you will be in charge of the pie eating contest. You'll have to go to the kitchens and get the elves to make pies for you."  
  
"Leonard and Jonathan," Lily turned to a 5th year Slytherin and a 6th year Hufflepuff, "You will join James at the Quidditch competitions. Make sure to go to Madam Hooch to ask for whatever you will need for the competition, you might even ask her to be a judge, that will turn her up sweet."  
  
"Right, Marissa," James turned to a 6th year Gryffindor, "You're in charge of the Memorabilia stands, we talked to some people and they said they might be able to come up with a logo for the Festival and make buttons, pins, flags and other things that students might want to buy, you need to go to them and see how they're doing they said they would volunteer to sell for some hours, but they do want some free time to participate in the Festival." Marissa nodded and took down the names of the students James had spoken of.  
  
"Christopher," a 5th year Ravenclaw turned to look at Lily, "you and Norman," a 5th year Hufflepuff, "will be in charge of the minor activities, the ring tossing, the fishing and the apple bobbing, James and I sent requests to businesses in Hogsmead for donations for prizes. We received some positive responses, we will sort through them and give them to you on Halloween before the festival. For now I need you to start finding volunteers to run them and to build the stands you will be using."  
  
"Dave," James looked at a 5th year Gryffindor, "and Lucy" he turned to a 6th year Slytherin, "you two will be in charge of the Food and snack stands, the Three Broomsticks donated some cases of Butterbeer and some food, the elves in the kitchens will also prepare some light snacks, you need to make arrangements for them and to get volunteers for the stands to sell and to build. We will have an area for tables with umbrellas for students and guests to rest and eat. You will also need to get that area ready. Lily will be working on the Dance floor."  
  
"Yes, I was planning on having bleachers on one side of the dance floor for spectators, and benches on another side for the dancers, the judges will have the front area of course but that doesn't need to be put up until the end of the evening for the competition. Well, I think that is all, I wanted to talk to Jordan McClellan from Ravenclaw, I know he has a band and I thought of asking him to play for us." Said Lily.  
  
"Oh, he'll like that." Said Marianne. "He's always complaining that they don't get much opportunity to play while at school."  
  
"Yeah, and he's driving us all mental with his complaints." Replied Christopher. "Could you get him to practice somewhere quiet, where he can't bother anybody?"  
  
"He can use one of the unoccupied dungeons, he will be out of the way there." Said James looking up from his notes.  
  
"Could either one of you ask him if he could play for us?" Asked Lily looking at the Ravenclaw Prefects, when they nodded she continued, "thanks, if he accepts, tell him to see me."  
  
"Good, now that we have everything settled, Lily and I will make the announcements and you lot can post them in your common rooms. We will get them to you by Monday." Said James.  
  
"Don't forget to let us know of any changes in Passwords before you leave." Reminded Lily.  
  
"If there is nothing else?" James waited to see if anybody had something to say. "Very well, this meeting is adjourned."  
  
All the prefects stood up and filed out of the Quidditch field leaving James and Lily behind at the bleachers as they made final notes.  
  
"We should do the notices in the common room, more comfortable. My back is killing me from sitting here too long." Complained James.  
  
"It's your own fault, you decided to have the meeting here, we could've had it in one of the empty classrooms."  
  
"Thank you for making me feel better."  
  
"You're welcome."  
  
"Come on, let's go to the castle, it's almost time for dinner." He offered his hand to help her down the bleachers, which she took, and together they walked toward the castle.  
  
  
  
All students were buzzing with excitement Monday night when the notice for the Halloween Festival was posted.  
  
HOGWARTS HALLOWEEN FESTIVAL  
  
You are all invited to participate in the upcoming Halloween Festival that will take place on the School grounds near the lake on Halloween prior to the Feast. Festivities will commence at 11:00 a.m. with an al fresco luncheon that will last until 1:00 when the competitions and activities will start.  
  
The activities are:  
  
FIVE MAJOR COMPETITIONS  
  
The four major contests will be:  
  
1. The Pie Eating Contest.  
  
2. The Dance contest.  
  
3. The Quidditch Contests  
  
a. Catching the Snitch  
  
b. Bludger Hitting  
  
c. Goals tryouts  
  
MINOR CONTESTS  
  
1. Apple bobbin'  
  
2. Fishing  
  
3. Ring Tossing  
  
MISCELLANEOUS  
  
1. Open dance floor (before competition)  
  
2. Food and snack stands  
  
3. Memorabilia stands  
  
Those who wish to sign up for any of the MAJOR COMPETITONS (including the Dace Competition which will take place at 5:00 p.m.) will need to do so from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m. with their respective House Prefects, there will be tables set up in the grounds for this occasion. The Dance floor will be open to all from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. for dancing or practice for the competition.  
  
Awards will be given at the end of the Festival to those with the highest scores for each of the MAJOR COMPETITIONS. Awards include:  
  
An autographed quaffle by England's National Team  
  
England National Team robes, signed by star beater Ludo Bagman  
  
A brand new Cleansweeps 1000 series broom  
  
Two tickets for the Magnum Wizards Concert  
  
Certificates for FREE food at any Diagon Alley restaurant worth 100 Galleons  
  
All minor activities will also award a variety of small prizes throughout the afternoon, there is no need to sign up for these.  
  
Please see Prefects or Head Students for a copy of the rules and regulations, you must have a signed copy to present at sign up. Participants must take note that wands will not be accepted during the Festival there will be a designated area for wand storage and students are urged to leave them in their dormitories.  
  
We hope you enjoy yourself and good luck to all the participants.  
  
"Oy, why didn't you tell us about this James? This sounds a lot of fun! I'm definitely signing up for everything." Said Sirius as he finally caught up with James who had just entered the common room after a very busy day of planning.  
  
"Because it was a last minute idea and have been too busy organizing to say anything about it." Responded James, and smiled at feeling the exuberance radiating from his friend.  
  
"Well now that you are here, I want one of those rules copies, I want to make sure I get one before you are besieged by others." Exclaimed Sirius waiting for James to look through his books for a copy of the rules and regulations parchment.  
  
"We're glad you're finally here, James, Sirius has been bouncing around the tower looking for you that he nearly drove us mental." Said Remus as he and Peter came into the common room.  
  
"So I see. Do you want some of these as well?" Asked James as he retrieved a stack of parchments from his bag.  
  
"Yeah, might as well, it does sound fun and somebody has to keep an eye on him." Said Peter as he looked toward a buoyant Sirius running to sit at one of the tables.  
  
"Don't worry about looking out for him, he'll be too busy to notice, and I don't think anybody will be able to keep up with him." Said Remus as he grabbed a copy from James.  
  
"Yeah, I suppose. I don't know what I want to do though, if Sirius is signing up for everything, it would be a waste of time competing against him." Said Peter as he started to read his copy.  
  
"There is still the open dance floor before the competition." Replied James putting away the copies. He grabbed his bag and walked over to one of the chairs in front of the fireplace. He sat and swung his feet over to the side putting them on top of one of the arms of the chair and cushioning his head with the other. "Ahhh! That's better, boy am I tired."  
  
"Where is Lily?" Asked Remus as he and Peter went to sit on a couch near James.  
  
"I don't know, I lost track of her after dinner. She has way too much energy; I get tired just watching her."  
  
"You two have been spending a lot of time together lately." Slyly said Sirius finally putting away his signed copy.  
  
"Of course we have, there has been a lot to plan, and there is also the planning committee for the Graduation Ball, not to mention all the report meetings, and I have no idea what else. Ugh! If I would've known how tiresome this Head Boy business was going to be, I would've done less in class just so I wouldn't be chosen."  
  
"Are you saying that you haven't even held her hand or tried to kiss her after all this time that you have spent alone?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"Of course not! Why would I want to do that?"  
  
"Just because you could! Geez James, this is your opportunity to woo her."  
  
"Woo her? Sirius are you mad?! She would skin me alive if I even tried any of those tactics with her."  
  
"How would you know if she would feel that way, you haven't even tried." Said Remus joining in the fun, it wasn't everyday they could tease James into a state of confusion.  
  
"But why would I even try?"  
  
"Because you like her." Replied Peter, catching on to what the other two were doing.  
  
"I do not! At least not as anything more than a friend."  
  
"Oh come James! You think she's attractive, you've gone out with other girls just as attractive and some that are less, but not with Lily, I think there is a reason to that."  
  
"No there isn't, we're just two busy people who just want to be friends, nothing more." By this time, James was sitting on the chair looking at his friends with temper rising.  
  
"How do you know what she wants?"  
  
"I know."  
  
"How?"  
  
"I - Just - Know!" James growled.  
  
"Hello what are you boys doing?" Greeted Katie, as she and Emma entered the common room.  
  
"Trying to give James here some courage to ask Lily out." Said a grinning Sirius.  
  
"Indeed!" The two girls exclaimed as they turned to look at James with speculation in their eyes.  
  
"I am not going to ask her out! I don't like her that way! Lord! You're worst than my mother." Groaned James as he sprawled back on the chair.  
  
"You cannot do any better, she's attractive and smart, socially active, what more could you want?" Asked Emma, sitting beside Remus and getting ready to make her argument.  
  
"Don't you two start matchmaking, this lot is enough for me." Complained James as he pointed to his friends.  
  
"But it's true, you are considered an eligible parti in wizard society, she is sought after by many in both, wizard and muggle, you two are the perfect couple." Replied Katie.  
  
"We are not a couple and we are not going to become one." Said James through gritted teeth, he was trying hard to control his temper so not to call attention from the other students that had started to congregate in the common room.  
  
"Oh, poppycock! You'll see, you will end up together sooner or later." Said Katie.  
  
"We are only trying to hook you up, it's for your own good." Replied Sirius, he was really enjoying seeing his friend losing his customary self- control.  
  
"Hook me up! I'm not a damn fish for Pete's sake."  
  
"Hi! What are you lot up to?" Lily said as she spied the group by the fireplace.  
  
"Nothing!" Said the whole group in unison. This caused Lily to eyed them warily they never did just nothing. She shook her head and turned to James.  
  
"Where have you been? We were supposed to meet at the Transfiguration classroom to go over our notes."  
  
"I knew I had forgotten something." James hit his forehead with the palm of his hand.  
  
"Never mind, let's go to your dorm, I'm sure the boys won't mind leaving us alone for a while." She turned to look at the others who smiled and nodded to her.  
  
"Of course we don't mind, take all the time you need." Smiled Sirius as he smiled to the couple.  
  
"Maybe you should change into something more comfortable Lily, you have been wearing those robes the whole day after all, I wager a change of clothes will help." Urged Katie.  
  
"Good idea, maybe James should do the same, no sense working on a bed if you're not comfortable."  
  
James glowered at Sirius for his comment, while Lily, who luckily didn't hear Sirius, was considering Katie's suggestion.  
  
"Hmmm.you are right, I would like to tidy up a bit. I'll meet you in your room James." And she walked up the stairs to his room.  
  
"Way to go tiger! Now it's your chance, go on." Urged Sirius.  
  
"Shut - up!" Growled James as he scowled at the group. He got up and started to walk toward the staircase. "If I hear another peep out of you, you will regret it." He turned and started to climb the steps.  
  
"Peep!" The whole group said and laughed.  
  
"That's it!" James turned back, pointed his wand to them and said "sudicius" the girls screamed and the boys groaned, they were covered in mud. "I warned you!" And James stomped off to his room.  
  
"I think we went a little too far." Said Remus as he got his wand out and prepared to clean him self.  
  
"You think?" Was Katie's sarcastic reply.  
  
"Ugh! My wand is so dirty I can't even use it." Wailed Emma.  
  
"Here let me help you." Offered Remus who had finished cleaning him self.  
  
"Thank you, I owe you one." Sighed Emma as she looked up and smiled at him.  
  
"I won't let you forget." He said with a sly smile.  
  
"If you two lovebirds are done?" Smirked Sirius as he put his wand away. When Remus and Emma, blushing, looked away from each other, he continued. "We should start planning for Halloween. What are you girls signing in for?"  
  
"Dancing." Both girls replied.  
  
"If we can find partners that is." Said Emma as she eyed Remus beneath her lashes.  
  
"Will you be my partner for the Festival?" Asked Remus putting out his hand.  
  
"Of course." Emma responded putting her hand in his. Her eyes widened as Remus lifted her hand and kissed her knuckles after which he gave her a beguiling smile.  
  
"What about you Katie? What about you with me?" Asked Sirius with a hopeful expression.  
  
"Are you asking me out?"  
  
"Will you say yes if I am?"  
  
"I might."  
  
"Well then, Katie, will you go with me to the Festival?"  
  
"Hmmm.all right then, I'll go with you."  
  
"You won't regret it." Said Sirius with a roguish smile.  
  
"I'll hold you to that." Smiled Katie.  
  
"Oh Lord!" Groaned Peter as he saw the scene developing in front of him.  
  
  
  
Lily walked down the hall that led to the boys' dormitories. For an unknown reason she was felling very excited and apprehensive at the same time, she couldn't understand why, Why should I feel like this? she thought, it is only James, and he won't try anything. Would he? She didn't know why a sense of disappointment went through her instead of relief. She stopped in front of a door, she hesitated for a moment and then knocked.  
  
"James, are you decent?" She asked.  
  
"Yes, come in."  
  
"Oh good, I was afraid I would catch you at an inappropriate moment." Said Lily as she entered the room. She was wearing a two-piece silk pajamas, emerald green bottoms with floral prints, and her top was a solid emerald green. Above her pajamas she wore a semi-transparent robe.  
  
James wore a set of silk blue pajamas, he often slept in his boxers and nothing more, but on this occasion he decided to wear his rarely used set of pajamas.  
  
"Er, yes. So what do we have to talk about?" Asked a distracted James. He was sitting on his bed, facing toward the door, pieces of parchment were lying next to him.  
  
"We have to compare notes. Honestly! Your head has been obviously lost somewhere James. What is troubling you?" Asked Lily as she sat cross- legged on the bed next to his.  
  
" Nothing."  
  
"Girl trouble."  
  
"No. Sirius trouble."  
  
"When hasn't he been one?" Snorted Lily.  
  
"Yeah, I guess. So, what do you have?"  
  
"Here, this is the list of professors who agreed to act as judges." She handed him a parchment and then reached for a second one. "And this one is a list of Hogsmead residents who also agreed to judge."  
  
"Did they tell you if they prefer an event or do we have to assign?"  
  
"Most of them told me, see these little notes by their names?" Lily got up from the bed in which she was sitting and crossed to sit beside James. "Only Professor Sprout and Hagrid didn't say what they preferred to judge."  
  
Hmmm...I think Professor Sprout could like the dance competition, Hagrid I'm not so sure...maybe one of the Quidditch trials."  
  
"That would work, now we have an equal amount of judges in each of the major events."  
  
"Right, now about the awards. Dumbledore has agreed to allow us to give them away during the Feast."  
  
"Oh good, that would work nicely and we won't have to worry about planning a ceremony just for that then."  
  
"Yeah, gives us enough time to gather all the votes from the judges and sort them all out we won't have to do it in a hurry. The Festival will be done by seven and the Feast starts at eight, that's enough time."  
  
"Right. Did all the prefects get the copies of the rules?"  
  
"Yes, I gave them out during dinner."  
  
"Oh good, I was so busy trying to persuade Madam Hooch to judge the Quidditch competitions that I forgot all about the copies."  
  
"All done."  
  
"Now let me see, what else?" Lily started to scan her notes.  
  
"I talked to Jordan," said James looking up from his own notes, "he started practice with his band this afternoon. I heard them as they did, they are very good."  
  
"I know, I've heard them. Do you think we should build a stage for them?"  
  
"It would be nice."  
  
"Hmmm...you're right, I'll see if I can get volunteers for it."  
  
"The Ravenclaw prefects reported to me that they have caught some students wagering about the outcome of the competitions, should we leave it alone or give detentions? I'm sure they will not be the last."  
  
"There isn't much we can do about it, it happens all the time. As long as it's not coins changing hands I suppose it will be fine."  
  
"I'll let all the prefects know then"  
  
"What about decorations? Marianne said she could put together a group to take care of it if we wished."  
  
"Some decorations would be nice but nothing too ostentatious."  
  
"I thought so as well. I'll tell her." Lily let herself fall backwards on the bed. "I've never been this tired before in my life. I can't wait for all of this to be over." She turned to lay face down on the bed and rested her feet at the bottom of the bed. James followed her example and lay on opposite direction, facing her.  
  
"So do I. At least we have the whole year to plan the Graduation Ball."  
  
"Thank God! Let's not do anymore last minute events, I don't think I can handle another one." Said Lily as she rested her head on her arms.  
  
"Neither will I. I'm going home for Christmas, mum has something planned, and we only have a month and a half until then so we'll have a nice break. What are you doing for Christmas?" She didn't answer.  
  
"Lily?" He turned to look at her and smiled as he saw that she had fallen asleep. I should wake her and tell her to go to bed; but she's tired so I guess she won't readily wake up. I'm too tired to carry her, maybe I'll get the others to help me. He thought as he looked at her. Sirius is right, she is pretty, why didn't I noticed that before? Is not as if we don't get along, we are friends after all. Maybe that's why. I've thought of her as a friend and nothing more. Aaarrgh! But what am I thinking, this isn't going to take me anywhere, we would never work out. He closed his eyes and rested his head on his arms and continued ruminating. And if mother hears that I'm getting involved with anyone she'll move heaven and earth to make a match. She is so concerned with the entail and getting me married that. James had fallen asleep as well, as a result, he didn't hear his friends entering the room.  
  
"It's quiet, they must be done, and James has probably gone to bed." Whispered Remus.  
  
"Maybe." Whispered back Sirius. They walked further into the room, and noticed that James' bed didn't have the curtains drawn. They walked to the bed to check on him and smiled at the sight that met their eyes.  
  
A dark and red head asleep facing each other, pieces of parchment all over the bed surrounding them.  
  
"Awww." Sneered Sirius.  
  
"They must've been very tired. Do you reckon we should wake them up? We can also carry Lily to her room." Proposed Peter.  
  
"I don't think they will wake very easily, and I don't know about carrying her. If she wakes up as we're doing so, she'll probably think that we're up to something and scream." Responded Remus.  
  
"Either that or be angry at being awoken and yell at us anyways." Replied Sirius.  
  
"Then what?"  
  
"I suppose we could leave them as they are. I don't think they have much energy to do anything more tonight."  
  
"If they did, what a show that would be."  
  
"Sirius!"  
  
"What? Well, it's true."  
  
"Let's just get ready for bed. I'm tired."  
  
The three boys tried to make no sound as they prepared for bed until finally the lights went out, and curtains were drawn, except at one of the beds.  
  
  
  
Lily slowly emerged from the nice dream she was having, through her eyelids she could see sunlight. It must be morning. She thought, and she slowly opened her eyes. Her eyes widened as a pair of deep blue eyes opened in front of her.  
  
"James? Oh dear!" Lily gasped and abruptly sat up on the bed.  
  
"What? Lily, what.?"  
  
"Good morning!" Said a cheery voice. Lily and James turned to look toward the voice and saw Sirius peering through the curtains of his bed. They also noticed two more faces looking in at them from the other two beds.  
  
"Why didn't you wake us up?" Asked Lily as she tried to put her thoughts in order.  
  
"You were too tired." Responded Remus.  
  
"You could've carried Lily to her bed." Said James glaring at his friends.  
  
"And have her scream at us if she woke up? I don't think so." Snorted Sirius.  
  
"Oh really!" Snapped Lily as she gathered her things and got ready to leave the room. She quickly went toward the door but stopped before she left. "I think the lot of you are - are -"  
  
"Idiots? Imbeciles?" Supplied James as he glowered at his friends.  
  
"Exactly!" Growled Lily and stormed out of the room.  
  
James groaned and lay back on the bed hiding his face with the pillow.  
  
"So James, did you have a good night?" Leered Sirius.  
  
"Sirius, shut up!"  
  
  
  
A/N: There you go, hope you liked it. Don't forget to review. : ) 


	8. Chapter 8 Last minute Preparations

N/A: Hello, thank you to those who reviewed. : )  
  
We finally come to the Festival Chapter. Now this one is really long (as those of you who have read it in the HP site know), so I'm going to have to divided it into three parts. Hope you enjoy this chapter.  
  
Disclaimer: I only own those characters that you do not recognize. ; )  
  
Chapter 8 ~ The Halloween Festival  
  
First part - Last Minute Preparations, Candy and Quidditch  
  
  
  
Halloween morning was greeted with a lot of expectations and high spirits by all the students at Hogwarts. Lily and James were seen going from one place to another along with a prefect or two in tow.  
  
"Make sure the boards on the stage are checked, we don't want an accident to happen during the middle of the afternoon and the band getting hurt." James was heard to say to a Hufflepuf prefect as they quickly went down a corridor.  
  
"Taken care of, Ogg had the same concern and asked Hagrid to check them this morning." The prefect replied.  
  
"Good."  
  
In another part of the castle Lily was heard saying to the Ravenclaw and Slytherin prefects.  
  
"I need you to go to Madam Hooch's office and gather the equipment we need for the Quidditch contests, she said that they would be ready in her office."  
  
"Very well, we'll do that, we have to go that way to give her a copy of the keepers schedules." Replied one of the Ravenclaw prefects.  
  
"Good make sure that the keepers, are only scheduled to guard the posts for an hour and 15 minutes at a time, they need to have the opportunity to enjoy themselves. I know the Gryffindor keeper wants to spend time with his fiancé." Said Lily.  
  
"Does Dara know what she's getting herself into? Tobias Wood is totally Quidditch crazy."  
  
"He is no different than James. But let's continue. You two go to Madam Hooch, while you two go to the kitchen and make that all the food is ready, you don't have to do anything more the elves have volunteered to carry the food out, just see if everything is prepared. After that go to the grounds and see if the tents have been erected and the tables and chairs have been put out for the luncheon."  
  
"All right, the tables with the umbrellas, do we need to check on those as well?" Asked one of the Slytherin prefects.  
  
"No I did that earlier, they're all set. That's all for now, I have to go and find James, there is something else that we need to do. Have you eaten, I don't want you to get sick."  
  
"We're full." Responded the prefects.  
  
"Oh good, once all this is done make sure you rest before the luncheon starts, there won't be time once the Festival begins. Well go on." Lily shooed them away, and then she turned in direction to the Great Hall, unlike the prefects she had not eaten yet.  
  
The Great Hall was full and excited chatter permeated the air.  
  
"I'm going into Hogsmead for just a little while, I want to return early so I can be on time to see the beginning of all the events." Said a student in the Ravenclaw table.  
  
"Didn't you sign up for anything? I signed up for all the Quidditch competitions." Responded his friend.  
  
"No, I didn't want to compete against any of the Marauders, knowing them, they probably signed up for everything, we won't have much chance of winning if that is the case."  
  
" I don't care if I don't win, it will still be fun, and I want to try getting the Quaffle past Wood. If you're not competing what are you going to do?"  
  
"Promised Lizzie I was going to with her."  
  
"Good luck!"  
  
" I'm not going into Hogsmead. I volunteered to help the band to set up." Said a girl in the Hufflepuf table with a smug expression to her friend.  
  
"Oh, you are so lucky, can I come? Please!"  
  
"Hmmm...I suppose it would be all right. They promised to let me stay while they are checking the sound."  
  
"Oh, how exciting."  
  
Similar conversations were heard through out the tables. Some older students decided to stay behind and volunteer to help settle the tents, they didn't want to miss any of the excitement. It was for this reason that only a handful of carriages arrived to Hogsmead. The small town was also buzzing in excitement. The residents were also invited to attend and everybody planned to attend, after all it wasn't every day that Hogwarts hosted an event of this caliber. Businesses decided to close early and join the students on their way back to Hogwarts and take part in the luncheon that would open the celebration.  
  
Some stores donated products to give away. Zonco's sent 25 boxes full of every single item they sold. The Three Broomsticks sent 20 barrels of butterbeer along with snacks. Honeydukes sent 50 boxes of their best selling candy. And Gladrags Wizardwear sent various boxes of everyday accessories as well as dress robes accessories.  
  
Everybody wanted to participate in one way or another, the Festival had become newsworthy and as a result the Daily Prophet was sending a reporter to cover the event and everybody in Diagon Alley had heard of it that all major businesses sent their contribution. Boxes from Quality Quidditch Supplies, Eeylops Owl Emporium, Flourish and Blotts, the Magical Menagerie, and others, were received at Hogwarts.  
  
As carriages left toward Hogsmead, Lily found herself entering the Great Hall. The Marauders, Katie and Emma were sitting at the Gryffindor table making plans for the morning.  
  
"Hello Lily! Ready to eat something? James just came in too." Said Emma as she motioned toward James who had piled a large amount of food on his plate and he seemed to think it was not enough.  
  
"Yes, I'm famished and there's still some things left to do."  
  
"There are? I thought everything was taken care of! What is it now?" Quickly said James, he was looking forward to rest for a while.  
  
"We have to open all the boxes we were sent and chose what we're going to do with them. I thought that we can use the best things for prizes for the minor games, and the rest put them in bags and we can give them to people as they start arriving." Said Lily as she grabbed two pieces of toast and butter, then she chose some fruit and cereal.  
  
"That's all we're doing? Opening boxes and filling bags?" When Lily nodded, James continued. "Good, I can do that sitting down, my feet are killing me."  
  
"Yes, it would be nice to just sit for a while, I told the prefects to rest for the morning, otherwise they are going to be too tired for the Festival."  
  
"Why didn't we get volunteers for this then, we could do with a little rest also."  
  
"James, do you remember what is in those boxes? We cannot let anyone near them without supervision."  
  
"Oh you're right, they could be stolen." Moaned James, he really wanted to go to the common room and sleep in the couch.  
  
"What could be stolen?" Butt in Sirius who had been listening attentively to Lily and James and just wanted to satisfy his curiosity.  
  
"None of your business!" Snapped James.  
  
"Fine, I could've help!"  
  
"I'm not sure that would've been a good idea."  
  
"Why not? I don't have anything else to do."  
  
"Why didn't you go to Hogsmeade?"  
  
"Because I wanted to stay here and not miss anything."  
  
"James, we could use some help, and if we are done quickly we might even get some time to sleep for a couple of hours before we have to be out there." Said Lily.  
  
"See, she says I can help." Said a smug Sirius.  
  
"Fine he can help, I guess with us there to supervise it will be ok." Grudgingly responded James.  
  
"I'm not a thief, I won't take anything." Exclaimed an outraged Sirius.  
  
"Wait until you see what we're talking about." Replied James.  
  
"Can we help too? We can keep an eye on Sirius for you." Cajoled Katie.  
  
"I wouldn't mind helping, lack of sleep is making James grouchy, he needs to rest." Said Remus as he finished his breakfast.  
  
"I'll help too, the more help you have the faster you will be done and the more time we'll have to get ready." Said Emma.  
  
"I'll help, I don't have to meet Savalia until luncheon time, she's in Hogsmeade now." Commented Peter.  
  
"You have a date?" Asked Sirius with a mischievous smile.  
  
"Yes." Said Peter, warily taking note of that smile.  
  
"And I'm sure she's a nice girl. Well if you lot want to help out, you better hurry and finish, I want to able to sleep for at least one hour." Said James, trying to take Sirius's mind off from teasing Peter, in his opinion they didn't have enough time.  
  
"Oh that would be lovely, one whole hour of sleep." Sighed Lily.  
  
"Well we're done." Said Sirius as he noticed that the rest of the group was not eating any longer.  
  
"We might as well go then." James gathered his things and got ready to leave the table. "We need to go to the dungeons, that's where we stored the boxes."  
  
"Didn't want anybody to find them did you?" Snorted Sirius.  
  
The group slowly made it's way to the dungeons, James and Lily were constantly stopped by people who wanted to get last minute details and Sirius kept insisting on stopping at every window to see how the tents were coming along.  
  
Finally they reached the dungeons. Lily opened the door at the end of a long corridor and the group saw the room full of boxes of different sizes. On the side of each box they could decipher the words: Flourish and Blotts, Zonco's, Honeydukes, and many others.  
  
"What's all this?" Asked Sirius as the group slowly entered the room. James quickly brought in some torches and Lily gathered chairs.  
  
"Giveaways, all these businesses sent products for as to give away during the Festival." Said Lily as she gathered the materials that they would need.  
  
"You are joking!" Exclaimed Sirius, as he reverently opened a box from his favorite store in Hogsmeade, Zonco's, and found a large quantity of his favorite products. "oooohhhh!"  
  
"I see why you didn't want anybody in here, this is a veritable treasure." Said Remus as he opened a box from Quality Quidditch Supplies and took out a pack of cards with the pictures of the English National Team.  
  
"Oh Emma look at this, isn't it lovely this would go nicely with your set of silver robes." Sighed Katie as she took out a silver pin from the box sent by Gladrags Wizardwear.  
  
"Could we please contain ourselves?" Complained James, who for the first time didn't care to find out what kind of Quidditch supplies had be sent, all he wanted was some time to rest.  
  
"I tell you what, if we finish this in record time, I will allow you to chose one item of each box for you to keep, deal?" Asked Lily, she didn't think James could handle more than a couple of hours, and she didn't blame him. She was just as tired.  
  
"Deal!" Said the others.  
  
"Good what we need to do is chose the best products, those will be for the prizes in the minor events, the rest will be put in these bags, put some candy in and an item from each box." Lily demonstrated how she wanted them to do, she took a handful of candy from the Honeyduke's box then went around the other boxes picking one item and putting them into the bag.  
  
They divided the boxes among each other and as if they were factory workers, they passed the bag from one to the other each putting in an item form a different box. For an hour they worked in this manner at the end of which they had a large number of bags filled and an equal number of empty boxes.  
  
"Very well, I think that's that. Let's put all of these bags in the empty boxes, I'll ask the prefects to help us take them out when it's time for luncheon." Said James very happy that it didn't take long to be done.  
  
"We have two hours until luncheon, I am going to sleep for an hour at least, can you wake me at 10 so that I can get ready?" Said Lily to Katie and Emma as they started to leave the room. Everybody was carrying some bags in their arms with the items they had chosen for themselves.  
  
"Don't worry, we will." Said Emma as the group made it's way to the common room.  
  
At 11 a.m. students and residents of Hogsmeade made their way to the grounds near the lake a large tent had been erected and a buffet table was placed at one side loaded with all kind of food. As soon as everybody was sitting, Dumbledore stood from his place at the table of honor and addressed his audience.  
  
"Welcome everyone to our Halloween Festival, I hope you all have lots of fun, but first I would like to ask you to please give a round of applause to our Head Boy and Girl, Lily and James, who with the help of all the house prefects, have organized to bring us this treat."  
  
Applause filled the air as James, Lily and the prefects made their bows, when the applause ended, Dumbledore spoke once more.  
  
"Now I would like to remind you that we are still in Hogwarts and the rules are not to be forgotten. I want you all to remember that even if you don't win, you had fun. Now let the games begin!"  
  
Applause filled the air once more. All of those present made their way to the buffet table and started to pile food on their plates, the line slowly moved as people chatted and laughed with their friends.  
  
In a table in the middle, a blond 7th year slytherin was talking to her friends, her name was Jezebel and at the moment was making plans to attract the attention of a certain Gryffindor.  
  
"Which game do you think he will supervise Jezy?" A girl in the group asked.  
  
"I'm sure he will be in the Quidditch pitch the whole day, Evans would want to keep him entertained and the only thing that will do so is Quidditch." Jezebel replied. Jezebel Robinson was, part of the elite group called the Vixens, which was mainly comprised of 7th year Slytherin students. Jezebel was the leader of the group and their goal in life was to get what they wanted no matter what they had to do to get it.  
  
"I'm not sure if we should go there, he might be too busy flying around. Honestly I don't understand what they see in that game, it makes no sense to me." Replied Jezebel's best friend, Narcissa Mulliens.  
  
"You'll be with my cousin Narcy, I'm sure Lucius will want to go to the Quidditch pitch as well, you must get used to it." Smiled Jezebel, she didn't look at Narcissa as she spoke she was too busy keeping her eyes on James, who was sitting at the table of honor next to Lily.  
  
"We need a good excuse to get in there without calling much attention. Three girls alone in the Quidditch pitch might not call that much attention if it was just anybody, but everybody knows we don't enjoy Quidditch as much as they do we will turn heads but not in the way we would like to do. If we go with you and Lucius nobody will think twice about it." Said Maureen Avery the last member of the group.  
  
"Yeah that would work, we just need to get in there without calling undue attention, I will take care of things from then on. Who is going with you Maureen?" Jezebel finally looked away from James and turned to look at her friends.  
  
"Severus."  
  
"Good choice, he's pure blood and in our house."  
  
"If you're so concerned with that, how can you even think of James Potter as a prospective mate?"  
  
"He is pure blood, it is a shame that he belongs to Gryffindor, but it's not his fault, after all his family is descended from Gryffindor himself. But his family is rich and one of the most influential in our world, how could I not think of him as a prospective spouse."  
  
"Well I wish you luck, you're going to need it with him." Replied Narcissa.  
  
"Don't worry, I don't need luck."  
  
The luncheon went on according to plan, James and Lily couldn't be any happier. The band started to play and people made their way to the dance floor as they finished eating and waited for the competitions to begin.  
  
"I will go to the prefects and tell them to take their place is time for the competitions to start." Whispered James to Lily as he prepared to leave the table.  
  
"All right, I guess we should begin now, then." Lily responded. The Head Students left the table, soon the prefects followed. Minutes later groups of students were seen leaving the dance floor and the luncheon site to start competing and have fun.  
  
"Sirius, where are you taking me?" Asked Katie as Sirius pulled her by the arm.  
  
"To the Quidditch pitch of course. I want to go first before it gets too full of people."  
  
"Why do you worry so much, you know you're a great player, one of the best in fact."  
  
"If I didn't know you I would've thought that was a compliment." Said Sirius stopping and looking back at her.  
  
"You are right, I just wanted you to slow down." She said and with a smile continued on her way.  
  
"Will you be in the Quidditch competition as well?" Asked Emma as she and Remus walked behind Sirius and Katie.  
  
"No I'm not as good as James or Sirius, and I don't want to make a fool of myself out there." Said Remus.  
  
"I'm sure you could never make a fool of yourself, you're a good flier you practice with them all the time, you could've done good." Emma said as she looked at him behind her lashes, Remus grinned.  
  
"You think so?"  
  
"I know so."  
  
The foursome arrived at the Quidditch pitch. The stands were rapidly filling up with spectators as well as competitors. The pitch had been divided into sections, two areas had been charmed to be encircled by a kind of invisible barrier, one was around the goal rings at one end of the pitch, and the other was at the other end of the pitch, where the snitch was released. The rest of the space had been left for the bludger competition. People filled the bleachers and competitors started to move toward the field.  
  
"Peter, aren't you joining?" Asked Sirius, as he got ready to move toward the pitch.  
  
"Nope, decided to just stay here at the bleachers and cheer for you instead." Peter had come in with his date, Savialia Chang a 7th year Ravenclaw, she was petite, brunette and with deep light brown eyes, they were both eating cotton candy which quickly caught Sirius' attention.  
  
"Where did you get those?"  
  
"At the snack stand just outside the pitch."  
  
"I'll be right back, I got to get me one of those." Sirius turned to the exit of the pitch but felt somebody pulling at his sleeve.  
  
"Oh no you're not. You dragged me in here Sirius Black to be among the first and I'm not going to wait more than necessary just because you have a craving for cotton candy, you better take yourself down there and win this competition before we go out there, then you can eat as much as you want. Now go!" Sirius was very surprised by the forcefulness in Katie's voice that he didn't even think of arguing with her, he just turned back to his previous direction and joined the rest of the competitors as they made their way to the pitch.  
  
"Poor Sirius, you didn't have to mean to him." Said a kindhearted Savialia as she saw Sirius walk away with slumped shoulders.  
  
"Oh don't worry about him, he will forget all about it when he gets up on his broom and is totally engrossed in the competition." Replied Remus, as he made room on the bleachers for Peter and Savialia.  
  
"If you say so." Said Savialia, but by the skeptic glance she threw at him it was clear that she didn't believe it.  
  
"How did you two meet?" Asked Emma, who was very curious to know how Peter came to have a date. She had never thought of Peter as someone who girls might want to date.  
  
"We met last summer, at the beach where my family went for vacation. We bumped into each other, literally, and started to talk and we found out that we both came to Hogwarts so we agreed to meet once more once we got here." Related Peter, and Savialia just nodded her head as he told the story.  
  
"That's nice, do you go to the beach every year Savialia?" Asked Katie.  
  
"Yes, my family owns a beach house and we go there every summer." Said Savialia after she finished all the candy and got ready to look at the competition that had just started down at the pitch.  
  
"Is Sirius going soon?" Asked Peter turning his attention to the pitch.  
  
"No, not yet, he's waiting there, see him? There are two more people in front of him." Said Remus as he caught sight of Sirius.  
  
"What are they doing here?" Said Katie with disgust in her tone.  
  
"Who?" Asked Emma and Savialia. Peter and Remus were too engrossed in looking at the competition that they had left the girls to amuse themselves.  
  
"There near the pitch just were the judges are, see them?" Said Katie motioning where she wanted the others to see. She had been told by her parents many times that pointing was not done by a lady.  
  
"Ugh! Probably flirting with the judges to gain points for Malfoy and Snape." Said Emma as she spotted the group that had attracted Katie's attention.  
  
"I think she's flirting with James." Said Savialia.  
  
"She isn't!" Gasped Katie.  
  
"She is!" Replied Emma.  
  
Down in the Quidditch pitch, James had been running from one place to the other making sure that all was in place for the competition to begin. He was quite thrilled at the sight of so many people that had arrived to see and join in the competition.  
  
"It seems to be going good, James, I congratulate you." Said Madam Hooch as she scanned the bleachers, which were rapidly filling.  
  
"Yes James, yeh must be 'appy." Smiled Hagrid; the kindhearted assistant to the old gamekeeper.  
  
"I'm glad that everything has gone on with out a hitch, and I'm sure that Lily will feel so as well." Said James smiling, he was really happy that so far the day had been a success. His friends would've said that he was ecstatic.  
  
"Will your friends be joining Mr. Potter?" Madam Hooch asked.  
  
"Sirius will be competing, the others I'm not so sure." Replied James as he looked toward the field and saw the competitors getting ready to begin.  
  
"He is goin' to make it hard for others to win." Chuckled Hagrid.  
  
"He will certainly try, he wants the autographed quaffle and robes, as well as the broom." Laughed James.  
  
"Mr. Potter, it seems that you have visitors, they have been trying to attract your attention for quite a while." Said Madam Hooch as she looked toward the stands. James turned thinking that she was talking about Peter and Remus with the girls. He was wrong. He was very well acquainted with the group that was waving in his direction, The Vixens they were called, he didn't remember how they had gotten their name but they certainly lived up to it. Jezebel Robinson was the leader of the group, blond hair, slender body and height above average, she was certainly considered to be among the prime catches among the male population, she was also egotistical, a snob, and too spoiled by her rich parents; she also liked to have around her people who were just like her. The other two members of the group certainly fit that description, Narcissa Mulliens and Maureen Avery, were just as full of themselves as Jezebel was, only interested in the bloodlines and social standing of their acquaintances. James was not very happy to be thought part of that elite social group to which all of them belonged to. But he had no choice, his family was acquainted to all the major families of the magical world and to snub the members of three of some of these families would put him in his mother's black book, not to mention his father, who considered appearances to be of the outmost importance. He made sure the judges had everything they would need and walked toward the group standing on the lower steps of the bleachers.  
  
"Well, hello there James, we don't have much opportunity to see each other during the pasts months. I must congratulate you, you seem to have done a great job." Said Jezebel in a husky voice fluttering her eyes.  
  
"Thank you Jezebel but I didn't do this alone you know." Replied James as he nodded toward the other two girls.  
  
"Oh but you must have been the mastermind behind this event, after all only a fun loving personality would've come with this idea, somehow I don't see Evans thinking of something like this." Continued Jezebel, her limpid blue eyes widening as she said this.  
  
"Oh you could never know what Lily is capable of." James didn't understand why he was defending Lily, she wouldn't be pleased about it she would say that she could defend herself very well, and it was not like Jezebel was insulting her.  
  
"Oh I'm sure that she made her contribution, after all, I've been told she is a clever girl, she would not be Head Girl if she wasn't." Soothed Jezebel, she knew that James didn't like to hear others being belittled, it would have to be something she would have to work on once she had him in her grasp.  
  
"Are you girls joining in some of the competitions?" Asked James, he was trying to think of something that would make them leave and he knew that they didn't find Quidditch very enjoyable.  
  
"Oh no, you know we don't like this much, we were just keeping company while we wait for Severus and Lucius."  
  
"Hmmm.well, I hope you still have fun even if you don't compete."  
  
"What about you James? Don't tell me you have to stay here the whole day." Said Jezebel in a feign note of concern.  
  
"Pretty much, don't have much free time except maybe to stretch my legs once in a while for a couple of minutes."  
  
"Oh, how horrid for you! I was hoping you might like to join me at the dance floor for a little while." Moaned Jezebel, who did had plans to spend time with James, it seemed that her plans would have to wait. That Evans certainly knew how to keep a guy from having fun.  
  
"Well, sorry, don't think I will have any free time to do so. I have to go now, lots to do this afternoon." James said his goodbyes and turned back to the field.  
  
"I'm sorry Jezy, I know you had plans for James today." Said Narcissa as they saw James walking away. She wasn't really sorry, she didn't like that Jezebel sometimes grabbed more attention from the boys than she did, and the thought of Jezebel with out a date for one of the most important events of the year was very satisfying.  
  
"Oh I'm sure you are, but don't worry I will get what I want, I just hadn't counted on Evans being clever enough to assign him something that would certainly make him fulfill his duty."  
  
"I'm sure you will think of a way Jezy, but let's sit, there is no reason for us to stay here any longer." Said Maureen. The others agreed and joined the crowd of spectators who were ready to cheer their favorite.  
  
On the bleachers, Emma, Katie and Savialia, watched as the Slytherin group talked to James, they were too far to see the expression on their faces or to hear anything, but they had a good idea of what it could be. The whole school knew of Jezebel's Robinson plans about James, she was too full of herself to keep it quiet. But the girls had other plans for James, and they would not allow Jezebel to ruin it for them. They breathed a sigh of relief when they saw James walk back to the field.  
  
"That was nerve-racking, we have to do something to get Lily and James together soon otherwise that hussy will eventually get to James." Said Katie, it was very clear by the way she spoke about Jezebel that she wasn't her favorite person.  
  
"Don't worry, James is too smart to fall for a girl like that, you have to have a little faith in him Katie." Said Emma, even though she knew that with the right pressure and guiles James might not prove to be very wise.  
  
"I'm sure everything will work out fine. Well now, I have to get ready if I'm going to participate in this." Said Savialia as she got ready to leave her seat.  
  
"You are going to participate on this? Which one are you doing?" The group asked, Remus and Peter had finally decided to give some attention back to the girls.  
  
"Oh, I'm trying for the seeker competition, I always wanted to see if I can catch it. Bye now, I'll see you later." Savialia made her way down to the field while the group on the bleachers cheered her on.  
  
"Fascinating girl you got there Peter." Said Remus as he watched the slim girl reach the side of the field where the competition would take place.  
  
"I think so." Replied Peter with a smile gracing his lips.  
  
The competition was fierce as all the best fliers, as well as some that were not, tried their hardest to outdo each other, but the one everyone tried to do better than was Sirius, they knew that if they got any chance of winning the competition then they would have to beat Sirius. But he didn't make it easy for them. It wasn't a coincidence that Gryffindor was undefeated for the last 5 years. It was five years ago that Gryffindor acquired the best team Hogwarts had ever seen, and it was with great sadness in part of the students left behind as well as Professor McGonagall, Head of Gryffindor House, that four members of the unbeatable team would graduate at the end of the year. The seeker, Ignacious Bell, the keeper, Tobias Wood, the three chasers, James, Lauren McInzie, and Sirius, along with the young beaters, Joshua McLaren and David Finnigan, together they formed a regular team and made it into one of the best.  
  
"Just look at him! How can anyone think that they will be able to beat him?" Said a girl to her friends as they sat on the bleachers looking at the competition.  
  
"He's lucky James couldn't join or he would've given him a run for his money." Commented another girl in the group.  
  
"Do you think there is a chance for another to win any of the prizes?" Asked another girl in the group.  
  
"I doubt it. It seems more likely for Sirius to be the big winner."  
  
"We'll have a lot of disappointed guys in our hands."  
  
"What else did they expect, they knew that Sirius was signing up for this, they were just lucky that none of the other Marauders decided to participate as well."  
  
"You're right, it would've been a waste of time participating against them."  
  
"Shhhh! Sirius is next, I want to see this."  
  
Sirius calmly walked into the area where the chaser competition would take place, he smiled when he saw that the keeper on duty was none other than Gryffindor's own Tobias Wood, Sirius always wanted to see if he could goal against him, he had played against all the other keepers except Wood.  
  
"I'm not going to make it easy for you Sirius, I've been looking forward to this." Taunted Wood as he circled the rings, until now competitors had some trouble getting the quaffle past Wood.  
  
"As have I, but you know I like a challenge, let's see how good you really are." Yelled Sirius as his eyes sparkled with the thought of a challenging play.  
  
"Are you two ready?" Asked Madam Hooch who was judging this particular event.  
  
"Yes." Both answered.  
  
A whistle was heard and the quaffle released. Sirius easily caught it and started flying up and down, side to side, trying to determine where Wood's weak area was. He quickly saw that Wood was having trouble keeping the far left ring covered and seemed to favor the right and center ring, this was what Sirius was looking for. He flew straight to the right ring but changed direction so fast that Woods didn't even perceive it until the quaffle made it into the left ring. Sirius flew around the rings with a smug smile in his face. People cheered and clapped, Sirius was the only one that had gotten one goal past Wood.  
  
By the time the five minutes were over, Sirius had gotten three goals past Wood, the crowd was impressed, Sirius was happy and Wood was resigned.  
  
"I'm happy we're on the same team and don't play against each other. You don't throw that way during practice, you've been holding out on me." Said Wood as together they slowly flew down to the field.  
  
"No I haven't I just haven't been competing against you and just throw as the chasers of the other teams do, sometimes I think they throw like wimps." Smiled Sirius.  
  
"Hahaha. That's true it isn't very hard to keep them from scoring." They had finally made it to the ground, and Sirius was instantly surrounded by well wishers.  
  
"That was smashing."  
  
"How did you do that? It was brilliant!"  
  
"Can you give me some pointers?"  
  
"Will the next competitor get ready please?" Said James, at these words the crow dispersed and the competition got ready to continue.  
  
"Well done Sirius, you might just win this thing." Congratulated James, as he slapped Sirius back.  
  
"Oh, it was nothing, I would've done much better if I had gone against any of the others but Wood is the best so it wasn't too easy."  
  
"You have some time until you get to the next one, here have a drink you must be thirsty, the elves brought them over, Lily asked them to do so, she thought it would be nice to have something cold to drink after getting up there and compete."  
  
"Smart that girl, are you going to have time to enjoy yourself at all?"  
  
"I will take half an hour break in an hour and then another just before the dancing competition, then I have to get back here to gather all the results and get them sorted."  
  
"Hmm.what about Lily, when does she have a free time?"  
  
"Not sure, you'll have to ask her."  
  
"Ok, I'll get ready for the next competition then."  
  
"Of course, good luck."  
  
"Thanks."  
  
It was the some on the other two Quidditch competitions, people tried to undo Sirius at every one, they had better luck. Sirius was a trained Chaser, even though he hit the bludger fairly good, he wasn't used to it, and his weight didn't make him a good seeker, he was too heavy for that. Others did better than him, he was not too happy of that, he was very disappointed, but he was also impressed by some especially by Savialia, who so far had gotten the snitch faster than anybody.  
  
The spectators on the bleachers cheered and yelled, and for a few moments a fight had been started, it was swiftly taken care of by James and the judges. A group of four was attentively looking at the competition and making plans for the rest of the day.  
  
"Where do you reckon we should go next?" Peter asked as he ate some of the candy found in his giveaway bag.  
  
"I think maybe to the fishing stand or to the ring toss, I want a prize and I'm going to make Sirius get it for me." Replied Katie as she stole one of Peter's candies.  
  
"Hey!" Katie smiled sweetly at him.  
  
"I think that would be a good idea there is still time for the pie eating contest." Said Emma as she grabbed some of Katie's candy and passed it to Peter.  
  
"Yeah, I don't think Sirius would eat much after all this exercise." Responded Remus; trying to keep Katie from taking her candy back from Peter.  
  
"Speaking of the devil." Exclaimed Emma as Sirius made his way up to him.  
  
"Did I just hear my name?"  
  
"If your name is Devil, then yes you did." Smiled Katie.  
  
"Well I can be devilish, does that count?"  
  
"Not really, the same could be said of your friends here."  
  
"Hey! We're not as bad as Sirius and James." Protested Peter as he moved to make room for Sirius.  
  
"Too true, we're quite sane compared to them." Smiled Remus.  
  
"Hmph! James will have something to say about that." Said Sirius.  
  
"Speaking of him, when is he going to have any free time?" Asked Emma.  
  
"He said he would be free for half an hour in about...hmm...twenty minutes, and then another before the dancing competition."  
  
"Well, we know Lily will take her first brake in an hour and the other just before the competition as well. We might just get a chance to have the whole group together then." Said an excited Katie, she had forgotten all about the candy now.  
  
"We must get them together somehow, that Slytherin hussy has been importuning James." Said Emma.  
  
"Slytherin hussy?" Asked Sirius in a whisper to Remus sitting beside him.  
  
"Jezebel Robinson."  
  
"Ahhh!"  
  
"What are you two whispering about?" Katie asked with a warily glancing in their direction.  
  
"Nothing, just asking a question." Quickly said Sirius he didn't want to deal with an angry female at all today.  
  
"What question?"  
  
"Hmmm...how long do we have to stay here?"  
  
"Oh that, we could've told you that, there was no need for whispers. We'll stay until Savialia returns from the lockers."  
  
"Why has she gone to the lockers?"  
  
"Because she has to change, silly. You didn't expect her to go around in sweaty clothes did you?"  
  
"Why not, I haven't changed."  
  
"But you will, especially before the dancing competition." Katie said with a penetrating look.  
  
"I am?"  
  
"Yes, you are."  
  
"Ok, I am."  
  
"Good."  
  
  
  
A/N: There you are the first part of Chapter 8, hope you enjoy it! : ) 


	9. Chapter 8 The Festival

A/N: Here is the second part to this chapter, I hope you are all enjoying this story.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own anything just the plot and some of the characters.  
  
Chapter 8 ~ The Halloween Festival  
  
~ Pies, relaxation time and Dancing ~  
  
The group left the Quidditch pitch and wandered through the stands, Sirius and Remus did very well at the games and won some prizes for the girls, and miraculously so did Peter. James joined them during his break and together they went to the concession stands.  
  
"Are you sure you should eat Sirius?" Asked Katie as she bit into her cotton candy.  
  
"Why shouldn't I eat?"  
  
"Well, you're on your way to the pie eating contest, you might get sick."  
  
"No I won't, besides, I'm hungry."  
  
"Maybe you should reserve that hunger for the contest." Said Remus.  
  
"But there are still fifteen more minutes for the contest and I'm hungry now."  
  
"If there are only fifteen minutes left then maybe we should go. You don't have time to eat anything." Said James.  
  
"I can take something to go."  
  
"No you can't, we have to go now."  
  
"But I want some cotton candy."  
  
"You can have some after."  
  
"But I want some now."  
  
"Honestly Sirius! You are being childish. We'll go to the contest now and after you're done we can come back and you can have as much cotton candy as you want." Snapped Katie who obviously had enough.  
  
"Promise?" Pouted Sirius.  
  
"Promise. Now let's go."  
  
"All right." And for a second time that day, Sirius was denied his cotton candy and walked dejectedly toward the contest site.  
  
"Poor Sirius, maybe we should get him some cotton candy." Murmured Savialia as they walked to the contest.  
  
"Don't worry, he will be fine." Whispered Peter.  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
"Yes, he will not die because he couldn't eat some cotton candy."  
  
"We just have to get him here after the contest and he will be fine." Said James.  
  
"If you say so."  
  
"Are you going to stay with us much longer James?" Asked Remus.  
  
"No, I'll just walk with you lot to the contest and then I will go back."  
  
"Oh, all right, we'll see you again before the dance competition won't we?" Asked Emma.  
  
"Yes, I have some free time then."  
  
"Very well, meet us at the dance floor then, we'll be dancing for a while before the competition begins." Responded Remus.  
  
The group had arrived at the place where the pie eating contest was taking place, there had been others that had gone on before and so far a boy in Hufflepuff was taking the lead. Sirius perked up the moment he saw the crowd and his usual sunny countenance graced his face.  
  
A smile started to bloom and gleefully he rubbed his hands. "This is it." He exclaimed as he started to look around the crowd.  
  
In front of the crowd was a stage, three tables were placed in the middle; the two tables at each end were for the competitors to sit and eat, the table in the middle held the pies the competitors would have to eat, once each competitor had enough, a count was made and recorded, then the next competitor would go next and see how much he could eat, at the end of the afternoon the recorded counts would be sorted and decided who the winner was, if there was a tie then a face off would be needed.  
  
"Do you think you are ready?" Asked Peter who up to now had been busy eating some ice cream.  
  
"Of course I am, I need food, you lot have been starving me the whole day."  
  
"Oh Sirius, you like to make a tempest in a tea cup don't you? That's an exaggeration and you know it." Snapped Katie.  
  
"I am not! You haven't let me eat anything since this morning."  
  
"Oh please!"  
  
"I'm a growing boy, I need my meals."  
  
The group snorted at this and the girls broke into giggles.  
  
"What's so funny?" Sirius glared.  
  
"Nothing, why don't you go up and get prepared." Urged Remus who clearly saw that his friend was losing his temper fast.  
  
"Yes why don't you go up, I'm sure that you will win." Said Peter, he knew that Sirius was easily angered if he was hungry.  
  
Sirius walked away from the group, mumbling to himself.  
  
"Honestly, you would think he was a child by the way he acts." Sighed Katie.  
  
"You knew that from the beginning." Said Emma.  
  
"He is funny, I find him very entertaining." Commented Savialia.  
  
"That's the understatement of the year!" Chuckled Remus.  
  
"What are you lot up to? Has Sirius gone up yet?" Lily had finally been able to get away and get some time off.  
  
"It took you long enough to get here." Exclaimed Katie as she spied her friend.  
  
"I know, but you knew that there was a lot for me to do."  
  
"As long as you're here, that's good enough." Said Emma.  
  
"Are you going to take some time off later?" Asked Remus.  
  
"Yes, I have the half hour before the dance competition off."  
  
"Really?" Four pairs of eyes scrutinized her.  
  
"What?" Asked a confused Lily.  
  
"Nothing, we were planning to go to the dance floor after Sirius is done, so we'll meet you there." Said Remus.  
  
"Very well. Has Sirius gone up yet?"  
  
"Not yet, we barely got here."  
  
"Do you think he will do good on this, I know he eats a lot but really, how much can a person eat?"  
  
"You obviously haven't seen Sirius when he's hungry." Snorted Remus as Peter chuckled.  
  
"But he cannot be hungry, I mean, he has probably eaten everything in the snack stand by now." Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"He hasn't eaten a thing since luncheon." Responded Katie.  
  
"What? Don't tell me he has been abstaining from food just so he could win this thing." Lily looked scandalized at the idea.  
  
"No, he has been trying to eat everything, but every time he gets ready he has to go to another competition. He just hasn't had time to eat. He hasn't been very happy about it." Responded Peter.  
  
"I can well imagine, how have you lot managed him."  
  
"It hasn't been easy. It is his own fault really, he just had to sign up for everything." Emma said.  
  
"It is a matter of ego I suppose, he just wants to show everybody that he is as good as everybody thinks he is." Expressed Remus.  
  
"That makes sense, and it certainly explains a lot about him. I wonder how he will go on after Hogwarts, he really doesn't seem to be ready to grow up at all." Sighed Lily.  
  
"Don't worry, he will find a way." Commented Katie.  
  
"Look, he is starting. Good luck Sirius." Yelled Savialia as she waved her arms.  
  
The group cheered and clapped and Sirius waved and smiled from the stage, the crowd increased as people noticed who one of the competitors was, and some of the people who had already gone up and competed groaned. Everybody knew how much Sirius could eat, and some prayers were heard hoping that Sirius had eaten enough snacks.  
  
The competitors were given their first pie and count began. It was clearly seen from the start who the winner of the competition would be. Sirius ate three pies in a matter of minutes when it had taken most of the others a little more than five minutes to eat just one. People knew that their prayers weren't heard as they saw Sirius eating pie after pie, he seemed to be non stoppable, and very hungry.  
  
"He is going to be sick if he continues eating like that." Said Savialia.  
  
"No he won't." Said the others in unison, they had seen Sirius eat after all.  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
"Yes, just enjoy the sight and don't worry, he will be fine." Said Katie.  
  
"If you say so."  
  
"Oh don't worry Savialia, he's having the time of his life." Said Peter as he put his arms around her waist to give her a quick hug.  
  
"Lord, how much can he eat, he has already eaten twice as much than the rest. There is no way anybody can catch up on him." Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"He could eat a whole hippogriff if he was really hungry." Said Remus.  
  
"Let's just hope that no hippogriff is left in his care then, the poor animal wouldn't know what hit him." Laughed Emma.  
  
"Oh, not to worry, there is no way that Sirius would be given a hippogriff, that person would be really mental to do so." Said Peter.  
  
"Or very desperate to get rid of it, maybe trying to hide it after the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures sentence it to death." Said Katie.  
  
"Really Katie, how do you come out with ideas like that?" Laughed Emma.  
  
"That would never happen, that is very far fetched." Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"Oh really Lily, I was only joking, I know that it would never happen."  
  
"How did this conversation start?" Asked Savialia who was obviously getting confused.  
  
"I don't know but I'm tired of it." Complained Remus.  
  
The girls threw dirty looks at him, which he completely ignored and just looked at Sirius who had finally had enough pie and was waiting for his count to be recorded.  
  
"How did he do? I didn't bother to count." Said Peter.  
  
"I don't know I really wasn't paying too much attention." Said Lily.  
  
"I didn't either." Said Emma.  
  
"He will tell us as soon as he join us." Said Katie.  
  
"Do you think he will win?" Asked Savialia.  
  
"Most likely." Responded Remus.  
  
They all waited for Sirius who wore a very smug smile on his face. He obviously did very well.  
  
"I don't think we need to ask how it go." Said Remus as he slapped Sirius on his back.  
  
"I did very well, they said I ate three times more than the one who had the record so far." Said Sirius.  
  
"Oh really Sirius, you're going to have nightmares tonight." Said Katie.  
  
"Why would I have nightmares?"  
  
"Because your body will hate you for all you've put it through today."  
  
"No it won't. Now let's go to get some snacks."  
  
"You must be joking!" Exclaimed Katie.  
  
"No, I want some cotton candy and you told me I could get as much as I wanted after the contest."  
  
"I cannot believe that you would eat candy after you have eaten so many pies." Said Emma.  
  
"Why not? I could still eat some more but I wanted to leave room for the candy."  
  
"You are unbelievable." Said Lily as she shook her head.  
  
"Yes I am."  
  
"And modest too." Chuckled Emma.  
  
"Of course, I'm perfect." Smiled Sirius.  
  
"Well let's go to get him some snacks, he'll bug us if we don't." Said Remus.  
  
"Well, I'll meet you at the dance floor later, I have to go back." Said Lily as she left the group.  
  
"See you Lily." Waved Emma.  
  
"James will join us so we'll be all together." Said Katie.  
  
Lily stopped when she heard this and asked "James is going to be there?" The group nodded, "well, I suppose I'll see you then." And she continued of her way.  
  
"This is going to be great. We have to get them together." Whispered Emma to Katie.  
  
"I know and we have to do it before that Jezebel becomes a problem." Katie whispered.  
  
"You are right, did you see how shamelessly she flirted with James today?"  
  
"I saw it, do you suppose James likes that?"  
  
"If he does then we have to do something about Lily, I don't think she knows how to flirt."  
  
"We can teach her if it ever comes to that."  
  
"I don't think she would do it willingly."  
  
"We'll think of something when we cross that bridge."  
  
"What are you two whispering about?" Remus asked as he noticed the duo falling behind.  
  
"Nothing just making plans for the dance, we want to get James and Lily together." Said Katie.  
  
"That's easy, I'll ask you to dance, Remus will ask Emma, and Peter will ask Savialia, that leaves James and Lily and James is so chivalrous he won't leave her by herself and will ask her to dance." Said Sirius, who thought it was the obvious solution.  
  
"That will work for one dance, but what about after, the whole point is to get them together for the whole half hour, one dance will only last ten minutes at the very most." Said Katie.  
  
"We can ask the band to play a set that will last half an hour, it will be the last set before the competition after all, and people who won't be participating will want to dance." Said Remus.  
  
"That will work, we have to ask them before Lily and James join us, it wouldn't do for them to guess what we're planning to do, they will never get together if they do." Responded Emma.  
  
"You're right, they are both so stubborn they will probably try to go against us just for spite." Replied Sirius.  
  
"We have to think the songs we want the band to play, it would be best if the set was only romantic music, to get them in the mood you know." Said Katie.  
  
"What mood do you want them to get into?" Sneered Peter while the others chuckled.  
  
"Not the kind of mood you lot are thinking of, honestly!" Snapped Emma.  
  
"What kind of thoughts do you lot have?" Glared Katie.  
  
"The kind that all seventeen year old males possess." Replied Sirius.  
  
"Oh seriously!" Exclaimed Savialia.  
  
"Let's get away from this lot, they obviously need to clear their head." Said Katie as she took the arms of the other girls and marched past the boys.  
  
"What else do they expect from us?" Asked Sirius as he saw the girls walking away from them.  
  
"I don't know but we obviously have to do something, because I don't want to dance by myself." Said Remus.  
  
"That would make us the laughing stock of the school." Groaned Peter.  
  
The boys spent the rest of the afternoon trying to 'sweeten them up' they didn't know that they didn't have to, the girls had already forgiven them but when they saw how the boys tried to be extra nice to them then they decided to leave it be, they were going to take advantage of it. They went to the Festival games, where the boys won several trinkets for the girls, they ate candy and ice cream, and bought several memorabilia items. The group had their hands full with all the things they had bought, and decided to go to one of the tents that had been erected for resting purposes.  
  
The tent was decked in comfortable surroundings, designed to give students a relaxing atmosphere in which to rest. There were three day beds where those who preferred a little nap could do so, five comfortable looking armchairs where settled in a circle in the middle of the room with a tea table in the middle. A table laden with food and drinks stood by one of the walls, and in one corner a stack of wooden boxes stood where students could store items and not having to carry things all over the place.  
  
"Oh, this looks perfect, I think I would enjoy lying down for a bit, I never thought I would so tired." Said Katie as she walked toward one of the daybeds.  
  
"Oh, that sounds lovely, I would enjoy lying down for a while as well, regain my energy for the dance competition." Sighed Savialia.  
  
"That's a good idea, I will rest for a while as well." Said Emma and the three girls settled in the daybeds to rest.  
  
"What do we do? I don't feel sleepy, even if these chairs seem comfortable and big enough for me to sleep on." Said Sirius.  
  
"We could play, there is a set of chess here." Said Peter who had spotted a set by the door.  
  
"I suppose, nothing better to do." Said Remus.  
  
"All right, but it's still boring." Complained Sirius.  
  
The boys played chess for at least an hour until the girls started to stir.  
  
"What have you lot been doing?" Asked Katie as she started to get up from the bed.  
  
"It's about bloody time for you to wake up." Snapped Sirius.  
  
"I think you need to rest Sirius." Said Emma glaring at him.  
  
"Don't mind him, he has been a bear the whole time." Said Remus.  
  
"Why?" Asked Savialia.  
  
"He is bored." Said Peter as he started to put the game away.  
  
"There's nothing new in that, he's always bored." Said Katie.  
  
"That's the reason why he has been such a prankster, boredom." Said Emma.  
  
"What has been James' excuse?" Asked Savialia.  
  
"The same, they are like two drops of water, if you didn't look very closely you would think they were twins." Said Katie.  
  
"Lord can you imagine having twins that love pranks as much as these two do?"  
  
"The poor mother."  
  
"Hogwarts would never survive it." Exclaimed Remus.  
  
"Dumbledore would never survive them, it's a miracle this pair hasn't given him a heart attack." Said Emma.  
  
"Well, let's hope that Hogwarts won't see another pair just like this one." Said Peter.  
  
"Do you mind? I don't like being talked about as if I wasn't here." Complained Sirius.  
  
"Oh really Sirius. You're such a baby sometimes." Snapped Katie.  
  
"I'm not."  
  
"Are too."  
  
"Don't start that, you know he could go on forever if you do." Warned Emma.  
  
"Are we going to get ready to go to the dance floor? We are meeting James and Lily there in half an hour." Said Savialia.  
  
"Oh, we never discussed about what we were going to do?" Wailed Katie.  
  
"Yes we did, did you forget already?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"Oh, now I remember, we should go now then so we could get to the band before anybody else."  
  
"Very well let's go, do you girls have your things, I don't want to come back because you have forgotten anything." Said Sirius as he started walking toward the entrance of the tent.  
  
The group got to the dance floor just as the band was finishing playing a set, Sirius and Katie rapidly went to the stage and whispered to the lead singer for a couple of minutes, by the time they returned to the group they found Lily and James waiting with them as well.  
  
"Where did you go?" Asked James.  
  
"Just to look for something, Katie thought she had lost it." Replied Sirius.  
  
"How did the competitions go James? The few competitors we saw were very serious about it." Said Emma.  
  
"Serious? They're obsessed with it, take Sirius here for example, he was one of the most competitive people out there but compared to others he wasn't too bad. Lucius Malfoy actually tried to hit the keeper and tried using a wandless spell to catch the snitch, and there were others just like him. I was just glad that most were Slytherins and not Gryffindor, I wouldn't have felt comfortable giving detention to my own house because they tried to cheat." Said James shaking his head.  
  
"Oh dear, was it really that bad?" Asked Lily.  
  
"Yes, you will not imagine how many wands we had to confiscate today. You should've seen Snape's face when we caught him with his wand tucked into his belt. Honestly, you would think that seventh years would know how to act." Complained James.  
  
"I'm sorry James, I thought that you would have fun doing the Quidditch competitions." Apologized Lily.  
  
"Oh, don't get me wrong I enjoyed myself it wasn't very often that we had problems, some funny things happened as well. For instance, do you know Sean McGregor from Hufflepuff?" When Lily nodded her head he continued. "Well, as he tried to catch the snitch he tried to hook his leg around the broom so he would keep his arms free but he forgot to keep the leg still and he just succeeded in losing control of the broom and fall. Fortunately he wasn't very far from the ground and had no injuries, but it was just funny seeing him fail at a very basic stunt, I knew he wasn't going to make it the moment I saw him hooking his leg." Scoffed James.  
  
"Well James, you cannot expect everybody to be a good player, you know there are some silly people out there." Said Lily.  
  
"I suppose."  
  
While Lily and James conversed, the group whispered among them making plans.  
  
"Now that they are so caught up with each other it's our chance to leave them alone." Whispered Katie to the group.  
  
"But what if they don't want to stay together, you cannot expect them to like each other just because you want them to." Said Savialia.  
  
"They like each other, as friends, we're just trying to nudge them into something further." Explained Peter.  
  
"But you can't do that, they won't appreciate it." She responded.  
  
"Honestly Savialia, don't burst our bubble, you'll see, they'll end up together sooner or later." Said Emma.  
  
"We should be getting ready to start the set, the band will begin soon." Said Remus.  
  
"We all know what we have to do, just make sure nobody cuts in between James and Lily, if you see somebody trying to just make sure the we get there first then we just have to switch partners again." Said Sirius.  
  
"Let's go, they will notice us." Said Katie.  
  
"Will you honor me with this dance, my dear?" Bowed Sirius in an exaggerated way which made Katie giggle.  
  
"But of course dear Sir." She chuckled.  
  
"Mental, both of them." Said Peter shaking his head and taking Savialia to the dance floor.  
  
"Shall we join them?" Said Remus as he offered Emma his arm.  
  
"As you wish." She said fluttering her eyelids that only served to make them both laugh. Lily and James finally noticed that their friends had left them alone and that the band was getting ready to play a set.  
  
"I suppose we should join them, we look like a pair of fools standing here waiting for them." Grumbled James.  
  
"That was very gallant of you, I'm sure I would feel blessed dancing with you." Snapped Lily.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry, I supposed I shouldn't have said it like that. But dash it all, I don't like to dance, is so boring." Complained James.  
  
"You better start thinking before you say anything else. You are not helping your case." Said Lily as she crossed her arms and glared at him.  
  
"I did it again didn't I? Sorry. Shall we dance, my lady?" And he bowed before her offering his arm.  
  
"Now you are just being silly." She said, but James was pleased to see her smile up at him. The couple joined their friends at the dancing floor, the song currently playing was fast and energetic, and everybody enjoyed showing off their dancing skills. Especially Sirius who seemed to be the most proficient of the group, he twirled Katie in every direction and miraculously didn't do any damage to her or to anybody in their proximity. Katie seemed not to mind, she quite enjoyed a fast paced dance.  
  
"Really Sirius, you are going to rip her arm off if you don't slow down." Teased Remus as Sirius and Katie managed to do a complicated dance step with out hurting themselves.  
  
"Oh, not to worry Moony, we know what we are doing." Laughed Sirius.  
  
"Moony? Why do they call you that? I've heard them call you that before." Asked Emma.  
  
"Oh nothing especial, they say I keep my mind on the moon too often." Responded Remus.  
  
"A dreamer, are you?" Emma teased.  
  
"Well of course, one of us had to be one. We have the lunatic, the leader, the dreamer, and I'm not sure what Peter is." Said Remus.  
  
"I don't think anybody does." Emma chuckled.  
  
"Sirius, slow down you are going to make me sick." Complained Katie who felt the speed of the dance catch up to her.  
  
"Oh, sorry, don't want you to get sick now do we." Said Sirius as he slowed down to a more moderate pace.  
  
"Oh, that's alright, I like to dance fast too, but I think I ate too much candy today." Said Katie, feeling her stomach settle down once more.  
  
"Hmmm...I'm glad then that I didn't each much today."  
  
"Didn't eat much? Sirius you ate twelve pies, how can you say you didn't eat much?" Exclaimed Katie.  
  
"That was nothing, besides, the pies weren't really big, they were quite small, I could've eaten more, but I wanted to have room for candy and snacks."  
  
"Oh really!"  
  
"Are Katie and Sirius a couple?" Asked Savialia to Peter as the song changed to another.  
  
"Not at the moment, but he does want to be. Why?"  
  
"Oh, just curious."  
  
"Are you planning to throw your handkerchief his way? Because if you are I must warn you that he is very smitten with her."  
  
"Oh, you don't mind if I do?"  
  
"No, why should I? Every time a girl wants to get near any of them they come to me first, I just see it as testing the waters as it were."  
  
"That is a unique way to put it."  
  
"Oh, but a lot of fun." He laughed.  
  
"You are definitely different from the rest."  
  
"Of course, we all are."  
  
The couples were now twirling to a slow song.  
  
~I, I've been in love before  
  
I thought I would no more  
  
Manage to hit the ceiling  
  
Still, strange as it seems to me  
  
You brought it back to me  
  
That old feeling~  
  
"I like this song, don't you?" Asked Lily as she and James twirled around the dance floor. They seemed to dance as one, perfectly matched.  
  
~I, I don't know what you do  
  
You make me think that you  
  
Possibly could release me  
  
I think you'll be able to  
  
Make all my dreams come true  
  
And you ease me~  
  
"I suppose, I'm not really into this kind of music." James responded as he led her into another twirl.  
  
~You thrill me, you delight me  
  
You please me, you excite me  
  
You're something I'd been pleading for  
  
I love you, I adore you  
  
I lay my life before you  
  
I'll have you want me more and more  
  
And finally it seems my lonely days are through  
  
I've been waiting for you~  
  
"Don't you believe in love?" She asked.  
  
"Of course I do, I just don't think I have encountered it before."  
  
"Oh how sad for you."  
  
"I don't think so, I just believe that when the right girl comes I will be able to truthfully say that I had never felt like that before."  
  
~I, I'm gonna make you mine  
  
You're gonna feel so fine  
  
You'll never want to leave me  
  
I feel you belong to me  
  
Someday you will agree  
  
Please, believe me~  
  
"I think she will be a very lucky girl."  
  
"Let's hope that she does too."  
  
"Oh, don't worry, she will."  
  
~You thrill me, you delight me  
  
You please me, you excite me  
  
You're something I'd been pleading for  
  
I love you, I adore you  
  
I lay my life before you  
  
I'll have you want me more and more  
  
And finally it seems my lonely days are through  
  
I've been waiting for you  
  
Oh, I've been waiting for you~  
  
The song ended and James and Lily noticed that they were alone on the dance floor, everybody was looking at them and applauding. Lily blushed and James glared at his friends who were all grinning and winking at him.  
  
As soon as the next dance commenced people joined them on the floor and the dance continued.  
  
"What are you lot doing?" Snapped James as the group joined them.  
  
"Nothing, just dancing." Said Sirius with an innocent smile.  
  
James snorted. "You lot are up to something." He glared.  
  
"Just leave them, we'll figure it out later, let's dance, people are looking at us." Said Lily as she grabbed James' arm and started to dance.  
  
"That was close." Said Remus as he passed Sirius.  
  
"We have to be careful now, we don't know what he'll do." Said Katie.  
  
"What about Lily, she's not going to like it either." Responded Emma.  
  
"There is no need for her to find out." Said Sirius.  
  
"I'm just glad they are not in the dance competition, there would be no point competing if they were." Said Savialia.  
  
"You're right, did you see them dance, I've never seen anything like it." Exclaimed Peter in awe.  
  
"They are experts in ballroom manners, they take part of the season every summer after all or their social standing would suffer." Said Katie.  
  
"I didn't know that Lily took part of the season, I haven't seen her around the ballrooms." Said Sirius.  
  
"Not the magical season silly, the muggle season. Her family is very well respected in society as well as very well off." Responded Katie.  
  
"Oh, well I didn't know that. James I knew, there is not a day during the season in which his every step is reported on the Daily Prophet's society page." Replied Remus as he and Emma danced close to the rest.  
  
"The poor boy, it is no secret that he dislikes it all, especially with his mother harping on about duty and marriage. No wonder he doesn't have a girlfriend this year." Said Emma.  
  
"But that isn't natural, a guy needs to have a girlfriend." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Oh really, and why is that?" Asked Katie giving him a penetrating look.  
  
"Because we like to be near pretty girls all the time of course." He said giving her a wink.  
  
The group laughed and mingled among the crowd, none of them noticed a trio standing by the stage.  
  
"Do you think something is going on between them?" Asked Narcissa, she was really enjoying herself watching Jezebel's jealousy.  
  
"There is nothing between them, she is not the kind of girl his family would accept." Jezebel replied as she followed James and Lily's every step.  
  
"How do you know that?" Asked Maureen.  
  
"Because of who his family is of course. His family is just like mine, well respected and among the wealthiest in our world, they would never accept a muggle born." Said Jezebel.  
  
"But the Potters are also very radical, I don't think they would mind a muggle born daughter in law, they would only care that their son is married and happy." Replied Narcissa.  
  
"That is true, remember James' cousin Edgar, he married a muggle and the family didn't really cared, they have a son now I've heard." Said Maureen.  
  
"Well, I still think that there isn't anything between them, James wouldn't feel comfortable with a girl like Lily, and I don't think Lily would even consider James as a boyfriend." Said Jezebel.  
  
"Stranger things have happened, you never now." Leered Narcissa.  
  
"If something does happen there are ways to break them up if necessary." Said Jezebel with a cold smile.  
  
"What would you do?" Asked Maureen.  
  
"You'll see if the time comes. There is no need to think of it."  
  
"Are you so sure the time will never come?" Asked Narcissa.  
  
"I'm sure." Jezebel replied. If she would've listen to a conversation taking place in the dance floor she wouldn't have been so sure.  
  
  
  
A/N: The song that James and Lily were dancing to was a song of 1975 by ABBA, the title is I've been Waiting for You. Coming up the dance competition and the Halloween Feast. 


	10. Chapter 8 The Feast

A/N: Final part of Chapter 8 is finally here.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own anything that you might recognize.  
  
Chapter 8 ~The Halloween Festival  
  
~Third Part: Dancing Competition and Halloween Feast ~  
  
"What do you think they are up to?" Asked Lily when she noticed that James was still frowning.  
  
"Matchmaking that's what." Grumbled James.  
  
"Matchmaking? Who?"  
  
"You and I."  
  
"And would that be so bad?"  
  
"Well yes, we are friends. Why would we want to mess it at all up by dating?"  
  
"You have a good point there." Said Lily as she looked away from James, she didn't want him to see her feeling disappointed by his answer. The feeling was so surprising that Lily was quite staggered by it, she never thought that she would feel disappointed if James never thought of her as dating material.  
  
"Besides, I would drive you crazy in a day, we wouldn't last too long." Said James.  
  
"You really think so."  
  
"Yes, we are just two different people." He smiled at Lily but sounded more like he was trying to persuade himself than her.  
  
"Yes, we are." Lily smiled back.  
  
The dance continued, the couples twirled, and people enjoyed themselves. Finally the dance ended and the floor was cleared in preparation of the dance competition.  
  
"I have to go, I have to get all the votes and equipment ready." Said James as the group met.  
  
"Do you really have to?" Asked Katie.  
  
"Of course, you want to know who won the competitions don't you?"  
  
"In that case, you have to make haste, there is no reason for you to stay here." Urged Sirius, pushing James in the direction of the Quidditch Pitch.  
  
"Somebody is certainly looking forward to it." Laughed Remus.  
  
"Let him go Sirius, we have to get ready." Yelled Emma, as the competitors turned toward the bleachers set just for them.  
  
Peter, Savialia, Emma, Remus, Katie and Sirius walked toward the bleachers to wait their turn, Lily and James walked back to their posts. The band started to play, the competitors whispered and chattered in nervousness, and the judges took their seats. Lily had prevailed in persuading Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall and Madam Rosmetta to agree and judge the competition. The bleachers set aside for the audience was filling fast; cheers and jeers were heard through out the crowd, as well as laughter and excitement.  
  
"Ladies and gentleman, welcome to the last competition of the evening, the Dance Competition." Said Jordan McClellan. The crowd exploded into applause. "Let me introduce you to our illustrious panel of judges: Professor Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of Hogwarts." More applause as Professor Dumbledore stood and bowed to the audience. "Next we have, Professor Minerva McGonagall, deputy headmistress of Hogwarts and professor of Transfiguration." More applause filled the air. "And last but not least, Madam Rosmetta, Representing the town of Hogsmeade and the Three Broomsticks.  
  
"Now if we are all set lets begin with the competition. All the competitor will dance together the first dance, then they will clear a space in the front and each couple will have five minutes to dance on their own before the next couple does, they will rotate counterclockwise. Before the judges' introduction the couples were given a number to show the order in which they will dance. Couples, please take your place."  
  
All the couples filled the dance floor, numbers could be seen on their robes. The band started to play and couples started to dance. Some had more energy than skill while there were a few whose skill clearly made them finalists of the event. The judges looked and made notes, while the crowd clapped and sang along with the band.  
  
The couples twirled and danced, as the crowd cheered and clapped.  
  
Lily was standing by the judges, making sure they had all they needed and laughed at Sirius antics on the floor, he certainly seemed to be having fun even though his dancing wouldn't be winning any awards this evening. Katie didn't seem to mind, she was having as much fun as he was.  
  
Remus and Emma were experienced dancers, they both loved to dance and together they made a wonderful couple, synchronized to each other as if they had been dancing together for a long time. Peter and Savialia were also having fun. Peter was not a good dancer but Savialia was, she led him through the steps and together they seemed to give a good enough performance, even if it wasn't the best.  
  
The band kept playing, each couple got a chance to show off to the judges and people applauded as their favorite couples came forward.  
  
As all this was going on in the dance floor, James was getting all the equipment ready to be taken back to Madam Hooch's office. Madam Hooch, Hagrid, and Professor Flitwick had finished all the notes they needed to do, and had chosen the winners, the sealed note had been put inside a charmed box that would not open until it was time for the presentation. They had decided to go and see the dance competition while James and the rest of the prefects took care that everything was put away. James was in the Pitch with two prefects, the rest had gone to take care of the stands and the tents around the grounds, the only thing that was being used was the dance floor and it would be taken care of the next morning.  
  
"Where do you want this James." Asked Ravenclaw's prefect Marianne. She showed him a pile of brooms.  
  
"Set them here with the balls, we'll take them all together I don't want to leave anything behind." Said James as he turned to look around, making sure that everything had been gathered.  
  
"We'll take them to Madam Hooch's office, you just take care that the box arrives to the Great Hall, we don't want to lose it." Said Jonathan, one of Hufflepuf's prefects.  
  
"Lord no, we don't want to lose it, we'll have a riot in our hands if we do." Laughed Marianne.  
  
James laughed along with them and said. "Really ruthless, this lot, I never thought to see so much competition in this, I suppose we all have some ego deity to appease."  
  
"We'll take this then, there is nothing else left behind, the barriers will cease to exist in a few hours, and the tables had already been taken in to the castle." Said Jonathan as he picked up the trunk with the Quidditch balls, Marianne gathered the brooms and got ready to follow him to Madam Hooch's office.  
  
"Very well, I'll see you at the Feast." James waved to them and saw them leave the field, he then returned to read his list and started to cross off the things that had been done, and see what was left to do. He was too caught up in his list that he didn't notice that he was no longer alone.  
  
"You didn't have too much time for yourself did you?" A husky voice asked from behind. James quickly turned and saw Jezebel leaning against the wall that separated the bleachers from the field.  
  
"No, not much free time available." He responded and turned back to his list. Jezebel quietly approached him.  
  
"I saw that you had enough time to dance." She said as she stilled beside him.  
  
"Yes, only for a while."  
  
"I'm hurt you didn't think of asking me to dance." She pouted, she had been told by admirers that her pouting lips was sexy, but it seemed to have no affect on James.  
  
"Didn't ask anybody, Lily was there so we danced."  
  
"You didn't have to dance with her if you didn't want to, there were others more worthy of your attention." She said leaning in to whisper in his ear.  
  
James rapidly straightened and put some distance between them. "There was no need to look for someone else, Lily and I are friends and she's a graceful dancer."  
  
"Hmmm.If you say so. Are you all done for tonight?" She asked closing the distance that James had carefully put between them.  
  
"Not yet, still have things to do." He stepped away as he noticed the distance decreasing.  
  
"You have become very serious since last semester. Is there no more Marauder spirit?"  
  
"No seems to have gone away."  
  
"Too bad, but I'm sure that with the right persuasion it will come back." She whispered as she finally stood near him. A bit too near, he thought.  
  
"Er.Was there a reason that you came to see me?" He asked, he had no idea how to make her leave.  
  
"Nothing in particular, I got bored watching the dance competition and thought to give you some company."  
  
"Oh, I'm all right, you could go back to the castle. The Feast will start soon." He said, hoping that she would take the hint and leave. She was either too thick or just ignored it.  
  
"There is no need, the dance competition still has some time left to go."  
  
"Oh, well I'm sure that you will want to spend time with your friends then, before we have to go in."  
  
"No, I have spent the whole day with them."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"Do you know what I would like to do right now?" She asked as she slowly stroke his left arm. James was shocked he had no idea on how to respond or what to do.  
  
"Er.no."  
  
"I would like to have some fun with one of the most handsome young men in our world." She said pressing herself to him.  
  
"I'll make sure to let you know if I see any of them." He said as he tried to step back, but she didn't let him.  
  
"Oh but I've seen one that fills all my requirements." She whispered.  
  
"Indeed?" He felt his face blush and sweat braking upon his forehead.  
  
"Indeed yes. Would you like to know who this person is?"  
  
"No, there is no need." He quickly said, he was getting very nervous now.  
  
"Oh? But you know him quite well." She put her hands upon her chest and he moved back to keep her from touching him. It didn't work, it only made her reach for his hands and put them around her waist. She took hold of them behind her back.  
  
"Er, I'm sure I do."  
  
"Do you have an idea of whom I'm speaking of?" She huskily said.  
  
"A small idea."  
  
She smiled and quickly pressed her lips to his. James was stunned, he couldn't think of what to do, he tried pulling away but Jezebel had now her arms around his neck, and his arms were trapped by her body. He couldn't move away.  
  
A cough sounded in the empty field, and he quickly pushed Jezebel away. Both turned to see who had coughed and a serious looking Lily stood by the entrance of the field.  
  
"I trust I was not disturbing anything." Lily said.  
  
"Oh no, you didn't interrupt anything, quite glad to see you in fact." Quickly said James as he walked, actually ran, toward her.  
  
"No, you didn't interrupt anything, I was just saying good bye. I'm sure that you will take care of him now won't you?" Jezebel said as she started to move toward the end of the field. "See you later James." And she blew a kiss in his direction and slowly made her way to the exit of the Pitch.  
  
James and Lily watched her go and then turned to look at each other, the silence that followed was very awkward for both of them. They quickly looked away, but Lily was very curious by the scene she just witnessed.  
  
"I didn't know that you two were a couple, you have kept it quite a secret." She said as she looked around the field, trying to look nonchalant.  
  
"We are not a couple, she just threw herself at me." Said an exasperated James. How could Lily think that he would have anything to do with a girl like Jezebel, he thought.  
  
"Oh? It didn't seem like you minded much." She said as she picked a piece of parchment from the floor.  
  
"What could I do? It seemed rude to be brusque with her. What has gotten into her?"  
  
Lily laughed at the way James run his fingers through his hair, not only was his hair usually messy but he was now making it even worse.  
  
"What is so funny? Is not every day I have a girl throwing herself at me." He growled.  
  
"I've heard otherwise, but it's funny that every male in this school would've given his right arm to be in your shoes today and you don't like it." She smiled, she felt a surprising sense of relief to see that James truly felt the way he said he did. She couldn't understand the reason why she felt this way, but she knew that she didn't want to think about it, there was enough time to do so another time.  
  
"Well, those who feel that way are just idiots, they can try to seduce her for all I care, I don't see why I have to suffer her attentions at all." He snorted, he was not happy that Lily thought of it as a big joke, he was sure that the rest would know what had happened today in a matter of seconds.  
  
"Oh James, you certainly are unique among men." Teased Lily.  
  
"I like to think so." Laughed James.  
  
Lily giggled while James chuckled, but when they looked at each other, the laughter stopped and a feeling of electricity and shock ran through their bodies. Lily blushed and turned away, James coughed and turned to look for his things.  
  
"Has the dance competition ended?" James asked as he picked up his book bag.  
  
"Yes, a while ago, I have here the votes by the judges." Lily said as she extended her hand full of parchments.  
  
"Put it in the box, it will sort our through the votes and disclose the winners when is time to present the awards." Said James, presenting the charmed box holding the votes.  
  
"I'm very glad that Professor Dumbledore thought of it, I wasn't looking forward to have to sort through all the votes." Lily slipped the pieces of parchment into a slot on the top of the box and saw a yellow glowing light emerge from it.  
  
"So was I, this makes it all so much easier. I'm glad Professor Flitwick agreed to performed the charm, I think he likes to show off his talent sometimes."  
  
"I think they all do, they wouldn't be teaching if it wasn't so."  
  
"That's probably true. Are you ready to return to the castle then?"  
  
"Yes, all the tents have been taken down and all the equipment taken back, the only thing left undone is the dance floor, but Hagrid said to leave it and he would take care of it tomorrow morning." Lily responded as the couple started to make their way to the castle.  
  
The grounds were dark and quiet, so different from an hour ago when people still played some of the festival games while the rest were at the dance competition. Then, the grounds where festive and full of light, now only a few lanterns left gave them light and showed them the way to the castle.  
  
Lily looked all around her, glad that the day was over. No more meetings, no hurried notes, no more worrying that everything was set, now she would get a chance to relax and take things easy. She wondered if anybody would use the prefect bathroom, she could use the special bathroom for Head students, but she had gotten used to the prefect bathroom, and it was nearest to the Gryffindor Tower.  
  
James walked silently beside her, he was thinking of what had happened with Jezebel, was he overreacting? He was very flattered of course that she would think of him in that way, but he also knew that Jezebel was too fastidious and self conscious for his taste. It was true that she was considered among the most sought after girls in the magical world, and he also knew that his mother would welcome her with open arms if he decided to fall in with her plans of marriage. But not his father, his father worked for the Ministry of Magic as a cabinet member and advisor to the Minister. In his exalted position he knew a lot about the members of Upper Circle, the name given to those in the wealthiest families in the magical world. He didn't think much of Jezebel's father, Aliaster Potter thought that Jack Robinson was too interested about the Dark Arts. James didn't know about Jezebel but he was sure that her father could be a great influence on her, he certainly doted on his only child.  
  
Lily and James finally reached the castle and walked toward the Great Hall, most students were already sitting in their respective House Table anxiously waiting for the Feast and Award Ceremony to begin. Lily sat at the Gryffindor Table by Emma and Katie while James took the box up to the Staff Table, where he put it into Dumbledore's hands. James promptly walked to the Gryffindor table and sat with his friends. Chatter, laughter and excitement filled the air, the expectation was almost palpable; students kept looking toward the staff table where the box was in plain view in front of Dumbledore. Residents of Hogsmeade had been invited to stay for the Feast, several accepted and a temporary fifth table was conjured for the Hall.  
  
"Welcome all to the Halloween Feast," said Dumbledore bringing the Hall to silence, "I hope you have all enjoyed your day." The Hall exploded in applause and cheers. "I'll take that as a yes. I want you all to thank Mr. Potter, Miss Evans and all the prefects for preparing this wonderful day for us." More applause filled the air. "Now I know you are all eager to find out the winners of the competitions," students were heard shouting the names of their favorite competitors (in most cases their own), "but," Dumbledore continued, "we will wait until the end of the Feast to open this box and name the winners." Groans were heard throughout the Hall. "I just have one more thing to say, Bon Appetite." Food instantly filled the plates in each table, pumpkin juice flowed along with the conversations.  
  
"Why did you take so long in coming, I thought you two would've been here earlier." Said Sirius with a mischievous sparkle in his eyes.  
  
"We had to make sure we were not leaving anything behind, especially the box." Responded James looking warily at Lily.  
  
The group intercepted the look that James turned on Lily and the smile that this look evoked on her. They turned to look at one another with a lifted eyebrow and questioning expressions. Something happened and James obviously didn't want them to know. And they wondered what it was and why he wanted to keep it a secret.  
  
James kept his eyes on his food, thus, he missed the exchange between the others when he lifted his head his eyes met those of Jezebel across the room, she smiled and wiggled her fingers, James quickly turned to look elsewhere but instead met Lily's laughing eyes.  
  
Throughout the evening students kept going to the Staff Table to talk to Dumbledore, he nodded and smiled and the students returned to their tables. When the Feast was almost done, Dumbledore was seen speaking with Rosmetta, the students were eager for him to be done and get on with the awards.  
  
When he was done and turned back to finishing his food, people where at the end of their chairs, everyone keeping track of how much food was left on his plate. When he drank his juice and pushed away his plate a sigh of relief filled the Hall. Chatter and laughter once again was heard, final bets made and eager smiles graced every face.  
  
"Attention please, it's time now to name the winners of the competitions." Cheers and applause greeted his announcement. "Now, let us review the prizes for each competition and then we will name the winners.  
  
"For first place in the Chaser Competition: An quaffle autographed by England's National Quidditch Team.  
  
"For the Beater Competition: A set of England's National Team Robes signed by star beater Ludo Bagman.  
  
"For the Seeker Competition: A brand new Cleansweeps 1000 series broom.  
  
"For the Dance Competition: Two tickets for the Magnum Wizards Concert.  
  
"And for the Pie Eating Contest: Certificates for free food at any Diagon Alley restaurant worth 100 Galleons."  
  
His audience applauded and cheered every time he said each prize, and were now ready for the winners to be named.  
  
"Now let us open this box and see who the winners are." Dumbledore slowly opened the box and a yellow glowing light erupted from the box, it was very bright and for a moment, blinding. The light slowly receded and five pieces of parchment levitated into the air, stilling in front of Dumbledore. He took one and opened it.  
  
"The Winner for the Pie Eating Contest is: Sirius Black who managed to eat twelve pies." The Hall erupted into applause as Sirius stood up and went to the front to get his free food certificates, a silly smile graced his face.  
  
Dumbledore reached for the next piece of parchment and opened it. "The winners of the Dance Competition are: Emma Holmes and Remus Lupin."  
  
Remus and Emma smiled at each other as they got up from their seats and walked to get their concert tickets. The Gryffindor Table was the noisiest of them all, winners for two competitions were named and they were from Gryffindor. Professor McGonagall seemed very proud as she clapped louder than the rest of the teachers.  
  
When the applause died down Dumbledore reached for the next piece. "The winner of the Seeker Competition is: Savialia Chang." The Ravenclaw Table exploded, finally a winner that wasn't from Gryffindor.  
  
"The winner of the Beater Competition is: Jonas Finch-Fletchley." It was Hufflepuf's turn now to make noise while Jonas happily got up and joined the other winners at the front of the Hall.  
  
"Now the winner of the last competition, the Chaser Competition: Sirius Black" The Gryffindor Table once more erupted into chaos.  
  
"Now that we have our winners please give them a round of applause." The group returned to their seats among cheering and clapping.  
  
"Now there is one more thing to be taken care of. I've been approached by the majority of the student body with a request to crown a King and Queen of the Festival and they all had candidates for this honor, and it just happened to be the same pair, I have discussed it with the Staff and the Prefects, our Head Students were not available at the time, and we decided to go ahead with it and crown your choice for Queen and King. The Three Broomsticks have donated a meal for two and Gladrags Wizardwear have donated a shopping spree valued at 250 Galleons for our couple. Your choice for King and Queen of the Halloween Festival are: James Potter and Lily Evans for giving us a perfect performance at the dance floor. Will Mr. Potter and Miss Evans please come to the front?"  
  
Lily and James sat stunned in their seats, this was something they didn't expect, the Gryffindor Table had gone wild and Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff joined them in their celebration, Slytherin didn't seem too happy with how the evening had gone, no winners were named from their house and now Gryffindor had been given a major honor. Jezebel was not happy, she was glaring at James and the pandemonium coming from the other tables just fueled her anger. Narcissa saw Jezebel expression and readily understood the reason for it, she smiled to herself and turned back to speak with Lucius Malfoy who was sitting beside her.  
  
Lily and James had to be pushed from the table, they eventually made their way to the front and stood in front of Dumbledore who took his wand out and said "Reginus Coronus" and from the wand a pair of crowns appeared and fell into place on their heads. The Hall was cheering and clapping louder than ever.  
  
"Now that our King and Queen had been crowned I will urge you to go straight up to bed, if a need for further festivities is still with you please make sure to appease them before midnight. Now off you go and have a good night."  
  
The Hall slowly emptied, students returned to their common rooms and Hogsmeade residents were offered the carriages to return home. The Gryffindor common room was full of students who still wanted to celebrate, food and drinks appeared.  
  
"I really wasn't expecting this." Said Lily as she sank into the chair next to the fireplace and pulled the crown from her head. Katie and Emma quickly joined her to gaze at the crown it was finely woven in gold, golden laurel leaves entwined and joined to form the crown, small diamonds were encrusted among the leaves. James's was woven in the same way the only difference was that Lily's was triangular in shape while his was more squared and thicker.  
  
"It is very beautiful." Whispered Emma as they inspected the crown.  
  
"Did you lot have something to do with this?" Asked James as he sat on one of the couches near the chair the girls were sitting on.  
  
"We had nothing to do with it, we didn't even know about it." Said Sirius.  
  
"Hmmm.well I suppose it is an honor nonetheless." James said as he pulled the crown from his head and handed it to Remus who was reaching for it.  
  
"Well I don't know about you but I'm going to bed, I'm too tired to stay down here." Said Peter trying to hold a yawn.  
  
"I'll go up as well, I really don't have the energy for any more festivities." Said Emma starting to weave her way among the crowd in order to reach the stairs.  
  
"I'm a bit hungry so I'm staying." Said Sirius as he looked toward the table laden with food. Slowly the common room started to empty, until only Sirius, James and Remus were left behind.  
  
"This was really enjoyable, I'm looking forward to the next festivities you two plan." Sighed Sirius as he finally felt satiated and in need of no more food.  
  
"Well, I don't think I have the energy to plan anything similar in the near future. I'm going to spend the whole day tomorrow in bed." Yawned James.  
  
"You can't, it's a Friday and we have class." Responded Remus as he lay down on one of the couches.  
  
"Not I, we have special permission from Dumbledore and the Professors to take the day off." Sighed James.  
  
"Are you serious? You lucky dog." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Who are we?" Asked Remus.  
  
"Lily, the prefects and I."  
  
"Well I hope you enjoy it, you lot really deserve it." Yawned Remus.  
  
"You sure do, what are you planning to do?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"Stay late in bed and then take a long soaking in the Prefects Bathroom."  
  
"Why not the one specially for the Head Students?" Remus turned to look at James as he asked this.  
  
"In case Lily has the same idea, I don't want to walk in on her when she's in the bath."  
  
"Ha-ha-ha, that would certainly be awkward." Laughed Sirius.  
  
"Certainly would, well I don't know about you but I'm turning in, I'm too tired to stay down here." Said James as he stood up and walked to the stairs.  
  
"Wait up, I'll go too." Yelled Sirius.  
  
"There is no need to yell, and I might as well go with you." Said Remus.  
  
The three friends slowly made their way up to their room. It wasn't long when everybody in Gryffindor lay sleeping.  
  
  
  
A/N: Whew! That took a while. This is the first long chapter in my story (as those of you who have read it in the official site know), there are others that are just as long. As I explained before, because I don't want to confuse my loyal readers in the HP site, I will leave it in the same format and not change the chapters at all. I hope you all enjoyed the story so far, and hope to see your reviews. : ) 


	11. Chapter 9

A/N: Thank you all for reviewing : D I'm so glad that you like the story so far. I have more for you and I hope you enjoy it as much.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own anything that has to do with HP, JK Rowiling does, I only own some minor characters and the plot.  
  
~ Legacy of Two Generations ~  
  
  
  
  
  
Chapter 9 ~A day of Leisure  
  
  
  
The tower was full of commotion very early the next morning as students got ready to go down for breakfast and go to class. In the boys' dormitories, the Marauders (with the exception of James) got ready to get on with their day, they tried to do everything quietly without having to wake up James, they knew that he must be exhausted after all the events from the previous day.  
  
"Lucky dog, him." Whispered Sirius as they exited the room. "A long soak in the bath and just flopping about the whole day, a three-day weekend for him."  
  
"Well, he certainly deserves it, he has been so busy with the Festival he barely had time for anything else." Said Remus leading the way to the common room where they would meet the girls.  
  
"He certainly has been swamped, I cannot see how he got time to attend classes and do his work." Commented Peter. They had arrived to the common room, the girls were not there yet, so they walked up to their usual chairs to wait for them.  
  
"Well, he is still having some trouble with Charms, it is always surprising to me how good he is at all the other classes, especially Transfiguration, but Charms is just a mystery to him." Said Remus.  
  
"Maybe we can get Lily to help him, that's her best class." Replied Peter.  
  
"That would be a good idea, they can spend more time together." Said Sirius.  
  
"His mother is hiring someone to tutor him remember, he said so when we were on the train, we would have to go to her and ask her to hire Lily and that would make her suspicious and ruin everything." Responded Remus, who knew Mrs. Potter's penchant to drive her son crazy with her meddling.  
  
"She scares me sometimes, how can a lady so intelligent think of nothing else but marrying James off, he's too young!" Exclaimed Sirius, who thought the same as James and thought marriage was a waste of time, what was the point of it?  
  
"And if she heard that we were trying to match Lily and James it would certainly give her ideas and she might want to do so as well, and her methods are much more ruthless than ours. It would only serve to pull Lily and James apart." Said Peter as he looked into the fire. It was now November and the weather was starting to get chilly and a nice fire was welcomed . "What will pull Lily and James apart?" The boys turned as a female voice was heard from behind them. Katie and Emma stood watching them waiting for them to answer Katie's question.  
  
"James' mum. She is the meddlesome sort." Said Sirius as he stood up from the chair and greeting the girls with a kiss in the cheek.  
  
"Oh, yes James' mum can be ruthless in her search for a wife for James. She can't find out about our plans." Said Emma as she turned to greet the other two boys.  
  
"Where is Lily? Still sleeping?" Said Peter as the group started to walk toward the painting hole and go to breakfast.  
  
"Yes, she was really exhausted last night, she barely had time to change before she fell asleep." Said Katie.  
  
"At least they will have some rest time, the lucky devils." Responded Sirius.  
  
"Oh I know Lily would make the most of it, she plans to have a long soaking in the prefects bathroom." Said Emma with a wistful look in her face, she obviously envied Lily the opportunity.  
  
"She can't go in there!" Exclaimed Remus coming to a halt, the group stopped to look at him with surprise.  
  
"Why can't she, she has a right to do so." Frowned Katie.  
  
"But James is planning to take a bath in the prefects bathroom." Said Remus.  
  
"Oh dear, that would be awkward." Muttered Emma.  
  
"Maybe we should leave them a note." Said Peter as he started to turn back to the Gryffindor Tower. Sirius stopped them before he could go very far however.  
  
"No I don't think we should." Said Sirius with a mischievous smile.  
  
"No Sirius, if you are thinking the same thing I am, it would only get us in trouble not to mention them." Said Emma.  
  
"Oh but it would be such a great opportunity for them to know each other better." Said Katie.  
  
"I don't think that it would be a good moment for them to do so." Said Peter, he clearly thought the idea to lead to disaster.  
  
"So they would be embarrassed, big deal, they will get over it." Scoffed Sirius, he was getting warmed up to his idea and didn't want the others get him off it.  
  
"But if they find out we knew about it and didn't warn them, they will be mad and you know how bad their temper could be." Said Remus.  
  
"Don't worry, you know nothing will happen the moment one of them gets in and sees the other using the bath he or she will run out of the bathroom as if the devil was in their tail." Said Sirius.  
  
"And Lily is to smart to leave the door unlocked, James would know then that she's in there and will go to the Head Students Bathroom." Said Katie.  
  
"You see, there is no need to tell them, they know how to take care of themselves." Smiled Sirius and lead the group back toward the Great Hall.  
  
The group was settling into their seats when Sirius said, "Oy, I forgot my transfiguration assignment. I'll be right back." And sped out of the Great Hall.  
  
"How could he forget his assignment?" Asked Katie.  
  
"He always leaves his parchments lying around, he forgets one assignment of another at all times." Said Remus serving himself some eggs.  
  
"Hmmm.well, I don't think he can make much mischief on his own then." Said Emma.  
  
The rest of the group laughed and Peter chocked, Remus turned to slap him in the back and said, "You obviously don't know Sirius very well."  
  
Sirius readily returned the group was still eating and he quickly piled food on his plate.  
  
"I'm famished, I feel as if I haven't eaten anything in weeks." He said.  
  
"You must be joking, you ate twelve pies yesterday not to mention all the candy during the Festival and the pile of food during the Feast." Said Katie.  
  
"I'm a growing boy, I need to be fed."  
  
"Honestly!" She exclaimed while the others laughed.  
  
"Well, you better hurry, we are going to be late if you don't." Said Emma getting her things together, ready to go to class.  
  
"I wish I was James, all cozy in his bed, then take a long bath and return to the bed." Sighed Peter.  
  
"We all wish to be in their shoes today." Said Katie.  
  
The group left the Hall and made their way to their classes.  
  
Lily slowly opened her eyes, sunlight streamed through the curtains surrounding her bed. She heard no noise, no whispering, no movement. Was it possible that everybody had left already? She thought, What time is it? I could not have overslept, I'll be late for class.  
  
Lily parted the curtains and noted the time on the clock by her bed, it was 9:45.  
  
"Oh no I'm late, Professor McGonagall will be so mad." Whispered Lily as she quickly started to get her things ready.  
  
She was so busy getting ready that she didn't noticed she was being watched.  
  
"Will miss, like breakfast?" A squeaky voice asked from behind her.  
  
Lily screamed and turned with her wand ready. She saw a small house elf standing by the dresser, a tray piled with food beside her and her hands covering her ears.  
  
"Oh I'm sorry, you scared me so." Apologized Lily.  
  
"Minnie sorry miss, did not want to scare miss." Sobbed the elf.  
  
"Oh Minnie, don't cry, it is alright." Lily tried to soothe the elf.  
  
Minnie gradually stopped sobbing and turned her big eyes full of tears toward Lily. "Is miss sure? Minnie don't want to be punished miss."  
  
"I'm sure, and I don't think Dumbledore would punish his elves." Smiled Lily.  
  
"Dumbledore, is a good master miss. But my own master is better." Minnie's face lighted up the moment she mentioned Dumbledore, she seemed to be very fond of him. Lily wondered who her master was and why was she here.  
  
"Oh, I'm glad. But why are you here Minnie?"  
  
"I came to bring miss breakfast. Professor Dumbledore said that you and Master James had permission to skip classes, and that Minnie bring breakfast here."  
  
"Oh, you are right, I don't have to go to class! I was worried I had overslept; I was already thinking of the scolding I was going to give Emma and Katie for not waking me." Said Lily feeling very relieved.  
  
"Will Miss like her breakfast here? Mater James is in the common room." Said Minnie looking at Lily, her big, tennis-ball-sized eyes now dry with a hopeful expression.  
  
"I think I will join James Minnie, I don't like to eat by myself." Said Lily and tried to grab the tray but Minnie quickly took it and went down to the common room. Lily shook her head and followed her.  
  
"Good morning! I see you decided to join me." Smiled James as he sat in one of the tables with a Daily Prophet in his hands.  
  
"Good morning! Yes I did, if you don't mind, I don't want to disturb you." Said Lily as she glanced the paper and wondered if James did this every morning when he was at home, he certainly didn't do it when he was in Hogwarts.  
  
"Oh no, I don't mind. I don't want to read anymore, it is starting to get me depressed." Said James putting the paper aside. He stood from his chair and held the one next to his for her to sit.  
  
"Thank you. I had forgotten that we were given the day off, I was already getting mad that the girls hadn't woken me." Said Lily lifting the cover from the plates in her tray. She noticed that James has eaten a little, he had barely started then, she thought.  
  
"What is it about the paper that is very distressing?" She asked after putting her milk glass down and turning to look at James.  
  
"Oh, all the new attacks this week. I cannot believe that the Ministry hasn't been able to find out who is responsible and able to do something about it." Exclaimed James, he felt very strongly about this issue in his opinion, a wizard that took advantage of his talents to give pain and suffering had no right to live.  
  
"I thought that with the assignment of Mr. Crouch as the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement things would be different." Said Lily. She was starting to get worried about the latest news from the magical world.  
  
"Well, he has done more than the previous Head of the department, but he hasn't been able to find who is responsible, and to make things worst muggles are now disappearing and some have been found dead." James shook his head; this situation was getting worrisome.  
  
"Oh no! Who would do such a thing. I suppose it was wishful thinking that muggles would be safe from all of this." Sighed Lily.  
  
"I suppose we all thought that it would stay within our world, muggles have no chance against a wizard. The Ministry is going crazy trying to keep it quiet but it isn't working."  
  
"Oh, let's change the subject I don't want to think about all of this. As long as we're in Hogwarts we'll be safe."  
  
"Yes, Dumbledore will keep us from harm." Said James and tried to think of something else to talk about.  
  
"Will Master and Miss want something else?" Minnie asked. James and Lily turned to look at her, they had forgotten about Minnie.  
  
"No thank you Minnie I'm fine." Smiled Lily.  
  
"I'm fine as well Minnie."  
  
"Very well Master James. Mistress Susan sent an owl Master James, do you want Minnie to bring it here?"  
  
"Yes, Minnie bring it here, if you don't see me here then leave it at the table by my bed." Said James as he piled all the empty dishes on the tray.  
  
"Very well Master James." Minnie bowed to the couple, gathered the empty dishes and left the room by way of a hidden elf door at one corner of the room.  
  
"Mistress Susan?" Asked Lily, who was Mistress Susan, she thought.  
  
"My mother. Minnie always makes sure that I get her messages, mother told her to." Grumbled James.  
  
"Is Minnie your elf?" Asked a surprised Lily, she thought that house elves in the castle belonged to the castle.  
  
"Yes, she's mine. Mother gave her to me, said I needed to learn how to lead employees and servants."  
  
"I don't like the idea of having magical beings as property." Said Lily, it was slavery in her opinion.  
  
"Neither do I, but can't go against centuries of a established society, and they like it, I tried setting one free when I was a child and it kept coming back, cried every time I told it to go away, that it was free. I finally gave up."  
  
"Oh that's cute." Giggled Lily, she could easily imagine a black-messy- haired little boy trying to make an elf leave.  
  
James blushed and quickly stood from the table. "Well, I got more leisure time to kill." Said James.  
  
"Oh so do I, I'm going to take a long bath." Sighed Lily.  
  
"All right, I'll see you later then." James quickly left the room and returned to his dorm. James quickly turned to look for something to do, he then remembered that he had planned to take a bath as well. If she's taking a bath, then she'll be using the Head Student's bathroom. I'll use the prefect bath then. He thought. James started to get his things together, when Minnie came into the room.  
  
"Here you are Master James, Minnie brought Mistress Susan's letter Master James."  
  
"Thank you Minnie. Have you seen my towel Minnie? I can't find it." Asked James while he was looking through his trunk.  
  
"Oh yes, I washed it Master James, they are here in this pile Master James." Said Minnie, pointing to a pile of clean clothes that had been set at the foot of his bed.  
  
"Thank you Minnie. You don't need to bring me lunch in here Minnie, I'll go to the Great Hall."  
  
"Very well Master James. Do you need anything more Master James?"  
  
"No Minnie, you can return to the kitchens if you want."  
  
"Thank you Master James." Minnie bowed and quickly left the room.  
  
James opened the letter cautiously, his mother had been sending notes full of praise for one girl or another, she had really gotten into her head to marry James off as soon as possible.  
  
Dear James, By now you might have read how hard things have become in our world, your father has been working endlessly at the Ministry and things doesn't seem to get any better. Your father is worried, they had gotten news that the one responsible for all of this is very powerful. There might be some history of him in Hogwarts, can you tell Dumbledore to go to the Gryffindor common room Saturday at midnight? It is very important that he does. I love you James, always remember that. Mum  
  
James got worried, he had never received a letter like this one before from any of his parents, this must be very important, but why didn't they owl Dumbledore instead?  
  
James shook his head and remembered that he was getting ready for a bath, he gathered his things and left the room.  
  
James slowly made his way through the common room and then into the corridor. He couldn't get his mother's note out of his mind, what was so important? Why did she want him to tell Dumbledore to be at the Gryffindor common room? And at midnight no less. And who was this very powerful person his mother thought was responsible for all of that was happening? This was very dangerous, he could feel it, he didn't know how but he did.  
  
James finally reached the statue of Boris the Bewildered standing near the door of the bathroom. "Lemon-Lime" he said and the door opened. He turned to lock the door, and a scream made him turn.  
  
"Aaahhh!" James met Lily's eyes, round as saucers, and with surprise. "What are you doing here?"  
  
"Er.I came to take a bath, why didn't you lock the door?" He exclaimed, he was feeling very embarrassed.  
  
"I did. How did you get in?" Lily sank further into the tub, making sure that James couldn't see anything.  
  
"It opened when I said the password, it wasn't locked." James finally noticed that he was alone in the bathroom with a naked young lady in the tub, he blushed and quickly turned back to the door and reached to open it.  
  
The door wouldn't budge, he pulled and turned the knob, and it wouldn't open. He reached for his wand and remembered that he wasn't carrying it with him. Without turning to see Lily he asked, "Lily, do you have your wand in here?"  
  
"No, didn't think I would need it." She said.  
  
"Damn! This door is stuck, I can't open it." James tried to pull and turned the knob again, he also tried kicking, but it still didn't work.  
  
James heard Lily giggle behind him. "What is so funny? Do you think I'm dancing with the door?" He snapped. His comment just made Lily laugh harder.  
  
"I'm sorry, but you seemed so funny, trying to open the door." She said as she tried to regain her composure.  
  
"I'm glad you think so, now think of something, we can't stay in here."  
  
"Stay there, don't turn around, if you do I'll hex you when we get out of here." Said Lily. James kept his back turned to her, he really didn't want to find out what she was capable of doing to him if he didn't do as she asked. Lily snatched her clothing from the bench where she had left then and rapidly put them on, keeping an eye on James to make sure he didn't turn around.  
  
"You can turn now." She said when she was finished. James gave a sigh of relief and turned to look at her.  
  
"Now what? We need to get out of here, not to mention that I still have to take my bath." Snapped James, he was rapidly losing his temper.  
  
"I'll try to open the door, and you can take your bath." Said Lily walking toward the door.  
  
"I'm not taking a bath while you are still here." James sounded scandalized by the idea.  
  
"Fine, move aside, let me see what is wrong with this." Lily kneeled by the door and with two hairpins she pulled from her hair she started picking the lock. She slowly worked on the lock while James stood behind her watching closely at what she was doing. He was about to ask her what she was doing when the door silently opened.  
  
"How did you do that?" He asked with awe.  
  
"A muggle trick." She smiled.  
  
Lily and James quickly exited the bathroom, while James started to look around to see if anybody had seen them, Lily was checking the lock.  
  
"I just cannot believe that the lock didn't work when I closed it, I could've swore that the lock closed." Said a confused Lily peering into the lock, but she didn't know anything about locks and she wasn't sure if there was anything wrong with it.  
  
"It might be broken, all we can do is tell Filch and he will take care of it." Said James.  
  
"Yes he will, while grumbling and complaining at the same time." Lily responded, she was not very fond of the new caretaker, she liked the old caretaker, Apolllyon Pringle, but he retired last year, and a middle aged man named Finch had taken over, the students weren't too happy about it.  
  
James laughed, he knew that most students didn't like Filch, but to the Marauders he was a challenge and an easy target.  
  
"I think I won't take a bath now, I'll wait until later, I'm going to the Quidditch Pitch." Said James as both started to walk toward the Tower.  
  
"I'll go to the library, hopefully I will finish the essay for Arithmancy."  
  
"Don't you want to do something frivolous? Maybe a facial, or something, I know how much women like to be pampered."  
  
"Oh, and you are an expert on women!" Lily scoffed.  
  
"Well, with a socialite mother and sister, I know what is considered 'The Thing' for women."  
  
"Well Mr. Expert, not all women like to spend the day doing nothing, facial and pampering are fine if you can afford it. For us who are not lucky to have house elves doing your every bidding, we have to do for ourselves and a facial is out of the question."  
  
"All right, but you could borrow Minnie if you wanted a facial, she likes doing facials, she is always bugging me to get one, I think it's too girlish. You'll be making her very happy if you decide to use her." Urged James.  
  
"Really James! You sound as if you were trying to get rid of her, that's mean."  
  
"Is just that she drives me crazy sometimes, always asking if she can do something for me, I feel no privacy." James complained.  
  
"Oh, all right I'll ask her to do something for me. But you're being a baby about it."  
  
"I am not."  
  
"Yes you are, and you better not say anything more because I see her coming toward us." Said Lily as Minnie turned the corner and walked toward them.  
  
"Mater James! Mater James!" Squealed Minnie when she caught sight of James.  
  
"Oh no!" Lily heard him moan, his expression so comical that it made her laugh.  
  
"It's not funny, wait until she gets her hands on you!" He hissed before turning to Minnie. "Yes Minnie? I gather you were looking for me." James tone was business-like, so unlike him, Lily couldn't help it and giggled. James turned to glare at her.  
  
"Yes Master James, an owl just arrived from Master Aliaster, Master James." Was Minnie's eager response, and quickly slipped a parchment into James' hand.  
  
"Thank you Minnie. I have a job for you." James said, with a wicked smile and looking at Lily, who was warily looking back. "Lily here would like to have a facial and I know you are quite good at them so I thought she might use you today."  
  
"Oh, Minnie would like to help Miss, Master James." Said Minnie turning to look at Lily.  
  
"And I'm sure she will enjoy it, now if you don't mind, I have a note to read." And James quickly left without giving Lily a chance to protest.  
  
Minnie was eagerly looking at Lily, but behind her eager expression a speculative look entered her eyes. Lily turned to Minnie, she had no idea what to do, she had never had a house elf before. I'm going to kill him when next I see him. She thought, leaving me here to deal with this, he is going to regret it. She quickly smiled at Minnie.  
  
"Is Miss ready for a facial?" Asked Minnie.  
  
"Oh, yes of course. What do we need to do first?" Lily asked, how does a magical facial work?  
  
"Does Miss has a preferred place?"  
  
"Hmmm...what about my dorm?"  
  
"If Miss prefers her room, Minnie can work in room."  
  
"Let's get this over with then." Said Lily and led Minnie to her room.  
  
James sat on his bed looking at the letter that his father had sent, and read it for the tenth time. What is going on? He thought.  
  
Dear James I know that you are probably wondering about all the secrecy, I cannot tell you exactly why it has to be so, but I'm sure you will understand in the future. Please make sure that Dumbledore is in the common room, it is very important. I want you to make sure that nobody is near at that time, it can be dangerous if somebody overhears, for us as it could be for them. Take care son.  
  
James knew that it had something to do with all the recent events, the disappearances, the murders, and the strange marks that had been seen in the last couple of months, but what did his father had to do with it and why did the Ministry thought of involving Dumbledore. True, Dumbledore is a genius and knows absolutely everything, thought James, but how can he help, and how will this affect Hogwarts? James didn't want to think of the danger that might cloud over the magical and muggle worlds.  
  
"Enough! I'll practice, that always makes me feel better." James bent over his trunk and started to look for his robes and broom. He quickly found them and started to look for his polishing kit, he wanted to polish his broom in the field after he was done. As he rummaged through the trunk he noticed something disturbing.  
  
"This is odd!" He said.  
  
From the bottom of the trunk he could see a pulsing light, bright below all his things. He started to clear his trunk in order to get to it, he was very curious to see what was causing it. He pulled things out and put them aside, until he finally found the source of the oscillating light.  
  
He held in his hand a small black box, it was a ring case, he remembered getting it from his father for his seventeenth birthday. His father had said that it was customary for all men in the family to receive a signet ring for their seventeenth birthday. The ring had the name of the wearer inside the band, the stone was a large emerald engraved with the family coat of arms, a crouching lion surrounded by laurel leaves, and around the ring the old Italian family motto was engraved "Uniti venciamo, uniti moriamo" "Together we conquer, together we die".  
  
James' family could be traced as far back to ancient times when England was considered to be part of the Roman Empire. The Potters were always taught to be proud of their ancestry and to do their duty to the family, especially if you were the head of the family. Aliaster Potter now had that position and it would fall on James when his father died, it was his mother's fierce search of a wife for him that served as a constant reminder of what awaited him.  
  
The ring box vibrated in his hand, he slowly opened it and saw the light emerging from the emerald.  
  
"What is going on?" He asked out loud. Then the ring started to buzz; James gasped and let it fall, but the sound just started to get louder and louder until it became a piercing whistle.  
  
James groaned and took his head between his hands, trying to cover his ears and keep the sound out, but it was becoming unbearable. James fell on his knees, and soon lost consciousness.  
  
Lily lay in one of the day beds the girls had brought into the dorm's bathroom. Her face was wrapped in a towel and Minnie was almost done. Minnie had chattered the whole time, Lily found her diverting and very knowledgeable, for a house elf that is, but she did could see how a guy like James would have difficulty having a being like Minnie around.  
  
"Minnie, how come nobody knows that you belong to James, we have all assumed that you were the elf assigned to the boy's dorm?" Asked Lily.  
  
"Oh, Master James is very shy, Master James doesn't want people to know about Minnie. Master James says that people will make fun of him. Master James' friends know about Minnie." Answered Minnie as she bustled behind her, putting things away and cleaning the bathroom while they waited for the towel to come off.  
  
Suddenly a piercing noise invaded the silence of the room, it wasn't very loud but it was very disturbing. Lily's head came up trying to hear the noise and to determine it's origin, Minnie gave a small gasp and stopped what she was doing.  
  
"What is that? I don't know where it's coming from." Whispered Lily.  
  
"Master James! Master James is in trouble! Minnie must help Master James!" Minnie was very concerned and quickly left the room.  
  
Lily threw the towel from her face and run behind her. They quickly made their way past the stairs and turned into the boy's dormitories. The noise was louder as they neared the room, it had now turned to a sharp whistle, the torches and the windows vibrated and rattled.  
  
"What is making that noise, we'll be lucky if the windows don't break." Yelled Lily as she and Minnie put their hands over their ears trying to keep the noise out.  
  
"Oh Miss Lily, Master James is in trouble, Minnie can feel it." Minnie's eyes were filling with tears, Lily wanted to hug her and tell her that James was probably in the Pitch and felling perfectly fine, but she didn't want to take her hands off her ears and she wasn't sure that James was in the Quidditch Pitch.  
  
"Don't worry Minnie, we'll handle it." Said Lily, trying to soothe Minnie's worries.  
  
They had finally arrived to James' dorm and turned the knob. The door opened and they saw James lying on the floor. They didn't know from where the noise originated and they didn't bother to look for it, Minnie quickly used a bit of her elf magic to levitate James and pull him from the room. Lily followed her to the common room, performed a sound proof charm and together they settled James into one of the couches.  
  
"Minnie, go to Professor Dumbledore, tell him what happened and bring him here, I won't move James unless Dumbledore thinks he should go to the infirmary. Go quickly." Ordered Lily as she put pillows below James' head.  
  
Minnie quickly left the room. Lily stayed watching James, she didn't know what to do next. The piercing noise couldn't get through the charm that Lily performed, but a low buzz could be heard.  
  
What could've caused this? I hope Dumbledore knows what's going on. Lily thought as she started to pace the room. It was almost time for luncheon and students would be coming back to the Tower to leave their bags before going to the Great Hall. Lily groaned, she wasn't looking forward to telling people they couldn't get into the Tower, she was going to have to tell the Fat Lady not to let anybody pass with the exception of Dumbledore of course.  
  
She had just turned to go to talk to the Fat Lady when the portrait opened and in came Dumbledore.  
  
"Oh I'm so glad you are here Professor, I was just going to talk to the Fat Lady and tell her not to allow anybody to enter the Tower." Lily quickly said as Professor Dumbledore walked toward her.  
  
"That would be a good idea, Minnie says that a sharp noise is coming from the boys' dorm, if it is so, we don't know how long it will take us to locate it and get rid of it." Said Dumbledore as he approached James and quickly examined him. "I'll take James to the infirmary, make sure that nobody enters the Tower. Put a repelling charm if you must, I'll send Professor McGonagall. Where are the prefects?"  
  
"Marissa said that she was going to help Professor Sprout taking care of her plants, and Dave went to the library to finish some work." Lily responded.  
  
"Very well, I'll send somebody to find them and to come and stay here to guard the Tower, I don't want anybody in here." Said Dumbledore. He slowly made his way to the entrance pulling James behind him; Minnie worriedly followed them.  
  
Lily followed them out and saw them going down the corridor and turned to look at the Fat Lady.  
  
"What happened dear? Dumbledore seemed very worried, and was that James Potter whom he was pulling?" "Yes it was, I got orders to keep everybody away from the Tower, would you mind not letting anybody in? If any gives you trouble just let me know, I'll be in the common room, Marissa and David will be joining me soon and Professor Dumbledore will send Professor McGonagall to come as soon as classes are over." Quickly said Lily.  
  
"Of course my dear, I'll keep everybody away. Poor James, what happened to him?" The Fat Lady seemed very concerned about him, and everybody knew that he was her favorite person ever, she would let him get away with anything and didn't scold him if he happened to leave the Tower in the middle of the night.  
  
"We don't know what happened a strange noise is coming from his room and it was probably the reason that made him unconscious, we'll try to figure out as soon as the Professor gets here." Responded Lily, she was looking around to see if Marissa and David were on their way, but she didn't see anybody in the corridors.  
  
"Oh dear! I hope he gets better soon, he brings life to the Tower." Sighed the Fat Lady.  
  
Lily smiled and silently agreed with her. Many things could be said about James, but the one that most agreed on was that he, with the help of his friends of course, brought life to the Tower. Making life in the dorms a unique experience. Soon, Lily saw Marissa and David running from around the corner and quickly joined her by the portrait.  
  
"Lily what happened? I was told to come here and that James had been taken to the infirmary." Said David in between breaths, he was panting trying to catch his breath.  
  
"I was told the same thing, what happened?" Said Marissa.  
  
"Let's go inside and I'll tell you. Thank you." She said turning to the Fat Lady, who nodded and opened to let them in.  
  
"We have a situation." Said Lily as the three sat in one of the couches. "I don't know exactly was is going on, but a strange noise is coming from the boys' dorms and we found James unconscious." Marissa gasped at this and David looked puzzled.  
  
"Do you know what is causing this noise?" Asked David.  
  
"No, the only thing that I know about it is that is very piercing and loud, I had to charm the room so we wouldn't hear it. Professor McGonagall will join us soon, and we might probably learn more about this. Right now all we can do is wait and try to keep everybody away." Responded Lily.  
  
"Morning classes will end in fifteen minutes, lots of people will try to come in, this is not going to be easy Lily, and what do we say to them?" Said Marissa, she clearly wasn't looking forward to confront Gryffindor students.  
  
"We can say that we have orders to keep everyone away from the Tower, I've instructed the Fat Lady to deny entrance to anybody, except us and the Professors. If she has any problems with any student I told her to leave it to us, we'll take care of it. They don't need to know what is going on until is time for them to know. As far as I'm concerned the only ones who should know about this are Sirius, Remus, and Peter, and probably Emma and Katie, they would be very angry if we try to keep them away from James." Said Lily.  
  
"Oh Lord! They would probably start a riot." Moaned David, that was the group he was planning on leaving up to Lily, he didn't want to know how they might react to the situation.  
  
They heard the signal for the end of class and listened to their classmates talking to the Fat Lady, some argued but most just left toward the Great Hall with speculation in their minds. Lily kept her ears open, listening for Sirius' voice, it was the loudest and most recognized. She finally heard Sirius booming voice through the portrait, he was trying to cajole the Fat Lady and get past her, she could also hear chuckles and giggles and assumed that the rest were with him.  
  
"I'll return shortly, I got to talk to this lot." Lily took a reinforcing breath and opened the portrait hole.  
  
"Lily! Can you please tell her that we need to get in there, she won't let us." Said Sirius the moment he saw Lily.  
  
Lily had closed the portrait and stood looking at the group, she really didn't know how to go about it and was feeling really apprehensive.  
  
"I'm sorry, nobody is allowed into the Tower, except for prefects, me and Professors." She replied.  
  
"What?" Exclaimed the boys.  
  
"What happened Lily?" Asked Emma, she knew that there might be a reason for all of this.  
  
"I have bad news." She said looking at them biting her lower lip. The group felt a wave of foreboding pass through them and quickly quieted.  
  
"What is it Lily? Where is James?" Asked Remus.  
  
"He is in the infirmary." at that moment the group gasped and Sirius and Remus had started to turn to go to the infirmary, ".no, you won't be allowed to see him." Lily quickly said, the boys stopped and turned to look back at her.  
  
"What happened to James Lily?" Peter quietly asked.  
  
"We don't know. We found him unconscious in your room and a piercing noise coming from somewhere in there. I don't know if it was the noise that caused him to lose consciousness or if it happened before the noise went off. Dumbledore took him to the infirmary, until he wakes up we won't know what really happened." Lily explained. The faces before her were now serious and pale.  
  
"Why weren't we told when it happened? He is our best friend Lily!" Exclaimed Sirius, he felt that it was an injustice to be told this way, he wanted to be with James.  
  
"It happened only a while ago Sirius, besides, there was nothing that you could do. All we can do now is wait and see what happens." Responded Lily, she knew how they felt, he was her friend too.  
  
"Has Dumbledore any news on him?" Asked Remus.  
  
"Sorry, he hasn't been back since he took James to Madam Pomfrey. Professor McGonagall will come soon and we'll look for the origin of the noise, maybe it will give us some answers."  
  
"Do you think we could go and wait near the infirmary, see if we could get any news about him?" Whispered Katie, her eyes were rapidly filling with tears.  
  
"You could try, I'm sure that Madam Pomfrey would understand." Quietly said Lily, she also felt like crying but her position as Head Girl didn't allow her to do so, she had to be strong for her friends, it would do for students to see their Head Girl crying like a baby.  
  
Sirius nodded, "Thanks Lily, we'll come and let you know what we find out." He gave her a quick hug and started down the corridor. Lily gave a small hug to each and saw them go toward the hospital wing. She sighed and turned back to the portrait and smiled sadly as she noticed that the Fat Lady had a handkerchief in her hand and was trying to dry the tears that were falling down her face.  
  
"Don't worry, I think he will be unscathed by this incident, he's too stubborn to let anything hurt him." Said Lily to the Fat Lady. The portrait opened and Lily quickly entered the common room.  
  
The moment she entered she noticed something strange, the buzz that had been heard from the moment she had charmed the room was getting louder and the pictures were vibrating in place.  
  
"How long has it been like this?" She asked as she turned to look at the prefects who were still sitting in the couch looking at the subjects in the pictures taking hold of the frames and looking around the room in fright.  
  
"It started recently. Do you think the charm is wearing down or is the noise getting louder." Nervously asked Marissa.  
  
"I don't know, it cannot be heard from the corridor. David, go outside and listen for it, let us know if it is heard from somewhere else in the castle." David took advantage of Lily's order and quickly left the room.  
  
"Can I go as well Lily? I'm sorry but this is starting to bother me." Said Marissa looking at Lily with a hopeful expression.  
  
"That's all right, go it would be better to get two different reports, don't worry, go." Said Lily shooing Marissa out of the room.  
  
Lily was starting to get worried. What will we do if the noise is getting louder? She thought, how can we control something like this? She had started to pace the room, waiting for someone to come, the noise was starting to permeate the room, she tried doing another charm to keep the sound out, it helped but only for a few moments, it didn't last long.  
  
Sirius and the rest arrived to the entrance of the hospital wing. In a chair next to the infirmary door was a tiny elf, her face in her hands and sobbing quietly.  
  
"What is that?" Asked Katie as she saw the small figure.  
  
"That's Minnie." Gasped Remus.  
  
"Oh no, if she's here then it means that James is in very bad shape." Moaned Peter.  
  
"If it was that bad, she would be in there, she would never leave James' side." Said a thoughtful Sirius.  
  
"Who is Minnie?" Asked Emma.  
  
"And why wouldn't she leave James' side." The girls were very curious about this Minnie.  
  
"That's James' personal elf, she dotes upon him." Whispered Remus.  
  
"Practically kisses the floor he walks on."  
  
"Not to mention she does one hell of an apple pie." Said Sirius.  
  
"Only you would remember her pie." Chuckled Peter.  
  
"How did James get an elf?" Asked a surprised Katie.  
  
"A gift from his mother." Responded Remus.  
  
"Why is she here and not home?" Emma wanted to know.  
  
"He was allowed to bring it to Hogwarts as long as his studies were not disturbed." Said Peter.  
  
"I didn't know James had an elf, I haven't seen her around the Tower." Katie speculated.  
  
"The mark of a good elf is that no matter the circumstances, it will do its job and not be seen." Said Sirius.  
  
"Sirius, that was mean! Calling her like that, it." Exclaimed Katie as she gave him a quick jab on his stomach.  
  
"Ok, she then." Said Sirius wheezing.  
  
The group had now approached Minnie, who was still sobbing and hadn't noticed the group standing beside her.  
  
"Oh, you poor thing, don't cry." Said Emma, putting an arm around Minnie.  
  
Minnie lifted her head and noticed the others around her. She recognized the boys and sobbed harder.  
  
"Oh, Sirs, Master James is sick, Minnie shouldn't have left him, this is all Minnie's fault." The elf sobbed.  
  
"That's not true Minnie, I'm sure you could've tried to help but the result would've been the same." Soothed Remus, kneeling in front of her.  
  
"Minnie was just trying to help Master James' friend, Remus Lupin Sir, Master James asked Minnie to. Minnie likes Master James' friend. Minnie shouldn't have left Master James."  
  
"Don't worry Minnie, James will pull through, he's a stubborn bastard. Why don't you go to your room Minnie and rest, if anything happens we'll call you." Said Sirius, patting her back.  
  
"Sirius Black will?" Asked Minnie with a hopeful expression.  
  
"Yes I will." Sirius shooed her to the kitchens and turned back to the others.  
  
"She's taking it very hard." Whispered Peter.  
  
At that moment the door opened and Professor Dumbledore came out of the room.  
  
"I have been waiting for you. I am sorry to say that his state hasn't changed."  
  
"What is wrong with him Professor?" Asked Katie.  
  
"We don't know. Only he can tell us and he is in no state to do so. I'm setting temporary rooms for Gryffindor in the South Tower, I recommend that you go to the Great Hall and eat, there is nothing that you can do for him." Urged Professor Dumbledore.  
  
"Will we be told if there are any changes?" Quietly asked Emma.  
  
"I will send somebody for you the moment he regains consciousness. Now I need the three of you to do me a favor." Dumbledore said turning to look at the Marauders. "I want you to go to the owlry and send the Potters a message." The boys nodded and the group turned to leave. Dumbledore returned to the infirmary.  
  
"How did they take it Albus?" Asked Professor McGonagall as she stood by James' bed.  
  
"Better than I thought. They are growing up Minerva." Smiled Dumbledore.  
  
"Hmph! It was about time they did." Exclaimed McGonagall crossing her arms.  
  
"Perhaps, but I do miss their tricks sometimes." He sighed.  
  
"Well, I like it better this way, perhaps now my gray hairs will wait to come out."  
  
Dumbledore laughed at this but was quickly shushed by Madam Pomfrey.  
  
"Really Headmaster, this is a hospital." She frowned.  
  
"I'm sorry Poppy, couldn't help myself. How is he doing?"  
  
"There is nothing I can do for now, you do know what this is of course. A Dark Curse, this is, and unless we can find how it was inflicted and what kind it is we won't be able to do anything."  
  
"Oh, Albus, how could this happened. Who could've done this?"  
  
"Don't worry Minerva, we will find out. I sent the boys to owl the Potters, I expect them to arrive as soon as they get the message. Go to the Tower and see if you can find the thing that caused all of this. There has to be a way to make it stop, it seemed to be getting stronger."  
  
"Of course, you'll tell me if there are any news?"  
  
"I will. You'll find Miss Evans in the Tower now, she might be getting worried by now."  
  
"I'll take care of her."  
  
Professor McGonagall quickly left the room, leaving behind a very disturbed man.  
  
  
  
A/N: There you go : ) Remember to review! 


	12. Chapter 10

A/N: Hello! I'm back again with more. I know I left all wondering about James, so I decided to post this chapter as well that deals with James' little problem. Hope you all enjoy it.  
  
Disclaimer: HP characters and related words are not mine, so don't sue me! Only the plot and secondary characters are mine.  
  
Chapter 10 ~ The Signet Ring  
  
Lily was pacing the common room. Why isn't anybody coming? She thought. I've been waiting here for ever. The buzz had become stronger and had now become a shrill ringing. It didn't bother her much anymore, she had become accustomed to it. She stopped when she noticed the portrait hole opening and allowing Professor McGonagall to enter the Tower.  
  
"How are you doing Miss Evans?"  
  
"A bit worried Professor, is James better?"  
  
"I'm sorry to say that his state has not changed. His parents have been owled."  
  
Lily nodded and followed Professor to the stairs.  
  
"I see that the charm has not totally kept the noise away." Said the professor.  
  
"I tried reinforcing it but it didn't work."  
  
"Here." Professor McGonagall waved her wand in front of a vase full of flowers standing in the landing that branched the staircase in two, one leading to the boys' dorms and the other to the girls'. The Flowers instantly transfigured into a pair of earmuffs, with flowers as the ear covers and floral stems linking them. "Put this on, they will protect us from the noise." She then waved her wand once more and the vase turned into a small box, it looked like an ordinary box. "We will use this to store the item that is causing this noise."  
  
They continued up the stairs, then turned to a corridor until they arrived to the boys' dorm.  
  
"Are you ready Miss Evans?" Lily could hear her, but not the noise.  
  
"Yes Professor."  
  
"We'll look for this item and put it promptly into this box. Then we'll take it to Dumbledore and examined it, Mr. Potter cannot be helped without it. I want the Tower to remain empty until everything has been examined, to make sure that nothing was damaged and that others will not go through the same thing."  
  
Lily quickly nodded and together they entered the room.  
  
"Good Lord, these boys need to learn some organizational skills." Exclaimed Professor McGonagall.  
  
"Where should we look Professor?"  
  
"Where did you find him, Miss Evans?"  
  
"Here, by his trunk."  
  
"What is this?" Professor McGonagall saw the pulsing light coming from James signet ring. She quickly picked it up and examined it. She nodded and put the ring inside the box.  
  
"Do you think that it is the item that has caused all this, Professor?"  
  
"Most likely. We'll take it away and if it isn't, we'll return and look further."  
  
They quickly left the room and took off the earmuffs, the noise was gone and peace had been restored to the Gryffindor Tower.  
  
"The noise is gone, it must be the ring then." Said Lily. She had forgotten how quiet the Tower could be.  
  
"Let's take this to Dumbledore, we need to get Mr. Potter on his feet once more."  
  
Both quickly left the Tower, and walked toward the hospital wing.  
  
The owlry was silent, most of the owls were sleeping and the few that were not were peering closely at the three boys, huddled by a window and talking in whispers.  
  
"Do you think this is fine, we don't want to make too personal, but too devoid of feeling either." Said Peter looking at the parchment in Sirius' hand.  
  
"We don't want to make it too desperate either, we don't want to scare them into thinking that he is dying." Snapped Sirius.  
  
"As far as we know, he might be. The thing is that we don't know. We don't know if he's just unconscious, if damage has been done, or anything." Said Remus.  
  
"You're in a cheery mood." Sirius said sarcastically.  
  
"It's just that. this couldn't happen at the worst time." Sighed Remus.  
  
"What do you mean? There is no best time for this." Said Sirius, looking at Remus with a confused expression.  
  
"Sirius, think. What happens tonight?" Asked Remus, looking closely at Sirius.  
  
"Nothing." Sirius said.  
  
Remus rolled his eyes in an exasperated motion.  
  
"Remus, there is nothing especial going on, the only thing is that there is a full moo.oh!" Said Peter, his eyes widening and a sense of foreboding entering his body.  
  
"Exactly." Exclaimed Remus, Sirius swore and ran his fingers through his hair.  
  
"What are we going to do, we cannot control you without James, one of us is not enough, and let's face it, Peter cannot be much help in his animagus form." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
'That's why I said that this was the worst time for him to get sick." Said Remus through gritted teeth.  
  
"Well, we have to think of something, we cannot leave you alone, and we can't leave him alone." Was Sirius urgent reply.  
  
"We might as well stay with Remus, we're not allowed into the infirmary and once James' parents are here we'll have less opportunity to see him." Commented Peter.  
  
"You're right, and he's not going anywhere. And the girls will keep us informed of anything if we miss some news." Said Sirius.  
  
"As long as we stay in the shack everything will be fine. We cannot risk going out into the woods until James can join us." Said Remus.  
  
"There is nothing else to be done." Peter said biting his lip as he thought things over.  
  
"We could send Snape to keep an eye on him, he knows about it now." Smiled Sirius.  
  
"That was stupid Sirius, he could've been hurt, I'm just glad that James got there soon." Snapped Remus as he glared at Sirius.  
  
"I didn't tell the stupid git to go. How was I supposed to know that the nosey idiot would actually believe me and go to the shack. Well, that should keep him out from our business." Said Sirius.  
  
"Honestly Sirius, I don't know what kept Dumbledore from expelling you then." Said Peter, shaking his head.  
  
"It was my charming self that made him change his mind." Said Sirius, the others snorted and chuckled at him.  
  
"James most likely made up an excuse for you. God knows why we care for you." Responded Remus rolling his eyes.  
  
"Well, let's get this over with, James' parents need to know what is happening now, not what happened a year ago." Quickly said Sirius. He really didn't want to think of what could've happened to Severus Snape if James hadn't been there, and the consequences that could've emerged from it.  
  
"You are just trying to change the subject, but you are right." Said Remus as Peter went to get an owl.  
  
"Get Hermes, Mrs. Potter will recognize it and think it's from James." Yelled Sirius, waking up the sleeping owls and pandemonium breaking out.  
  
"See what you did, you idiot." Said Remus as he slapped Sirius on his head.  
  
"Ouch! Didn't mean to do it, just happened." Wailed Sirius in a feigned innocent voice.  
  
Remus chuckled and Peter laughed as he took hold of Hermes, James' owl. Hermes, a snowy white owl, stood in a dignified manner as Sirius tied the note to it's leg. Hermes had always delivered in record time, since he was a chick he had been fast and reliable, that was the reason why James had named him Hermes, after the Greek god, the messenger of Olympus.  
  
"Take this to Mrs. Potter Hermes. James is sick, please get there fast." Said Sirius to Hermes as he stroke it's head.  
  
Hermes nipped Sirius' finger and with a silent hoot flew out the window. The boys kept sight of Hermes until all that was visible was a small speck in the sky.  
  
The Potters London house was situated in the magical section of the city. It was called Rowe Square, after Nathaniel Rowe, a wizard designer and engineer who constructed the square. It was formed by a park, named after its creator, surrounded an all sides by stately mansions and buildings.  
  
To the muggle eye, the Park looked like any other. Lush gardens graced the south end of the park, in the north end could be found all the public recreation areas, and in the middle, a small lake surrounded by gentle slopes and resting areas.  
  
It was small compared to other more popular parks, but it's gardens and calm atmosphere that was sensed in the place had made it popular for romantic rendezvous. It was common to see couples walking hand in hand among the gardens, or having an impromptu picnic near the lake.  
  
But during the night, Rowe Park became a magical place. Magic-lighted lanterns floated above the gardens and pathways of the park. And small fairies could be seen skipping above the flowers looking for a place to play.  
  
The buildings surrounding the park were very common looking to the muggle eye. An office building stood on one side to the park, it's glass windows reflecting the sunlight. The other three sides of the park were surrounded by middle class houses, each built next to the other without any space between them, black iron fences separating the meager pieces of land in front of the houses, each family adorning it with small bushes and plants. But to the magical world, this was the place to be.  
  
The small office building was a place of bustle and overflowing with the most important wizards of the age. The Ministry of Magic housed the offices of the governing body of the magical world. The top-most floor housed the offices of the Minister of Magic, his cabinet and advisors. The floor below this one was full of meeting rooms, were the committees of the Departments met to discuss recent cases, at the end of the floor stood the Mess Hall, or the cafeteria, were officials and guests ate; small private rooms were available for important lunch meetings, the Minister always had a private room. The lower floors were assigned to the Departments of the Ministry.  
  
The houses looked dignified and elegant to the magical eye. Decorative plants graced the entrance to each of the houses, classic columns stood upon the stairs, wide, wooden doors waited to be knocked. Each house had a golden knocker on the door, with the family coat of arms engraved upon it.  
  
Inside one of these houses, a tall, brown haired, middle-aged woman sat at the dining room table. The walls were adorned with paintings of fruits and flowers. The table was round made out of wood, sustained by a clawed shaped foot. The matching chairs had a throne like back with cushioned seats.  
  
A small house elf entered the room, following a human servant. The rigid looking man gave a small coughed and spoke to the lady.  
  
"Madam."  
  
"Yes Roberts." She said, looking up from the piece of parchment she had been reading.  
  
"Lotty has received an owl for you."  
  
"Thank you Roberts, you may leave now." Roberts, the Potter's human butler, left the room. The small elf approached the lady and extended a silver tray toward her.  
  
"Mistress Susan Potter, ma'am, Hermes has arrived with a letter." The elf squeaked.  
  
Mrs. Susan Potter was a dignified woman, dedicated to keep her husband's social standing among the magical upper society. She was also a lioness when it came to the safety of her family, especially her children. Her oldest daughter, Elizabeth, had married a foreign Count, and wrote constantly to her mother about her two twin daughters. James was her baby and she doted on her son, but she didn't want him to know about it, thus her nagging about marriage, she knew he didn't like it when she tried her matchmaking schemes on him.  
  
Mrs. Potter eagerly reached for the letter, she loved getting owls from her children, and the elf quickly left the room. Before she opened the missive, a tall man entered the room. He had messy black hair, wore glasses over his dark eyes and possessed a stately figure. Mrs. Potter expression lighted up the moment she saw her husband.  
  
"Hello dear, I hope you don't mind if I join you for luncheon today." Aliaster Potter said as he leaned to kiss his wife's cheek.  
  
"Of course I don't mind. I have been urging you to come and eat luncheon here more often, the food at the Ministry's Mess Hall leaves a lot to be desired." Mrs. Potter responded smiling up at him.  
  
"You are right, but it is much easier to continue our meetings over lunch instead of taking a break and then having to start all over again." He said as he sat in the chair next to his wife's.  
  
Roberts entered the room, followed by two human servants carrying covered trays. Roberts lifted the covers, one by one, and served Mr. Potter from each. Marinated sauced chicken, green leaf salad with dressing, lobster patties, and finger sized ham sandwiches. He then poured pumpkin juice into Mr. Potter's goblet. Roberts then turned to Mrs. Potter to enquire if the lady wanted some more.  
  
"That's all Roberts, thank you." She responded with a wave of her hand.  
  
Roberts bowed to the couple and led the footmen, the servants, out of the dining room.  
  
"Any news my dear?" Asked Mr. Potter as he cut his chicken. Chicken had always been his favorite food, and his wife had always made sure that a variation of it was served at each meal since they first married.  
  
"I just finished reading Elizabeth's letter. It seems that our granddaughters are becoming a handful." Chuckled Mrs. Potter.  
  
"What else did she expect, that's her punishment for making us grandparents so early in life. I hope James will take his time, he is almost done with his training and I'm hoping that he will consider taking my place in running our property, he likes it better than I do."  
  
"Oh, I'm sure he will, he is not very interested in politics. I'm hoping he chooses the right girl for his wife."  
  
"I don't know why you keep trying to matchmaking Susan, you don't want him to get married either, and how do you expect him to like any of those silly girls I'll never know."  
  
"It's because I don't want him to marry that I keep parading those bird- witted girls. You don't know how worried I get when I introduce them to him that he will like one of them and follow my advise."  
  
"It will serve you right if he did."  
  
"That's true, but I would prefer it if he married the right girl. Rose's and Edward's daughter sounds right for him."  
  
"Oh don't start Susan, you don't even know if they even like each other. After all the pranks he has done over the years I would be surprised if a decent girl liked him."  
  
"Of course they like him, my son is perfect. And speaking of James, Hermes just arrived with a letter. I was about to open it when you came in." Said Mrs. Potter looking around for the unopened letter.  
  
"Well, read it. I want to know what this son of ours is up to. I'm surprised we haven't received an owl from Dumbledore about pranks."  
  
"He took after you dear, you were just like him at that age." Laughed Mrs. Potter as she spotted the note and reached for it.  
  
"If not worse." Chuckled Mr. Potter. "I was lucky Minerva wasn't a professor then. Having Albus as the head of Gryffindor wasn't too bad. What did James write?"  
  
At that moment Mrs. Potter gasped and a small shriek escaped her. Mr. Potter quickly looked up and noticed her pale face and trembling hands.  
  
"What is it dear? Is something wrong with James?" Mr. Potter quickly left his seat and kneeled before his wife. He took the note from her and read it as Mrs. Potter leaned her head on his shoulder and cried.  
  
Aliaster Potter swore as he finished reading the note. It wasn't written by Dumbledore, or Minerva, as he had expected, but by his son's friends under Dumbledore's request. James was unconscious for unknown reasons.  
  
"There, there, my dear." He said as he patted her back. "We have to be strong for our son. We'll apparate to Hogsmeade and go to Hogwarts. I'm sure that once we are there, things might look better. I wager it's not as bad as it sounds." Said Mr. Potter as he dried his wife's tears.  
  
"Oh yes, let's go! My poor James, my poor baby!" Lamented Mrs. Potter as she quickly left her seat and exited the room. Mr. Potter could hear her voice giving orders to Roberts who had been keeping guard in the Hall.  
  
Roberts entered the dining room followed by the footmen, they quickly emptied the table and cleaned it with their wands. Mr. Potter scribbled a note and turned to Roberts as he was about to leave the room.  
  
"Roberts, make sure that the Minister gets this message. My wife and I will be gone for an undetermined amount of time. I need our personal elf to get our things packed as soon as possible."  
  
"Yes sir." Roberts took the note, bowed and quickly left the room.  
  
It took the Potters an hour to be ready to leave. With Lottyi, their personal elf, they apparated to Hogsmeade where a carriage awaited them in front of the Three Broomsticks. They promptly climbed into the carriage and soon after, the vehicle followed the path to Hogwarts.  
  
McGonagall and Lily had quickly made their way toward the infirmary, as they did so, Professor McGonagall dispatched Lily to organized the moving of Gryffindor to its temporary new quarters.  
  
Inside the infirmary, Albus Dumbledore waited patiently at James' bedside. He was very worried. The longer James stayed under the curse's influence, the harder it would be to pull him out of it with the countercurse. He also knew that the moment the Potters received word of James' illness, they would immediately apparate to Hogsmeade and come up to Hogwarts. He had requested Minnie to make sure everything was ready for their arrival. To choose living quarters with private rooms and to make sure a carriage awaited their arrival at the Three Broomsticks. James' elf needed to be busy, the other elves had started to complain about her moping.  
  
Dumbledore smiled as he thought of it, he knew how protective personal elves could be, after all, his own personal elf, Maya, would not rest while Dumbledore was sick, if he got just a common cold Maya would get him in his bed and go to the kitchen to prepare potions and soups for him.  
  
He heard the door open and close and then footsteps coming toward him, but he didn't turn, he just continued to watch over James' unconscious body.  
  
"Did you find it Minerva? Did you get the cursed item?" He asked without turning.  
  
"Yes Albus, I have it in this box, we must place a silencing charm on it before it can be examined." She said as Dumbledore finally turned to her and extended his hand for the box.  
  
"Are you sure this is the item." He asked looking down to the box as if he could see past the cover and see the item within.  
  
"There was nothing else that showed otherwise." She responded.  
  
"Very well, take this to Flitwick and find a way to silence it. The Potters should be here soon, show them here when they arrive." McGonagall nodded, took the box and quickly left the room.  
  
Dumbledore turned back to look at James. His brow frowned in thought. "Why is this happening James? Who would need to curse you in this way?"  
  
The room was silent.  
  
Lily had quickly found the new dorms for Gryffindor. House elves were bustling about as they transported all the personal belongings from the original tower. The entrance was being guarded by the portrait of a handsome young man, who kept trying to flirt with Lily before he finally asked: "Password?"  
  
"Butterfly fields." Lily responded.  
  
The portrait promptly opened and Lily swiftly entered the temporary common room. The whole place looked exactly like the original Gryffindor Tower. The pictures were the same, furniture was arranged in the same manner, the fireplace surrounded by chairs and couches, the staircase that branched into two separating the girls from the boys, even the dorms were arranged in the same way and in some, Lily noticed the elves had left it as disordered as the inhabitants had left their original rooms. The elves did a good job on this! She thought as she walked around the new tower checking on the elves progress.  
  
She saw a small elf entering the room, and go towards the boys' dorms, she thought nothing of it until she saw the same elf going out with several items in his arms.  
  
"Where are you going with those?" Asked Lily walking toward the elf. When the elf turned she recognized it as Minnie, and the items she carried belonged to James.  
  
"Hello Miss Lily, Minnie is taking Master James' things to somewhere else, Miss Lily."  
  
"Oh? Where are you taking them?"  
  
"To private rooms, Miss Lily. Master Alaister and Mistress Susan are coming Miss Lily, and Master James will be taken to rooms near them Miss Lily."  
  
"James' parents are coming here?"  
  
"Yes Miss Lily."  
  
"When are they arriving?"  
  
"Anytime soon, Miss Lily. Minnie is arranging their rooms, Miss Lily."  
  
"Oh dear." Moaned Lily, she really didn't want to meet James' parents, she didn't know why she just knew she didn't.  
  
"Minnie must finish Miss Lily." Minnie said and quickly left the room.  
  
Classes were about to end for the day, the elves were almost done, and the prefects were checking the old tower to make sure nothing personal was left behind. The furniture and pictures had been transfigured into replicas of the original ones housed in the original tower.  
  
Lily made sure the elves where gone and that everything was set for students and left the common room walking toward the Great Hall. Gryffindor students had been told to meet there after classes and that Lily would take them to their temporary rooms. Nobody knew the reason for all these changes, and speculation ran rampant through out the whole afternoon, they were too busy guessing the reason behind it all that they didn't notice the small group that had been quiet the whole time.  
  
The signal was given to end the classes, students ran to all parts of the castle to leave their bags and enjoy some free time before dinner time. Gryffindor met at their table, waiting for Lily.  
  
Lily was feeling very apprehensive, Professor McGonagall had just told her that Professor Dumbledore wanted the students to know about the situation. And that Hogsmeade had sent word that the Potters where on their way to the castle.  
  
Lily entered the Great Hall and walked toward the Gryffindor table, people were whispering and chatting that most had not noticed that she was approaching them.  
  
"Attention please!" Yelled Lily; clapping her hands. The table turned silent and looked toward her. "I'll take you to Gryffindor's temporary rooms, once we are all there I will explain to you the situation. If you will follow me please."  
  
The group stood up and followed Lily toward the South Tower and stopped in front of the portrait of the Young Man, he looked the group over, winked to the girls and sneered at the boys, the girls giggled and the boys grunted.  
  
"Pass word." He asked.  
  
"Butterflies fields." Responded Lily.  
  
The girls giggled some more while several snickers were heard from the boys. The portrait opened and the group looked around to see if they saw any difference, they saw none.  
  
"As you can see, everything is the same as the original tower, you will find that your personal belongings have also been transported and they have stayed in the same manner as you left them this morning. Now if you will all take a seat, I will tell you about our circumstances." Said Lily trying to not show her nervousness and worry.  
  
'This morning we found James unconscious in his room." Several gasps were heard and people started to ask questions.  
  
"Is he all right?"  
  
"How did it happened?"  
  
"Do you know what caused it?"  
  
"Please, be quiet, there will be time for questions, please let me continue." The group subdued once more and paid close attention to what she was about to say. "He is in the infirmary now, he is still unconscious. According to the latest examinations it seems that James has been a victim of a Dark Curse, it's not known how it was inflicted and why, but the Staff is making inquiries and is working on finding the countercurse. Mr. and Mrs. Potter are on their way, and will join us very soon. Do you have any questions?"  
  
"Is there a theory of what happened?" Tobias Wood, Gryffindor's keeper, asked.  
  
"The only thing we are sure of is that a ring might have been used to curse James, we don't know exactly how but a piercing noise filled the room when we found him and it got stronger as time went on."  
  
"Was that the reason why we were kept from the Tower?" A shy third year asked.  
  
"Yes it was."  
  
"Who found him?" A fourth year asked.  
  
"A house elf and I did. We heard the noise and went to investigate, but it was too late and he was already unconscious."  
  
"Is there any suspect yet, a theory of who might have done it?" Sirius wanted to know. He was very angry that someone had tried to harm his best friend.  
  
"Not yet, we are hoping that once the item has been examined and the curse broken some of our questions might be answered."  
  
"Has Madam Pomfrey said how soon the countercurse might be available?" Katie asked, tears were filling her eyes.  
  
"No, Professors are working on it, but it's feared that the longer it takes to be performed the longer it will take James to recover."  
  
"Have guards been assigned to James?" Queried Remus, he wanted to make sure that there was somebody protecting James, especially since they wouldn't be able to do so during the next three days.  
  
"Dubledore is looking into that."  
  
"Will he be allowed to have visitors?" Sobbed Emma.  
  
"Not any time soon." Said Lily shaking her head. This was much harder than she had thought. She was fighting very hard to keep her eyes from filling with tears.  
  
"We can send get well gifts, can't we?" Asked Peter.  
  
"I'm sure that it would be acceptable."  
  
"Why was the Tower closed, if the cursed item has been retrieved?" Asked a Seventh year.  
  
"Professor Dumbledore wants to make sure that there was no damage and that the curse only stayed within the ring and didn't affect anything else."  
  
"How long are we staying here?" Asked a first year.  
  
"Just during the time when the Tower is searched, once it has been cleared by Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick we will be allowed back."  
  
The room was silent once more, The Marauders and the Sirens were sitting in their customary place, holding each other's hands and heads bowed. There were some girls that were sobbing, most just had an expression of surprise or sorrow.  
  
"If you have no more questions, then that will be all. I will let you know of any new developments as soon as I'm told. Remember that his parents will be here soon, we might not see them often around the school but if you do chance to meet them, please don't barrage them with questions. We want to make sure that they feel welcome and that we are all hoping for James' quick recovery."  
  
Everybody nodded and as soon as Lily sat with her friends, the room exploded into chatter and questions. The group decided to go to the boys' room, they didn't want to be inundated with questions and looks of pity.  
  
Dumbledore was sitting next to James, and Madam Pomfrey was busy with trays of cool water and pieces of linen. The situation had gotten worse, James had broken into a fever and they were trying to bring it down, they were doing it the muggle way because the charms and potions had not worked.  
  
"Oh dear! If this doesn't work Headmaster, I don't know what else can be done." Worried Madam Pomfrey.  
  
"Don't worry Poppy, we will find a way. Maybe we should call Miss Evans and see if she knows of different muggle ways to lower a fever." Commented Dumbledore as he reached for a piece of linen, soaked it in the water and put it on James' forehead.  
  
Madam Pomfrey used the rest of the linen to bathe James. His chest had been exposed and Madam Pomfrey put cool linen on it and his arms. James was sweating and moaning, Dumbledore was having a hard time trying to keep him still.  
  
"Maybe you should use a restraining charm Poppy, I'm not as young as I used to be." Chuckled Dumbledore as he nearly missed James' flailing arm.  
  
"Perhaps, you are right Headmaster, he is beginning to be a handful." Said Madam Pomfrey. She put the last piece of linen on James' chest and started to search her robes for her wand.  
  
At that precise moment, a commotion was heard at the entrance of the infirmary, Madam Pomfrey and Dumbledore turned to look toward the door as it snapped open. Professor McGonagall stood there with a thunderous expression and behind her they could see Mr. and Mrs. Potter. Dumbledore could well imagine why Professor McGonagall had such a threatening expression; he knew how protective the Potters were of their children, especially James, who would inherit all of his family's properties and responsibilities. He imagined that the way here was too long for their tastes and had taken all their frustration on Minerva, and knowing her, she was not very happy about it, even if she understood why.  
  
"Aliaster, Susan, come on in, you're in time to help us with your son, he's not keeping still." Smiled Dumbledore as he saw them coming toward them at a quick pace.  
  
"What is wrong with him? Oh dear!" Said Mrs. Potter as they finally reached James' bedside.  
  
"He developed a fever earlier, potions and charms do not work; we are trying the muggle way now, hopefully it will bring it down." Replied Madam Pomfrey as she started to take the now warm linens from James' body and soaking them once more in cool water before putting them on again.  
  
"Aliaster, maybe you can help me keeping him still." Said Dumbledore as James started to move much harder.  
  
Mr. Potter quickly got hold of his son's arms and held him steady as Madam Pomfrey reached for her wand.  
  
"What are you doing?" Asked Mrs. Potter as she saw the nurse point her wand at James.  
  
"I'm putting a restraining charm on him, it won't hurt Mrs. Potter, but if I don't he will hurt himself and others." Said Madam Pomfrey glancing sideways at Mrs. Potter. When she saw her nod, she pointed the wand once more and said "Immobilitus".  
  
A glowing light surrounded James and then it disappeared, James stayed quiet and immobile. The group surrounding the bed gave a sigh of relief, and Madam Pomfrey continued changing the pieces of linen.  
  
"Aliaster, Susan, I know you want to be here with James, but I have to explain what we know so far and I don't think this is the best place to do so. If you will follow me, we'll go to my office and leave Madam Pomfrey with her work." Said Dumbledore looking at Mr. and Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Very well, we have questions also." Replied Mr. Potter as he looked at his son on the bed.  
  
Dumbledore and the Potters exited the room, leaving Madam Pomfrey behind to work on James. Professor McGonagall had stayed behind during the whole ordeal, but as the others left she approached Madam Pomfrey.  
  
"Poppy, I will take care of Mr. Lupin tonight." She said.  
  
"Oh dear, I had forgotten all about him. Do you think you can handle him?"  
  
"I'm sure that I can, if he transforms in my presence I will transfigure into my animagus. Albus has decided to put guards on the door, they should arrive once the students are in bed."  
  
"Of course, I will take care of them. I just hope that Mr. Black and Pettigrew will not try to sneak in here."  
  
"I'm sure that the guards will make sure that they don't."  
  
"Oh, I hope so, I don't think I can handle them now."  
  
"Let's hope that their common sense will prevail and they keep away until James gets better."  
  
"Wishful thinking, that is." Madam Pomfrey snorted.  
  
"Perhaps you are right. It's almost time for the students to be abed, I'll go and get Mr. Lupin." Professor McGonagall quickly left the room.  
  
Mr. and Mrs. Potter were sitting in front of Dumbledore at his desk, a pot of tea and cups were set in front of them.  
  
"And do we know what this item was?" Asked Mr. Potter. He was infuriated, he couldn't imagine who would want to hurt James.  
  
"Yes, it was a ring, Minerva retrieved it from the room. I have not examined it yet, Minerva and Flitwick are working on silencing it, we cannot examine it until they are done." Answered Dumbledore.  
  
"You will let us know when they are done, won't you?" Queried Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Of course. Do you have any idea of who could've done this?" Asked Dumbledore.  
  
"I can't think of anybody. He is popular among his set and those who don't think so do not have access to Gryffindor's rooms." Said Mr. Potter.  
  
"We thought of that, we are assuming that it was given to him before he came to Hogwarts." Responded Dumbledore.  
  
"But who did? He knows better than to accept something from a stranger, he's seventeen for Pete's sake!" Exclaimed Mrs. Potter putting down her empty cup.  
  
"Unless it was somebody he knew, somebody he trusts." Said Mr. Potter.  
  
"That would also include the whole school." Replied Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Not necessarily, students from other houses have no access to Gryffindor and none of the students are very advanced in the Dark Arts, this was obviously very skilled in them, this curse is nothing like I've ever seen before." Replied Dumbledore.  
  
"Then it was given to him during the summer. I cannot think that anybody in our estate would do so. They are all loyal to our family and have been so for generations." Replied Mr. Potter.  
  
"What about members of the Ministry?" Said Mrs. Potter. "Your policies have not made you popular with some members of the Ministry."  
  
"It's possible that it has something to do with the work you do. Not many wizards agree with you on the subject of Muggle relations."  
  
"Relations between the Magical World and the Muggle World have always been a subject of debate, but with all the latest events, we cannot turn a deaf ear to these concerns. You have heard of course that this group of Death Eaters as they have started to call themselves, are attacking muggles now?"  
  
"Yes, I've read the latest Ministry reports. And I agree with you, these times we have to work together is the only way this group will be stopped." Nodded Dumbledore with a serious expression.  
  
"I had written to James this morning, asking him to set up a meeting with you. We have had received warnings that our plans are being intercepted, I thought it would be safer to talk to you through James." Said Mr. Potter. When Mrs. Potter gasped, Dumbledore and her husband turned to look questioningly at her.  
  
"Do you suppose that it was the notes that brought all of this? Isn't it a bit of a coincidence that he was attacked today, when he had received our notes?"  
  
"That would mean that he is being watched, or that our notes were intercepted and they acted accordingly." Said Mr. Potter, it was clear that he hadn't thought of it.  
  
"That would also suggest that the item was charmed to be controlled, we had thought that it was timed, but this gives us a new perspective." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"And a new theory, and the more I think of it the more I believe that it could be the answer." Commented Mr. Potter.  
  
"I agree with you, makes sense for the attack. James had not come to me yet about your notes, so we must assume that the curse was done to stop him from coming to me." Said Dumbledore as he settled back on his chair.  
  
"But that still doesn't make sense, they would know that we would come to Hogwarts the moment we received word of James illness. Thus, giving Aliaster the perfect opportunity to talk to you." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"You are right." Said Mr. Potter running his fingers through his hair with exasperation.  
  
"We must keep our options open, we will know more after the ring has been examined. I recommend you go to your appointed rooms. Madam Pomrey will let you know if there are new developments," Dumbledore quickly added as he noticed Mrs. Potter ready to argue. "She needs to bring his fever down first. I have posted guards on the entrance to the infirmary, the Ministry sent some highly qualified men to do so."  
  
"You are right." Mr. Potter said before turning to his wife. "We need to rest first dear, in order to take care of James. We cannot be of help if we are too exhausted to help him."  
  
"Very well." Grudgingly said Mrs. Potter, it was very clear that she didn't agree with them but that she was willing to wait.  
  
"Minnie has been waiting outside and she will take you to your quarters." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Oh poor Minnie! I had forgotten all about her. How has she taken this?" Exclaimed Mrs. Potter.  
  
"She was very distraught, I had to put her in charge of your quarters to give her something to do, my elves had started to complain." Chuckled Dumbledore.  
  
"They can be a handful when their masters are sick." Smiled Mr. Potter.  
  
"Yes they can. Now go on and rest, we will talk in the morning." The Potters left the room. Dumbledore heard their footsteps getting muffled by the distance. He looked toward the fire in fireplace, a frown in his brow. The situation was getting more complicated by the minute and he wasn't sure if they would ever find the answers to all their questions.  
  
McGonagall had arrived to the Gryffindor common room but didn't see the person she was looking for, she then decided to go up to the boys' dorm where she assumed he might be waiting. As she entered the room assigned to the seventh year boys, she noticed that they were not alone, three girls were there as well. Her eyebrow lifted as she saw who the three girls were.  
  
"Really Miss Evans, I had expected better from you." Snapped McGonagall, making the group jump and turn to look at her with guilty faces.  
  
"I'm sorry Professor." Said Lily turning to look at her with a tearstained face. The sight of sorrow and worry that graced each of their faces made McGonagall more sympathetic.  
  
"I understand, but please stay in the common room this is not very proper." She said.  
  
"Yes Professor." Answered the group in unison.  
  
McGonagall nodded her satisfaction at their answer and turned to Remus. "Mr. Lupin if you will come with me please." She then turned to leave the room but thought of something and turned back. "I suggest that the rest of you go to bed soon." And she left the room followed by Remus.  
  
"Where is he going?" Asked Katie.  
  
"He is feeling sick." Quickly said Sirius.  
  
"He is not being affected by what happened to James?" Gasped Emma.  
  
"No, this is different." Said Peter.  
  
"Is it because it's a full moon tonight?" Asked Lily looking up from her hands to peer closely at the two boys sitting in front of her.  
  
The boys looked at her with wide eyes, she could see their questions and thoughts through their eyes, and could've sworn that she could hear the wheels turning in their heads.  
  
"It's not very difficult to guess." Said Katie. Giggling at their stunned faces  
  
"He disappears every month when the moon is full." Said Lily.  
  
"And then he looks so weak and sickly that it's obvious he has gone through an ordeal." Said Emma.  
  
"How long have you known?" Asked Sirius with an askance glance.  
  
"For years now. As I've said before, it was not very difficult to guess." Said Katie.  
  
"Why didn't you say anything before?" Asked Peter.  
  
"There was no need. Why say something when it was obviously a secret?" Emma commented.  
  
"It would only had served to make him uncomfortable." Said Lily with a shrug of her shoulders.  
  
"Hmph!" Grunted Sirius.  
  
"I think we better leave, we have a lot to do tomorrow. Not to mention that I want to see Professor Dumbledore first thing in the morning to see if there were any changes in James' condition." Said Lily rising from the bed in which the girls were sitting.  
  
"All right. See you boys in the morning." Said Katie rising as well.  
  
"Now you boys won't go sneaking off and try to get to James are you?" Said Emma with a suspicious look.  
  
"No we won't." Said Sirius with a feigned look of innocence.  
  
"You better not, there are guards around the infirmary and an invisibility cloak won't help you at all." Warned Lily.  
  
"We won't go to see James, we told Remus we wouldn't." Quickly said Peter.  
  
"Good, see that you keep your promise." Said Lily and led the other two girls out of the room and then turning to their dorm.  
  
"That was close." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Do you think they know about us being animagi?" Asked a worried Peter.  
  
"I don't think so, they would've said something." Responded Sirius; keeping an eye on the open door.  
  
Peter released a sigh of relief. "I'm glad, I don't know if I could've handled that kind of pressure."  
  
"Peter, you don't know how to handle any kind of pressure. It will get you on trouble one of these days. Come, we have to meet Remus, he should be in the Shack by now." Said Sirius. He looked through James' trunk for the invisibility cloak and their magic map of Hogwarts. It took them years to perfect it, and they were very proud of it. They had decided to title it The Marauders' Map and hoped to bequeath it to their sons when it was their time to come to Hogwarts. It would be a shame if the sons of the famous Maraudres didn't follow in their fathers' footsteps.  
  
"Are you ready?" He said turning to look at Peter once he had the items in his hands.  
  
Peter nodded, in silence they put the cloak around them, and stealthy left the Tower and made their way toward the Whopping Willow, a magical tree with flailing branches that kept everybody away from it. In the darkness of the night two shapes suddenly appeared near the tree. The smaller of the two neared the trunk and the branches stopped moving. The larger shape, which looked like a dog, swiftly disappeared beneath the trunk following its small companion.  
  
The following morning arrived, and the entrance to the hospital wing was packed with people waiting by the door. Madam Pomfrey had given up telling students to go back to breakfast. The whole school now knew that James was sick, and the only ones who seemed not to care were the Slytherins, this made them very unpopular at the moment and even suspects.  
  
"I see no reason to be concerned. I'll wager he will be in our hairs soon enough." Complained Severus Snape at the Slytherin table that morning.  
  
"It would be too soon for me. He can stay in the infirmary as long as he wishes." Sneered Lucius Malfoy, sitting beside Severus. "He can die for all I care, I don't see what is the big deal. Nobody gets that worried when any of us get sick, they don't go and set a vigil for us."  
  
"You're being heartless." Said Narcissa without any emotion showing in her face. "I like that." She smiled turning to look at Lucius. He smiled and Severus rolled his eyes.  
  
"We should go and see how he does though, I don't think it would look on us if the rest see how little we care." Said Maureen  
  
"They already suspect us, it won't change a thing." Snapped Severus.  
  
"You're being quiet Jezebel, don't tell me you are worried." Leered Narcissa, she liked making Jezebel uncomfortable.  
  
"No, just thinking." Jezebel said with a twinkle in her eye, Narcissa and Maureen knew that it meant she was planning something.  
  
"What are you planning Jezy?" Whispered Maureen, she didn't want the boys to hear.  
  
"You'll see." Jezebel smiled.  
  
In the infirmary, Dumbledore stood with Madam Pomfrey as Mrs. Potter stood by James' bedside and held his hand.  
  
"You are going to get better James, I promise, I won't let them get away with this. We will find whoever did this to you." She whispered as she run her fingers through his hair.  
  
"Don't worry Susan, our son is strong and he will get through this." Mr. Potter said, putting his arms around her waist.  
  
"I know he will Aliaster, I won't let him give up." She answered.  
  
"What can you tell me Poppy, how is he doing?" Asked Dumbledore to Madam Pomfrey as they watched the Potters whispering by their son's bed.  
  
"His fever broke a couple of hours ago, he was uncomfortable until then. I have not released him yet, I want to make sure the fever is completely done. But we must find the countercurse Headmaster, he will not survive if we don't perform it soon." She urged.  
  
"I was hoping you wouldn't say that." Dumbledore said with a sad smile.  
  
"I'm sorry, but I'm starting to get worried. We are in uncharted territory here, I don't know what to expect next." She urgently said.  
  
"I know Poppy, and we are trying to break through the curse but it's like a hydra, when we thought we have gone passed it starts once more with more power. We are at our wits end, we don't know what else to try." Worried Dombledore.  
  
"Oh dear! What can we do? I've never lost a patient in my care, and I don't like the thought that I can't help him. I don't like feeling helpless, Albus."  
  
"I know the feeling Poppy, I don't like it either."  
  
Madam Pomfrey sighed and looked around for her instruments, she wanted to make sure she had everything necessary if she would need it. She then seemed to remember something and turned back to Dumbledore.  
  
"What are we going to do about the students outside, they won't listen to me and go back to their common room or the Great Hall?" She asked.  
  
"I'll take care of that." Dumbledore said and walked toward the door.  
  
The group standing outside the door was silent, noise had not been something that Madam Pomfrey needed to complain about, but the number of people present had grown as the hours passed. It was a weekend, therefore, they didn't need to go to classes, and any kind of diversion seem pointless as nobody seemed to be able to concentrate.  
  
As the door opened everybody turned with expectation and hope in their countenance. They all wished for any news, preferable if they were good.  
  
"I see that you all hope to wish good health for Mr. Potter." Said Dumbledore looking proudly at the congregated group. "He has been fighting a fever the whole night, but I'm happy to report that he is much better now." The group cheered and some sobbed in relief. "However, he is still unconscious." Faces fell once more. "We are looking for the cure, do not worry. But I must urge you to go back to your normal activities, there is nothing you can do at this moment and we must give his parents privacy. I will report any change during the meals, now on you go." And Dumbledore shooed them out of the hospital wing.  
  
The atmosphere in the castle was morose, people seemed to have a hard time going through their normal activities with a heavy heart. Quidditch training continued during the morning but the only team that put any heart on it was the Slytherin, the others didn't get any joy from it, especially Gryffindors. The lack of their captain and chaser was deeply felt by all, and although they always complained the maniac quality of their training due to James, they missed it now, it was not right without him.  
  
But the ones that felt his absence the most was the small group sitting around the fireplace in Gryffindor's temporary common room.  
  
"How long do you think it will take them to find a cure?" Asked Katie, her usual exuberance missing.  
  
"I suppose it must be a really advance magic if they haven't been able to break through." Sighed Lily.  
  
"I hate feeling like this, as if nothing can be done." Said Sirius hitting the arm of the chair with his fist.  
  
"We all feel like that Sirius, but what can we do? If the professors, who are the best in what they do, cannot help him, how are 6 seventeen year old witches and wizards help?" Snapped Emma. It seemed that her nerves were starting to fray.  
  
"And Remus is too weak, he can't help much either." Said Peter as he looked worriedly at his friend.  
  
"This is the worst time for all this, but I guess the saying is true, misery likes company." Said Remus with a sad smile.  
  
"It's not your fault Remus, you cannot control the phases of the moon." Said Emma leaning her head on his shoulder. Remus still couldn't believe that the girls had known about his problem and didn't run away but had continued as if it was an ordinary thing. He was very lucky that he had such good friends.  
  
"And nobody could've predicted that this would happen." Said Katie.  
  
"Who do you think did this to him?" Suddenly asked Lily.  
  
"I don't know but whoever did it will pay dearly for it." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Sirius, calm down. You are not helping James with this hostility." Said Katie, Sirius anger was starting to scare her.  
  
"I'm sorry, but I can't help it. What did James ever do to deserve this? Nothing, that's what, and the person responsible for it has a mean streak in him." Said Sirius in a moderate tone, at least he tried to make it a moderate tone.  
  
"When do you think we will move back to the Tower Lily, do you think they found something there that could help James?" Asked Peter.  
  
"I don't know, I haven't been told of any new developments yet. But I'm starting to get worried, I had never seen the Professors in this state before." Said Lily in a worried tone.  
  
"Neither have I, but we have never experienced anything like this either." Said Emma.  
  
"Do you think it has something to do with what is going on out there?" Said Katie with an expression of fright.  
  
"Of course not, how could you even think of it?" Exclaimed Remus.  
  
The others shivered in fear at the mere thought of it. The magical world have been going through some dark times in the last five years. People were starting to lose faith in the Ministry for not being able to find out the name of the person responsible for this terror. The only thing everybody knew was the name the group called themselves, Death Eaters.  
  
It started with a few disappearances here and there, but a few months later the disappearances turned to murders. There were only a few during the first year, but the numbers had increased the following year, and the next, and so on. Then something more worrisome started to occur. Muggles were disappearing and being murdered as well, the muggle law enforcement didn't know what caused these deaths and had been filed as unexplained. But the magical world knew what had caused it.  
  
But this year, something new had been included in the attacks. A mark. People had started calling it the Dark Mark, for the darkness it brought to people's lives. It had become the calling card of the Death Eaters, and allowed the Ministry to keep a record to all the deaths committed by this group.  
  
The Ministry was in disarray, warnings and clues had been collected and spies were thought to be inside of that illustrious building. Who could it be and how could they be found? Was the question that kept the Minister and his officials up at all hours, but the problem was, could they trust each other? Mistrust and a feeling of helplessness had inundated the members of the Ministry. Nobody knew whom to trust and as a result long standing friendships had been lost and only a few had survived the strained situation.  
  
It was for this reason that Mr. Potter found himself with Dumbledore in his office.  
  
"Everything is in chaos Dumbledore. How can we concentrate in fighting this evil if everyone is concerned in the trustfulness of all those around them? I tell you it's pulling us apart." Mr. Potter pacing around the office.  
  
"Sit Aliaster, you'll wear a path on my rug." Said Dumbledore with an amused smile.  
  
"I'm sorry Albus, but this situation is maddening." Sighed Mr. Potter sitting in one of the chairs in front of the desk.  
  
"Tell me, what did you wanted to discuss with me?" Dumbledore asked serving a cup of tea and handing it to his guest.  
  
"A couple of weeks ago we gathered some new information, and a name kept appearing everywhere we looked, we thought maybe you knew who this person is, we suspect he attended Hogwarts about 30 years ago if not more."  
  
"Who is this person?" Cautiously asked Dumbledore.  
  
"Lord Voldemort."  
  
"Ah! That's a name I haven't heard for some time." Said Dumbledore with a reminiscent look.  
  
"You know who he is then." Excitedly asked Mr. Potter.  
  
"I know him. You know him too."  
  
"I do?" Mr. Potter's countenance turned questioning.  
  
"Yes, do you remember the events of your first year here in Hogwarts?" Dumbledore asked.  
  
"Yes, some students were attacked until a girl was killed in one of the bathrooms. Some said that the legendary Chamber of Secrets left behind by Salazar Slytherin had been opened and the beast within had been unleashed to rid Hogwarts of those of mixed blood. But then they stopped and the beast defeated and the person responsible expelled."  
  
Dumbledore nodded and asked: "What else do you remember? Do you remember names?"  
  
"Hagrid was blamed. It was absurd, who would ever think that Hagrid was responsible for all that horror, he's incapable of doing something like that, Riddle must have made a mistake, he probably did it to gain something, he certainly received a shiny medal for his trouble." Scoffed Mr. Potter.  
  
"Ah, now we get to the name I want to discuss, Tom Riddle." Said Dumbledore with a satisfied smile.  
  
"Are you saying that Riddle is Voldemort?" Exclaimed Mr. Potter with a tone of surprise.  
  
"It shouldn't surprise you Aliaster, you knew that the person behind all of this terror had to be somebody with a great deal of talent, and that's one description that could always be attached to Riddle."  
  
"He was talented all right, Head Boy and he graduated with the highest amount of N.E.W.T.s in the history of Hogwarts."  
  
"He was also very ambitious, and power hungry. I have followed his career after he left Hogwarts. He worked for the Ministry for almost 10 years, Department of Experimental Charms, he would've been made Head of the Department if he had continued, but it was too slow for him, he needed something else, something more. He left England and toured the Continent for some years, learning all that was made available to him, but he emerged himself more into the Dark Arts. He continued to learn and continued to get more powerful. I sent a letter at that time to the Ministry, a warning, urging them to keep an eye on him, if left alone he could become someone very dangerous, I wrote, but it fell on deaf ears. I lost track of him at that time, haven't heard of him until you came into my office today."  
  
"But how can you be sure that Riddle is Voldemort?"  
  
"Lord Voldemort was a name that he was already using while he was here in Hogwarts, I heard him being called so many times, I don't know what it means and why he chose it, but I know that he never liked his name, the name given to him after his father, his muggle father. He's very hateful of mixed blooded and muggles, I think that in his subconscious mind he sees his father in them."  
  
"What happened to his father?"  
  
"He died about the same time the attacks occurred. A mysterious death, no lethal wounds, just petrified, no life force in them, his grandparents and father were found together."  
  
"Do you think he did it?"  
  
"I'm certain."  
  
"It will be difficult to apprehend him, especially with no proof of his identity."  
  
"Don't worry, he will show himself soon, he wants power and in order to acquire it he will need to create fear, fear of his name, his presence. He will show himself, I just don't know what is keeping him, he must have plans to complete before he does."  
  
"Do you think he is behind this illness of James? But what would he gain from it?"  
  
"I'm not sure, but if he is responsible, he must see James as an obstacle, maybe not in the present time but in the near future." Said Dumbledore with a thoughtful tone.  
  
"How are we going to defeat him Dumbledore, the Ministry will not be able to do so in its present state, and the longer we take the powerful he will become."  
  
"Make a list of the most trustful members of the Ministry, but be very careful in who you choose, we don't need ambitious, power hungry members, we need honest, hard working people that are willing to die if necessary."  
  
Aliaster Potter nodded and quickly left the office.  
  
Dumbledore took a basin from a cabinet near his desk. Inside it held a glowing liquid, with his wand he turned it and an image formed.  
  
A boy of about sixteen years of age appeared, jet black hair, a prefect badge on his chest.  
  
"What are you doing, wandering about this late Tom?" Dumbledore asked.  
  
"I had to see the Headmaster, Sir." The boy responded.  
  
"Well hurry off to bed." Urged Dumbledore with a penetrating look. "Best not roam the corridors these days. Not since."[1]  
  
The image faded and Dumbledore sat back on his chair. "You could've done a great deal Tom Riddle, done so well in the Ministry. It seemed that you found what you needed. But at what prize?" He said.  
  
Later that evening, Mrs. Potter was sitting at James' bedside. She had not left the infirmary since that morning and nobody could persuade her to do so. She was silently reading a book, looking up to James periodically, when the door opened with a sudden snap.  
  
She saw Minerva McGonagall go into Madam Pomfrey's office, heard excited chatter between the two women and then McGonagall left at a quick pace. Madam Pomfrey came running into the room, collecting instruments and putting things in order.  
  
"What is happening Poppey? Is something wrong?" Asked Mrs. Potter in a worried tone.  
  
"Oh no! It's good news!" Said Madam Pomfrey in excitement. "They have broken through the protective charms around the ring, we will begin in the countercurse immediately."  
  
"Oh, those are certainly good news, I was beginning to think that those charms were unbreakable." Said Mrs. Potter with a sigh of relief.  
  
"I was beginning to think so as well, let me tell you Susan that I had never been so worried for a patient of mine as I have been for the last days." Said Madam Pomfrey with a sunny smile.  
  
"When will you start with the countercurse?" Mrs. Potter wanted to know as she tried to tame her son's hair.  
  
"They'll bring the ring in a moment, we'll start as soon as they get here." Said Madam Pomfrey as she started to select the instruments she would need and put them aside in a tray.  
  
"Do you think it would be fine if I stay while you work on it?" Asked Mrs. Potter with a hopeful expression.  
  
"I'm sorry Susan, it would not be advisable." Said Madam Pomfrey turning to Mrs. Potter with an understanding look.  
  
"That's all right Poppy, I'll just wait outside until it's done. You will tell me immediately when he is out of danger wont you?"  
  
"Of course I will Susan."  
  
"Thank you Poppy."  
  
The two women stayed in silence looking at the pale young man lying so still on the bed.  
  
The temporary Gryffindor common room was full, but more subdued than it usually was. There were no spurts of laughter, just quiet chatter, and a sense of uneasiness filled the air. People kept turning to look toward the entrance hole, they knew that Lily had been called by Professor McGonagall and that she would be updating Lily on James' progress. But one group seemed to prefer to be alone. After Sirius screamed at a group of first years that had approached them to ask about James, the whole room left them alone.  
  
"I can't stand all this suspense, I want to go to the infirmary." Grumbled Sirius.  
  
"We can't, we promised Professor Dumbledore remember? Last night, at dinner, we promised to stay away from the infirmary, to give the Potters some privacy." Reminded Katie as she took his hand in hers and held tightly to it.  
  
"I know, we were fools to do so." Said Sirius as he pressed Katie's hand lightly.  
  
"Don't worry Sirius, Lily will come back soon. Let's just hope she brings good news." Said Peter as he sat in front of the fireplace with his History of Magic assignment.  
  
"Let's hope so, I hate feeling so helpless. I want to see how he's doing, and I hate the thought of waiting for news." Responded Remus as he lay on the couch, his head resting on Emma's lap.  
  
"All this worrying is complicating your illness Remus, that's why you are so weak. And I've noticed you are not eating as you ought to." Emma chided as she smoothed his hair.  
  
"Don't worry mother, I promise to eat all my food." Said Remus with a weak smile.  
  
"She is right Moony, you are too pale. I don't want two friends in the infirmary, so you better start resting more." Said Sirius with a tone of finality that clearly said that he expected to be obeyed.  
  
"Sirius. I'm old enough to make my own decisions, you cannot tell me what I have to do." Remus snapped back.  
  
"Please boys, our nerves are frayed, we might say things that we will regret later on. Calm down, James wouldn't like it if he hears about this." Cut in Katie trying to avoid a fight.  
  
"I'm sorry." Quickly said Sirius with a chastised tone.  
  
"So am I. I guess I'm too tired to think correctly." Apologized Remus.  
  
"Maybe you should go to your room and rest. We will wake you the moment we hear something." Urged Emma.  
  
"No, I prefer to be here when Lily returns." Said Remus.  
  
"Then close your eyes for a while, we'll wake you when she returns." Said Peter.  
  
The group stayed in silence, Remus rested and the others watched the flames dance in the fireplace.  
  
For several minutes the sense of suspense permeated the room. Assignments were left undone on the tables, conversations were strained and short, and games were left unfinished. Suddenly, the portrait hole opened, everybody turned to look who it was and waited holding their breath. Lily came into the room to be met by an absorbed audience. When she smiled, everybody started to breath once more.  
  
"They finally broke through the curse, they are performing the countercurse right now." The room exploded into applause and cheer. Some cried silent tears of relief and happiness, while others stood and danced around the room. "One more thing." Lily yelled above the noise, people calmed down and the room was quiet once more. "The Gryffindor Tower has been cleared, we will returning to our original quarters tonight. Make sure that you put all your things together before going to luncheon, the elves will be transporting them while we eat. Dumbledore will give further news on James' recovery during dinner."  
  
The room quickly turned into a busy intersection, people running to different parts of the tower collecting their belongings and making sure nothing was forgotten.  
  
The morning passed in this activity until the signal was given for lunchtime. Lily stayed behind to give some orders to the elves that promptly appeared in the common room as soon as the tower was left empty.  
  
The Great Hall was full of excited chatter, the news that James might soon recover had traveled through gossip and everyone now knew the good tidings. Gryffindor was now the loudest and happiest, after being so quiet and depressed, the usual good cheer that set Gryffindor apart from the rest of the school had returned once more.  
  
The teachers looked on with amused smiles and expressions of relief. They understood the buoyant emotion that students were now feeling. McGonagall whispered to Dumbledore who gave a quick nod, as soon as he did so, Professor McGonagall swiftly left the room. After a few moments, Dumbledore tapped his glass and waited for the room to turn quiet.  
  
"I assume that you have now heard the good news and know that our Head Boy has been released from the Dark curse he had fallen under and is now on his way to recovery." The room cheered and yelled at this announcement and eventually fell silent as most students noticed that Dumbledore still stood and seemed to have more to say. "He has still to regain consciousness, but Madam Pomfrey tells me that his body needs to recover before he does so. I hope you all understand that James will require rest and peace while he recuperates from this ordeal, therefore, he will not be allowed any visitors unless he specifically asks. If he does so, visitors will only be allowed for a few minutes only. After he has been released from the infirmary, he will share living quarters with his parents in a private part of the castle. Now, there are some persons who wish to have a word with you." Dumbledore sat as the door at one side of the Hall opened.  
  
Professor McGonagall led a couple up to the staff table. By the countenance and similarity of the man to James, it was very clear that they were James' parents. Proffesor McGonagall quickly sat beside Dumbledore, leaving the couple to stand alone before the students.  
  
"Thank You Headmaster." Said Mr. Potter with a respectful nod toward Dumbledore who nodded back. "I asked permission to address you today to thank you all for your great support. Your prayers and good wishes have given us hope and I'm sure that our son will recuperate soon with the knowledge that his friends and classmates are behind him. As Professor Dumbledore has just announced, James has not gained consciousness yet, but his body functions have returned to normal and we are sure that he will soon be among us once more. We thank you all." Mr. Potter gave a respectful bow to the students, who exploded into cheering and applause.  
  
The staff stood up and shook hands with the Potters as they walked down the table thanking the teachers. Dumbledore then made room for them to sit beside him and partake lunch with them.  
  
Lily had arrived in time to hear Dumbledore's announcement, and even though she was aware of the news, she cheered and clapped with the rest of the table. The usual good will that surrounded their tight-knit group had returned, and the thought of having James among them soon brought back the appetite that they had lost.  
  
"I am so glad James will recover, I was starting to think that it would take them a long time to break through that curse." Said Peter as he reached for his drink.  
  
"Took then long enough." Complained Sirius.  
  
"The wizard that performed that curse must be very knowledgeable in the Dark Arts, the teachers here in Hogwarts are the best in their area and there is nothing that can get pass by them. But this was really advance magic and let's face it, none of the teachers here would practice that kind of magic." Responded Remus, who seemed to be getting his color back to his pale face as he ate more than he had done during the last days.  
  
"Who do you reckon it was?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"We might never know, this could all be some kind of political revenge against his father, I can't think of anything else, James is too young to have enemies expert in the Dark Arts." Said Lily.  
  
"What about Snape, he has always been interested in the Dark Arts, and he knew more about hexes than any seventh year during our first year." Said Katie in a whisper.  
  
"I don't think it was him. He might know more about the Dark Arts than anybody in the school but even his knowledge is not enough to have done this." Responded Emma.  
  
"We also know that whoever did this had access to James, it might be somebody that he trusted enough to have accepted something from him." Said Remus with a thoughtful expression.  
  
"What if this person used an innocent intermediary. He could've switch a gift meant for James when the giver wasn't looking, and the giver gave his gift to James without knowing what the item was meant to do." Said Peter. The group looked at him with surprise. "What?" He asked as he noticed them looking at him.  
  
"We never thought about that, I guess you do have a brain Peter." Said Sirius.  
  
"Thank you, I guess." Responded Peter with a wary look.  
  
"You know, I think Peter got the right idea. The more I think about it the most likely it seems. This person is most likely to have done it that way, keep himself at a distance as it were. And he would be kept out of suspicion." Exclaimed Remus.  
  
"You are right, but we still might never know." Said Lily.  
  
The Great Hall eventually started to get empty, until only the six friends were left behind. They were about to leave when Professor McGonagall approached them.  
  
"Miss Evans, would you stay behind for a moment please?"  
  
"Of course Professor." McGonagall gave her a curt nod and walked back to the staff table where only Dumbledore and the Potters were left.  
  
"What do you think they want?" Conjectured Emma.  
  
"No idea, but if it's about James you will let us know, will you not?" Queried Remus.  
  
"Of course I will, I would never leave you out when it comes to James." Quickly replied Lily.  
  
The group nodded in agreement and slowly left the Hall. Lily watched them leave; after they disappeared from sight, she quickly joined the group still sitting at the staff table.  
  
"Ah, Miss Evans, glad you could join us." Dumbledore greeted her. "Let me introduce you to Mr. and Mrs. Potter. Susan, Aliaster, this is Lily Evans, this year's Head Girl. She has been seeing too much of James lately, I suppose this could be termed as a bit of respite for her before James returns to his usual self." Smiled Dumbledore; with an amused twinkle in his eyes.  
  
"Please to make your acquaintance." Responded Lily; with a respectful nod toward the Potters.  
  
"I am very pleased to finally meet you Miss Evans, I've heard quite a lot about you. I hope my son has not been a handful for you, I know how unconventional he is at times." Replied Mrs. Potter as she closely looked over the young lady before her, she smiled and was pleased at what she had seen so far, she was hoping to know more of this young person before James was back on his feet and they left Hogwarts.  
  
"Oh no Mrs. Potter, James and I get along quite well, it is a pleasure to work with him." Quickly responded Lily. She had noticed that Mrs. Potter had looked her over and wondered what had caused her to do so and who had talked about her. She supposed James could've had, but didn't understand why he would do so.  
  
"Oh you don't have to sugarcoat it for us Miss Evans, we know how childish James is, I'm just quite surprised we have not received any complaints about him this year." Laughed Mr. Potter. Lily couldn't help but smile, she liked his laughter, it was just like James, warm and full of happiness. He seemed like a charming man, and Lily supposed that it was from him that James had inherited his charming and easy manners.  
  
"He certainly has been behaving himself, we are all pleased with his progress this year, he seemed to have grown up during the summer." Responded Dumbledore with a smile.  
  
"Yes, he seemed to have become more responsible after I turned over some of the estate's responsibilities to him. He has found a great joy in managing the lands, I am glad it worked quite well, I was not expecting that." Responded Mr. Potter.  
  
"He enjoys working with people, and the tenants in our lands like him, they have seen him grow up and is hard for some to remember he is not the child who played tricks on them but that he has grown up and is almost ready to leave school and take over the management of the estate." Said Mrs. Potter with a smile and pride in her tone.  
  
"That must frustrate him, I have noticed that he doesn't like to be thought as a young boy any more." Smiled Dumbledore.  
  
"He had his hands full, but he overcame and the tenants are quite willing to follow him, I don't know how, but I'm proud that he did." Replied Mr. Potter.  
  
"We will be sad to see him go of course, but I'm sure he will make a great manager, he has certainly showed how good he is at it when he worked with Miss Evans for the past week, the Festival was a hit and they both deserve to be applauded for their effort." Said Professor McGonagall who seemed to be quite pleased with the two Gryffindors.  
  
"We want to ask you a favor Miss Evans, you can decline to do so of course." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"I would be pleased to do what I can Mrs. Potter." Replied Lily. She had been silently listening about the part of James that she had not been acquainted with, and she found it fascinating that Quidditch and pranks were not the only things he enjoyed.  
  
"We want to give James the best as he recuperates from his ordeal, Madam Pomfrey has told us that he will not return to classes after he regains consciousness for quite a while, and we were wondering if you would consider tutoring him during that time? We will pay you for your services of course." Said Mr. Potter.  
  
"Oh, that would not be necessary, I would be please to help James in anything I can of course." Quickly responded Lily.  
  
"Oh, we insist, it wouldn't be fair to do otherwise. Perhaps you could join us in the infirmary later this evening, I'm sure you would like to visit James for a moment." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"I would definitely like that, I will see you later then. Professors." And with a respectful bow to the adults she quietly left the Hall.  
  
"She seems like a nice young lady." Said Mr. Potter as soon as the adults had been left alone.  
  
"We are quite proud of her, she has become quite popular with the students and an asset to all her teachers." Responded Dumbledore.  
  
"We have met her parents you know. I met them at the station at the beginning of term and have invited them into our home several times since. I see that she is just as Rose, her mother, described her. We have been invited into their home as well and we can see that her training has been as it ought to be. Her parents are quite proud of her, especially since she is the only one with magical blood in the family." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"We have not been privileged to meet her family, but they must be an outstanding couple to have accepted their daughter's talent so readily." Replied Dumbledore.  
  
"Especially since she has become one of the most talented witches that has been my pleasure to encounter. I quite expect great things for her future." Responded McGonagall.  
  
"I have a feeling that this year's graduating class will give us a lot of talented witches and wizards, I expect we will hear about some of them in the future." Said Dumbledore. The others agreed with him wholeheartedly.  
  
Lily waited eagerly for the evening to arrive, much to the envy of the group.  
  
"I don't see why you get to see him while the three of us, who are his bests friends have to wait." Grumbled Sirius as the group sat in front of the fireplace in the Gryffindor common room.  
  
"I'm sure you will be allowed to see him soon, maybe they just want to talk to me further about his lessons." Said Lily.  
  
"Or maybe his mum just wants to be a matchmaker once more." Whispered Remus to Sirius.  
  
"Hmmm.that's probably it, poor James. He can't even defend himself." Chuckled Sirius.  
  
"What are you boys whispering about? You are not planning on sneaking in there are you?" Asked Lily with a wary look at them.  
  
"No, but there's an idea." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Sirius, you have to give them some time. James is not conscious yet, wait until you are allowed to visit." Urged Emma.  
  
"You boys will get in trouble if you try to get in, you know that there are guards around the hospital wing." Reminded Katie.  
  
"Perhaps you're right, but we want to know how he is doing." Sirius responded.  
  
"I'll let you know, I'll ask Mr. and Mrs. Potter to allow you to see him." Said Lily.  
  
"Promise?" Peter asked.  
  
"I promise."  
  
At the appointed hour, Lily left the Gryffindor Tower and made her way to the hospital wing, where she was met by Professor McGonagall.  
  
"He is still unconscious but Madam Pomfrey is sure that he will wake up at any moment." Professor McGonagall said the moment Lily joined her. They quickly entered the infirmary and walked toward the Potters standing at James bedside.  
  
"Hello dear, I'm glad you could make it. I'm sure that James would like to have one of his friends here with him." Mrs. Potter said with a smile.  
  
"I'm sure that he would prefer either Sirius or Remus here with him, I know that they would prefer it to be so." Lily smiled.  
  
Mr. Potter chuckled and said, "I'm sure that they do, but we prefer them to see him until he has regained his strength, I know James wouldn't like to have his friends see him at his most vulnerable."  
  
"Men are very vain about their reputations." Responded Mrs. Potter with a fond smile.  
  
"I suppose they are." Responded Lily with an amused smile.  
  
"Miss Evans, we will leave you for a moment, we must meet Dumbledore. You wouldn't mind keeping an eye on James for us?" Asked Mr. Potter.  
  
"Of course not." Said Lily with a nod.  
  
"Thank you dear, we will return soon." The Potters left behind McGonagall.  
  
Lily got a chair and placed it at James bedside, she wished she would have brought a book to pass the time, the thought of just sitting there with nothing to do but look at James sounded bring to her. She started looking around the room. She noticed the pristine bed sheets piled at the end of each bed, the curtains ready to surround each bed to give some privacy to the occupants and the large paintings gracing the white walls. There was nobody else in the infirmary, she wondered where Madam Pomfrey had gone, she had never known of Madam Pomfrey to leave any of her patients unattended.  
  
She turned her eyes back to James, he was lying so still but he seemed relaxed and his color was normal. He looked as if he was sleeping. Then Lily noticed something different, his arm seemed to have moved, she shook her head and closed her eyes for a moment. Maybe she just imagined it, she thought as she opened her eyes again. Nothing had changed. Lily took a deep breath and settled down in her chair once more. Perhaps I need more rest. She thought, and kept her eyes on James. She didn't know how long she stayed like that but slowly she started to nod off and her eyes started to close, she was starting to feel so sleepy. She then abruptly woke up and shook her head. I must stay awake, come on Lily, this is no time to fall asleep. She thought as she passed her hands over her eyes, trying to keep sleep away.  
  
She turned back to look at James and a pair of deep blue eyes were looking at her.  
  
"I must be in heaven to wake up to such celestial sight." James whispered. Lily blushed furiously and didn't know how to respond at this.  
  
"What flummery, I wager you would charm your way into heaven with your honeyed words." Lily said. James smiled.  
  
"Of course I would, angels like you make me want to be charming."  
  
"I suppose this means that you are a lot better than we thought, only you would think to charm your way into life." Laughed Lily. James continued to smile but with a more serious expression.  
  
"What happened, why am I here?" James looked over the room.  
  
"We found you unconscious in your chamber. It has been almost two days, you were under a Dark curse."  
  
"But how? I don't remember." James frowned and closed his eyes in concentration.  
  
"Don't worry, you will remember eventually, your parents will be here soon."  
  
James quickly opened his eyes at the mention of his parents. "My parents are coming?" He quickly asked.  
  
"Your parents are here James, they came immediately after the incident."  
  
James swore and tried to get up from the bed.  
  
"No you mustn't, you're not strong enough yet. You're mother will have my hide if I let you get up from that bed." Exclaimed Lily as she tried to urge James back into bed.  
  
"But I don't want them here, mother treats me like a baby when I'm sick, is enough to drive a grown man crazy." Moaned James.  
  
"She gets worried, but don't worry, I'm sure you will get better soon now that you are awake. The rest will be so happy to hear that, Sirius has been complaining loudly, but with Remus sick they can't sneak in here to see you."  
  
James swore once more. "I had forgotten about that, he is in his second night now." He quickly quieted as he remembered that nobody was supposed to know about Remus, he hoped that Lily didn't notice his weird statement.  
  
"Don't worry James, we know about Remus, and yes, this will be his second night." Lily said with a slight smile at seeing James shocked expression.  
  
"How?" Was the only thing that James could say.  
  
"It was very easy to guess, we've known for years now. Don't worry, they know that we know." She said in a soothing voice.  
  
"What else do you know?" He asked with a wary look.  
  
"Is there something else we should know?" Asked Lily in surprise.  
  
"Obviously nothing." Quickly replied James.  
  
"Hmmm.you boys are keeping something from us." She said with a questioning look.  
  
"No we're not, at least nothing that you should know about, we have our secrets just like you lot have yours."  
  
"Fair enough I suppose." Grudgingly said Lily.  
  
"Where is everybody else? Mum usually never leaves me alone when I'm sick."  
  
"They are with Professor Dumbledore, they been trying to figure out what happened."  
  
"Hmmm.it's all right I suppose." Pouted James.  
  
Lily laughed. "You complain about your mother being so protective of you and you pout because she left you all alone."  
  
"I'm pouting because she would have brought me something to eat by now, I'm hungry."  
  
"I should've guessed." Laughed Lily as James smiled slightly.  
  
"If I order something for you to eat, will you promise to stay in bed as long as Madam Pomfrey wants you to?"  
  
"I suppose."  
  
"Very well, Minnie has been staying out the door all this while waiting for you to get better."  
  
James moaned at the mention of Minnie. "She is worst than my mother, she can come in I guess."  
  
Lily walked up to the door of the infirmary and talked quietly to somebody outside, then she opened the door wide and a small figure quickly passed through making her way up to James' bedside.  
  
"Master James! Master James!" She squealed her face lighted up the moment she saw James sitting up on the bed. "Minnie is glad to see Master James!" Minnie's eyes had started to fill with tears. "Minnie was so worried, we thought you were dying Master James." She said as she hugged James tightly.  
  
"I'm all right Minnie, tell the rest that I will get better soon." Soothed James.  
  
"Minnie is glad, Master James. Does Master James need something, food, more pillows, more blankets? Minnie will get it Master James." Said Minnie as she fluffed the pillow beneath James head and straightened the sheets on his bed.  
  
"I just want food Minnie, I'm fine."  
  
"Minnie will get Master James some food. Minnie will be right back." And Minnie quickly disappeared from the room.  
  
"She exhausts me sometimes." He complained.  
  
"She is very exuberant, but she loves you James."  
  
"I suppose, how long will you stay?"  
  
"I'll leave when your parents return, I'm sure that the rest will want to know that you're better."  
  
"I'm going to hate it in here. I don't like being so confined."  
  
"Don't worry, I promised your mother that I would come every day to help you with your lessons, and I'm sure the others will want to visit you as soon as you want them to come."  
  
"That will be fine then."  
  
Minnie quickly returned with a tray full of James favorite foods, chicken, steak, vegetables and candy.  
  
'Minnie, this is not good for someone who has been sick." Exclaimed Lily, Minnie's happy face fell at this.  
  
'But it is the food that I need. Give it here Minnie." Minnie's happy expression quickly returned and levitated the tray onto James' lap.  
  
As James started to empty the tray that Minnie had brought, Lily whispered quietly to Minnie who quietly left the room after Lily finished giving her directions. Lily returned to sit by James' bed and shook her head as James steadily ate his food.  
  
The Potters, Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall sat around the desk with a small box opened in the middle.  
  
"I don't understand how he got it. It looks like our signet ring, but as you can see ours has a ruby in the middle not an emerald, the only one who had an emerald instead of a ruby was my grandfather and he was buried with it." Said Mr. Potter studying the signet ring very closely.  
  
"I remembered as much, you have not given James his signet ring then?" Asked Dumbledore.  
  
"No, I meant to give it to him before he started his seventh year as it is our custom but I was away for the Ministry Conference in Vienna and didn't want to owl it, and by the time I was back he had left for school. I decided to wait until Christmas break when he would be returning home." Responded Mr. Potter putting the ring back into the box.  
  
"Somebody knew that you would not be giving James his ring and made sure that he got one, but who did and why?" Said Dumbledore, keeping his eyes on the mysterious ring.  
  
"I don't understand it either, and why did it attack him now and not before?" Asked Mrs. Potter with a frown.  
  
"We might never find out, especially if it was given to him in your name Aliaster, James might only remember that he received a ring from his father." Replied Professor Dumbledore.  
  
"I wonder why he didn't notice that the wrong kind of stone had been used?" Said Professor McGonagall.  
  
"He has seen my grandfather's portrait with his signet ring regularly, it is hanging in the Portrait Corridor at Gryffindor Mannor, he grew up knowing the history of our ancestors, he knows about the signet ring. He must have thought that I had decided to give him one just like grandfather's."  
  
"This is getting too complicated, instead of having our questions answered we are getting more questions to solve instead." Sighed Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Let's hope that James will not have any lasting injuries." Replied Mr. Potter, silently pressing his wife's hand.  
  
"Oh he's a stubborn boy, healthy and life loving, he will recuperate from this ordeal, you'll see." Soothed Professor McGonagall.  
  
"Minerva is right, he will be on his feet in no time, turning the hair of his teachers gray." The group laughed and chuckled, when they heard a knock on the door.  
  
"I wonder who that could be." Said Professor Dumbledore as Professor McGonagall turned to open the door.  
  
As the door opened, a small figure walked into the room and bowed respectfully at them.  
  
"Minnie is something wrong? Has James gotten worse?" Quickly asked Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Miss Lily sent Minnie to you Mistress Susan, Master James is awake."  
  
"Oh, he is awake Aliaster, my baby will be all right." And Mrs. Potter ran out of the door.  
  
"I better join her before she gives James a headache." Chuckled Mr. Potter walking after his wife.  
  
"Thank you Minnie." Dumbledore dismissed the elf and with Professor McGonagall left the room, ready to welcome the Head Boy into their mists.  
  
  
  
[2] Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, JK Rowling, Chapter 13. Scholastic Inc. 1999 (Quoted conversation only.)  
  
A/N: As the footnote says the conversation Dumbledore sees in the Pensive was taken from the CoS Book, I'm sure you may have noticed. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I will try to have the next chapter ready soon. Don't forget to review. : ) ----------------------- 


	13. Chapter 11

A/N: Thank you all for reviewing! Prongsssssssssssss (did I get enough s's?) my story is originally posted in the HP official site harrypotter.com from Warner Bros. It's a lot more ahead than it is here.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own HP nor anything related to it, only the plot and secondary characters.  
  
  
  
Chapter 11 ~ The Recovery  
  
  
  
When the Potters returned to the infirmary, they found James and Lily laughing with an empty try on the night table. Mrs. Potter almost broke down with relief at seeing her son. But she got hold of herself and tried to sound cheerful and carefree. She didn't want James to know how close he had come to death.  
  
Lily left the infirmary soon after, she didn't want to intrude in what clearly would be a family moment. She also knew that the others would want to know that James had regained consciousness and she wanted them to know before it was time for Remus to leave for the night.  
  
She quickly made her way down the corridors, they were empty and seemed formidable in the approaching darkness. Dinner time would soon be upon them. Lily finally arrived to the Gryffindor Tower where the Fat Lady greeted her with "Password?"  
  
"Moonlight magic." Quickly responded Lily.  
  
The Portrait promptly opened and Lily swiftly entered the common room. The room was full, students sat all around the room occupied with different things. She looked around searching for her friends until she spied Sirius and the rest by the stairs. She quickly made her way toward them.  
  
"There you are, we have been waiting for you." Exclaimed Sirius with an impatient tone.  
  
"Well I'm sorry, but I didn't want to leave James alone until his parents had returned." Lily snapped.  
  
"Sorry, we just want to know how he is doing." Said Sirius with a crestfallen expression and a pair of puppy eyes looking at her.  
  
"You and James are so alike, charming your way pass anything." Exclaimed Lily with a laugh.  
  
"Of course we do, we are two charming men." Smiled Sirius winking at the girls. The girls giggled as the boys chuckled.  
  
"So, how is James, is he doing much better?" Asked Emma as the group settled down once more.  
  
"Oh, I have great news." Squealed Lily. "He has regained consciousness. He doesn't remember much but he has gotten his appetite. He ate a whole tray full of his favorite food by the time I left." The group cheered at this news and the boys were getting ready to leave the room when they were held back by Lily.  
  
"Where do you think you are going?"  
  
"We are going to see him." Said Remus.  
  
"You can't, in case you have forgotten, Dumbledore said that only when he asked for visitors he would get them, and Remus should be leaving soon."  
  
Sirius swore, Remus smiled sadly and Peter exuberance suddenly left his body.  
  
"Don't worry, now that he is awake we will allowed to see him soon." Said Katie.  
  
"I suppose."  
  
The rest of the room had noticed that something had happened and started to ask Lily if something had happened to James, when she told them that he was finally awake the room exploded into cheers and many claimed that it was time for a party that night.  
  
The Great Hall was in a cheerful mood that night. Dumbledore had reported that James was now conscious and that he would be receiving visitors soon. The Hall was in a festive mood, food was shared and drink overflowed. Laughter and good will seemed to permeate the room.  
  
The stars twinkled and shined through the bewitched ceiling, and the candles lighting the room seemed to shine brighter than they had before.  
  
After dinner Gryffindor threw a party worthy of a king's welcome. Although the guest of honor was not present, toasts were made for his speedy recovery and pictures were taken which were planned to be sent to him to cheer him up.  
  
After Professor McGonagall finally put a stop to the festivities, Gryffindor Tower settled to sleep, and two shapes were appearing near the Whopping Willow.  
  
When Lily arrived at the infirmary on Monday afternoon she found a scowling James. He didn't seem too happy.  
  
"What kept you?" He snapped.  
  
"Somebody is in a bad mood." Lily Responded.  
  
"I'm bored."  
  
"I imagined you are. Where is your mom?"  
  
"She went to the kitchens to make sure that the elves prepare 'invalid food'" He said with a disgusted tone.  
  
"I see that you're not too happy about that."  
  
"I don't want to live on just soups and toast."  
  
"Do you think you feel better for a small lesson."  
  
"Depends, what kind of lesson?"  
  
"A lesson in patience perhaps."  
  
"Lily!"  
  
"I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself." She laughed.  
  
"Come here." He said motioning her to approach him.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"I don't trust you."  
  
"Why don't you?"  
  
"You have that twinkle in your eye."  
  
"What twinkle?"  
  
"The twinkle that tells me you're up to something."  
  
"I'm bedridden what can I do if I'm trapped into this bed."  
  
"You'll think of something."  
  
"Oh? Do you think so?"  
  
"Yes I do."  
  
"Do you care to find out?"  
  
"No thank you."  
  
"Will you two stop that, you sound like a pair of lovebirds." Said a voice from the door. Lily and James turned to look at the door and found a grinning Sirius with Remus and Peter laughing behind him.  
  
"What is so funny?" Asked Lily.  
  
"If we didn't know better, we could've sworn that you two were a couple." Chuckled Remus.  
  
"A very entertaining conversation." Said Peter.  
  
"What do you lot want, don't you see I'm trying to get some privacy here." Laughed James. Lily blushed furiously while the others laughed and approached James' bed's side.  
  
"If you are trying to charm your way into Lily's heart you are obviously feeling better." Smiled Remus slapping James' back.  
  
"I agree, we need to help him get stronger now, wouldn't do to have Lily have all the fun now do we?"  
  
"Sirius! Really! I don't know what goes into your mind sometimes." Snapped Lily.  
  
"Now my dear, don't let them get to you."  
  
"I am not your dear James Potter and if you lot are not going to be serious I'm going to leave." And Lily stormed off the room.  
  
The boys laughed as she snapped the door close.  
  
"What was that all about?" Asked Peter.  
  
"I don't know but I love getting her mad." Chuckled James.  
  
"Careful my friend, you will fall in love with her." Teased Sirius.  
  
"Oh no, I would never do that, she's a friend." Exclaimed James.  
  
"Relationships have started based on much less." Said Remus.  
  
"E tu Brute?" Groaned James.  
  
"Ok, we'll change the subject. Wouldn't want you to lose consciousness on us once more." Replied Sirius as he sat on the bed next to James'.  
  
"Why didn't you come in earlier?" Asked James.  
  
"We weren't allowed to." Said Peter.  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"Dumbledore forbade it, said that unless you asked for visitors nobody would be allowed in here." Responded Remus.  
  
"You could've sneaked in here. You have my cloak."  
  
"Dumbledore put Ministry guards around the infirmary, there was no way we could get pass them." Said Peter looking at an arrangement of flowers beside James' bed.  
  
"And with Remus sick, we thought it best to stay with him, we could do nothing for you anyways." Shrugged Sirius as he noticed a pile of candy at the foot of James' bed.  
  
"I remembered about it when I woke up. It's all done for this month isn't it? Last night was the last night."  
  
"Yeah, we don't have to do this again until next month." Replied Remus.  
  
"At least I'll be there then."  
  
"Only if you are strong enough, your mother will have our hide if something happens to you while we're out there." Said Peter.  
  
"I hope she is gone by then." James sighed.  
  
"How can you not sneeze with all these flowers in here?" Complained Sirius finally noticing all the flowers around the room.  
  
"I would throw them away if mum would let me. But she says they are gifts and I should be grateful that people cared that I was sick." Said James with a disgusted tone.  
  
"Who sent them?" Asked Remus looking at a vase full of posies and dandelions.  
  
"I don't know. I read some of the cards and as far as I know they were from girls. That they would think that I would like flowers is beyond me."  
  
Sirius laughed and turned to see the gifts on a table at the foot of the bed. "A teddy? Somebody sent you a teddy?" Sirius laughed harder.  
  
"Disgusting isn't it? Not very manly either. What am I going to do with a teddy? Of course mother thought it was sweet."  
  
"James, most of these gifts are from girls!" Exclaimed Peter.  
  
"I noticed."  
  
"You are going to be busy sending thank you notes." Chuckled Remus looking over the gifts the girls in the school had sent to his friend.  
  
"Ugh! I'll hate it, but I still don't know what I'm going to do with them. I suppose I can send them to my nieces, the twins would love them."  
  
"Perfect, the twins will adore you, how old are they now?" Asked Sirius trying hard not to laugh as he spied a set of golden combs among the gifts.  
  
"They are three, and Elizabeth says that they are becoming quite a handful and the nursemaid can hardly keep up with them." Chuckled James.  
  
"They took after you. The poor woman must be losing her hair after pulling on it too often." Said Peter, shaking his head.  
  
"I wasn't that bad as a child, just a little active."  
  
"I wager that your mother would not say that."  
  
"You are right Mr. Black, I wouldn't say that about James." The boys turned to see Mrs. Potter standing on the door. "I see that you boys are doing fine. You are not tiring my son now are you?"  
  
"Of course not Mrs. Potter, we would never do anything to worry you." Said Sirius with a courtly bow.  
  
"Hmph! That is not what the owls I have received from Dumbledore say."  
  
"We have been behaving ourselves mum, didn't you hear about the Festival we did?"  
  
"The only reason you got through it was because you had Lily to work with, I'm sure she kept you from doing things you shouldn't do."  
  
"Mum! I'm not a little kid, and Lily had nothing to do with me being able to manage a small festival."  
  
"Well I will agree that you seem to be a good manager."  
  
"Thank you!"  
  
"I like Lily, she seems like a nice girl."  
  
The boys laughed while James rolled his eyes.  
  
"I bet. What is this I hear that you hired her to tutor me?"  
  
"I thought that you should keep up with your studies and I asked Dumbledore who was the best person for the job and he recommended her."  
  
"Well, I suppose that's true, she is kind of smart."  
  
"Kind of smart, James, if you had a higher grade in charms you would be in the same level with her." Said Sirius.  
  
"Glad you agree with mother and think I need help with my studies."  
  
"I'm not saying you need help James, I'm saying that I want you too keep up with them, I want you to keep studying while you recover, is that understood young man?"  
  
"Yes mum."  
  
"Good, now I'm going to ask you boys to leave, he needs to rest."  
  
The boys said goodbye to James and marched out of the room.  
  
"I'm glad she's not my mother, she scares me." Said Peter.  
  
"She is not so bad, she just tries too hard to make James happy." Said Remus.  
  
"Well she's doing it the wrong way." Said Sirius.  
  
Lily went to the infirmary every afternoon to tutor James. He was not very happy about it in the beginning but as the days passed he started to have fun. Most of the times they didn't study for long, they were both smart and didn't need to study things for long to learn them, they spent most of their time talking. James found out that Lily's older sister, Petunia, was horse-faced and too nosey for her own good. Lily learned that James loved his parents, his sister and nieces even if he didn't say it too often.  
  
On this evening, Lily was telling James about her sister's latest boyfriend.  
  
"Pig looking, that's what he is. I really don't see why she likes him so much."  
  
"Maybe you have better taste in men." James laughed.  
  
"Of course I do, I wouldn't go out with Vernon Dursley even if he was worth millions of pounds."  
  
"What do your parents think of him?" James was playing with his fingers as he talked to Lily.  
  
"I don't know, we haven't discussed him really. I suppose they think she might change her mind later, she has done it so often it would not surprise me if she did it once more."  
  
"You're not very fond of your sister." Lily noticed that James didn't questioned; he made a statement.  
  
"Is it so obvious?"  
  
"Only to those who know you."  
  
"She hasn't been very nice to me. When I was very young I remember her making fun of me, and ignoring me. I suppose it's normal among siblings to have some rivalry, but I always felt like she didn't like me. Then strange things started to happen when I was around. Dead flowers blossoming to life, if I needed something it would suddenly appear before me. She started keeping her distance, said that I was a freak and she didn't want to catch it. Mum and dad tried to make peace between us, but it was difficult when she didn't even want to be in the same room with me. When I received the letter saying that I was a witch she acted as if her actions were justified. She tried to get our parents to send me here to Hogwarts and leave me here, of course they didn't like that idea and she got in trouble for even suggesting it. Our relationship was even more strained since then. Every summer she goes off with her friends and boyfriends to some place or other, just to stay away from me, and that's all right with me. I can't stand her friends, they are as ugly and nosey as she is."  
  
"I'm sorry you don't get along with you sister. Mine is five years older and I missed her a lot when she was away. I was six when she came to Hogwarts and I cried the whole day when she got on the train that first year. Mother was afraid I would make myself sick so she brought all of my sister's pictures into my room. It calmed me down a bit but it didn't last for long." James laughed.  
  
Lily smiled and wished that she had a sister that would miss her like that.  
  
"The next day I woke up to find an owl from her, that cheered me up. She sent an owl at least two times a week with long letters during all the years she was away until I joined her here during her sixth year. She made sure that I was happy and she covered for me during my first two years here, I didn't get into too much trouble because of her. By the time she graduated I had made friends, so it wasn't that bad when she wasn't here with me anymore. She met her husband during a trip to Italy during the summer after graduation. They fell in love and married a year later. She has two twin daughters now, and complains that they took after me as punishment for all the times she covered for me." He chuckled.  
  
"You really love her." Lily said with a wistful tone.  
  
"Yeah, my family has always stayed together even if we do get in each others nerves sometimes."  
  
The young couple stayed up late every time talking, and getting to know each other for the two weeks that James was in the infirmary.  
  
On the day he was finally relieved from the hospital wing, Madam Pomfrey gave a huge sigh of relief. Her infirmary looked like a green house with flowers at every corner, small gifts and get well cards covered every table in the room. James got irritable every time he was left alone and drove his visitors insane with his whining.  
  
"You cannot know how relieved I am of finally leaving this place." Said James behind the screen as he dressed.  
  
"I can imagine. It's a miracle you didn't develop any allergies." Laughed Sirius as he waited for him to be done.  
  
"If I had to stay any longer I would probably developed allergies."  
  
"What are your plans once you leave this place?"  
  
"Quidditch Pitch, I need to get some air."  
  
"I'll join you then, we should make it a flying party. The whole team just flying around, we haven't had a good practice since you been in here."  
  
"How did the game go?"  
  
"Not one of our best, we won, but only because Hufflepuff was not playing their best either." Said Sirius shaking his head.  
  
James groaned. "I see that there is a lot that I have to catch up on. At least I don't have to make up any work, thanks to Lily."  
  
"Hmmm.you two have spent a lot of time together."  
  
"Don't you start, we are just friends."  
  
"I didn't say anything, I was just commenting that you spent a lot of time together. Nothing wrong with that."  
  
"It is when you say it in that tone."  
  
"What tone?" Sirius asked innocently.  
  
"The tone you use when you are planning something or are feeling very pleased with yourself."  
  
"I didn't know I had a tone like that."  
  
"Well you do, so stop it."  
  
"Fine, but I don't know what you're talking about."  
  
"So you say."  
  
"Are we having this flying party or not?"  
  
"Of course we are, we can go now, I'm ready." Said James stepping around the screen.  
  
"Good."  
  
The two boys left the room in excitement.  
  
Lily was agitated when she entered the girls' dorm.  
  
"I cannot believe him!" She exclaimed as she threw the book she had on her hand to the bed.  
  
"What is wrong Lily?" Asked Emma, looking at Lily. Lily never threw a book.  
  
"James, he was just relieved from the infirmary." She said.  
  
"That is good! Isn't it?" Said Katie, why was Lily mad that James had been relieved?  
  
"But he is supposed to rest, and what do you think he is doing?"  
  
"What?" Asked Emma with a cautious tone.  
  
"He has gone flying with the team, that's what!"  
  
"Oh Lily, calm down, you know how Quidditch mad he is." Laughed Katie.  
  
"He deserves to do what he pleases, he is such a bear when he is sick." Said Emma.  
  
"I suppose, but he should be resting." Said Lily in a low voice.  
  
"Don't worry, he will tire soon and the team will make sure that he returns to rest." Said Katie.  
  
"He won't be returning to the Tower." Said Lily.  
  
"What? Where will he stay?" Katie asked.  
  
"With his parents, a room was readied for him near their living quarters."  
  
"They want to keep a close eye on him then." Commented Emma  
  
"I think they still think that he might be in danger." Lily said.  
  
"Poor James." Sighed Katie.  
  
"I don't see how you could pity him, he's being spoiled rotten. Have you seen how the infirmary is overflowing with flowers and gifts?" Snapped Lily.  
  
Katie and Emma laughed. Lily was clearly jealous of all the attention that James had received from the girls in the school.  
  
"As I said, Poor James. He won't be alone for quite a while. Girls will want to keep him entertained." Said Katie.  
  
"I bet he will enjoy it." Said Lily.  
  
"Don't worry Lily, he won't fall for it."  
  
"Why should it worry me?"  
  
"You don't need to I suppose."  
  
"Of course I don't, he can do what he pleases." And Lily stormed off from the room and closed the door of the bathroom with a snap.  
  
"We have to do something, she really has it bad." Said Katie looking at the bathroom door.  
  
"She is so stubborn. Why will she not accept her feelings for him?" Sighed Emma.  
  
"Maybe she is afraid he doesn't feel the same way."  
  
"He is going to be a problem. He is more stubborn than she."  
  
"We need to talk to the boys."  
  
"You are right, we need to make plans."  
  
"Do you think we should involve Mrs. Potter?"  
  
"No, it would only make things worse if James finds out that his mother is involved."  
  
"I suppose you are right."  
  
"Let's go to the common room, we'll ambush the boys when they return."  
  
"Very well, and Lily needs sometime to think."  
  
The girls left the room.  
  
Lily stood in front of the mirror in the bathroom. She was washing her hands and let her mind wander.  
  
This is so confusing. Why should I care about what James does? I'm not his keeper for goodness sakes! If he wants to kill himself that's his problem. Lily angrily threw a towel against the wall. I'm doing it again. I'm getting mad about something that shouldn't concern me. Oh dear! What does this all mean? Why do I feel like my body tingles every time he is near? Why do I look forward to spending time with him? Why am I going to miss having him all to myself during the evenings? I can't be in love! I don't want to be in love! I am not in love! It's absurd to even consider it. Lily quickly returned to the room and noticed that her friends had left. She sighed with relief, she really didn't feel like talking to them at the moment.  
  
Lily lay on her bed and started to study the canopy on her bed. I wonder what he thinks about me. Could he ever think of me as something more than friends? Oh, what am I thinking? I don't want him to think of me as anything else. Lily grabbed one of the pillows on her bed and covered her face with it. I'm acting like a lovesick first year! What am I going to do? Lily stayed on the bed for a long time, thoughts fleeting through her mind.  
  
The boys entered the common room to find Emma and Katie impatiently waiting for them.  
  
"Hmmm.it seems that you girls missed us a lot." Smiled Sirius.  
  
"Oh please, step down from your pedestal big shot, we need to talk." Said Katie with an exasperated tone.  
  
"Why does that sound ominous to me?" He said.  
  
"I think I'm going to my room, I'm getting out of the line of fire." Said James who had followed the team into the common room. He quickly stepped out of the portrait hole and left his friends to face the two girls by themselves. The rest of the team quickly left them and went to their respective rooms.  
  
"Cowards." Whispered Remus.  
  
The girls walked to their customary place near the fire and the boys follow them.  
  
"What did we do?" Quickly asked Peter.  
  
"Nothing, this has nothing to do with you." Said Emma. The boys released their breath in relief, which they hadn't noticed that they were holding.  
  
"What's wrong then?" Said Sirius putting his broom on the floor.  
  
"It's Lily. I think she has started to notice that she has feelings for James." Said Katie.  
  
"Isn't that what we wanted?" Said Remus, he didn't see a problem with that.  
  
"Yes, but what about James?" Said Emma.  
  
"He is too stubborn, I don't know how we're going to bring them together." Groaned Sirius.  
  
"I thought that all the time they were spending together while he was sick would bring on something, but now that he's out, they don't need to spend anymore time alone." Remus replied.  
  
"We need to find a way for them to spend some time together. The weather is starting to get colder and it will start snowing soon." Said Peter.  
  
"What does that have to do with anything?" Asked Katie.'  
  
"Well, if the weather was warmer we could plan a picnic for them."  
  
"That would do the trick." Sighed Emma. "A picnic would be romantic."  
  
"Why can't we plan one?" Said Sirius his eyes sparkled with the forming of a new idea.  
  
"Didn't you hear? The weather is not good now for a picnic." Said Katie with a gentle nudge to his arm.  
  
"The picnic doesn't have to be outside, we could use one of the empty rooms to have it."  
  
"That wouldn't be romantic! What would they see in a room? Four walls and pictures, that's what!" Snapped Katie.  
  
"We could charm it, to look as if they were outdoors." Sirius snapped back.  
  
"That would be a good idea, but Lily is the only one who could perform such a complicated charm." Said Emma.  
  
"Can't any of you do it?" Asked Remus.  
  
"We are not as good as Lily." Said Katie shaking her head. "I'm sorry I snapped at you." She said kissing Sirius in the cheek before holding his hand.  
  
"That's all right." He smiled. "I'm sorry I snapped back." And he gave her a quick peck on her lips.  
  
"Would you two stop? We need to get Lily and James together not you." Laughed Remus.  
  
"What else can we do?" Asked Peter playing with the twigs in his broom.  
  
"I don't know. Why don't we think about it for a while? We are bound to think of something." Said Emma.  
  
"There's nothing else to do so we might as well do as you say." Said Katie putting her head on Sirius' shoulder.  
  
"I'm going to see if Lily is all right. It's almost time for dinner." Said Emma rising from the couch.  
  
"We need to get clean." Said Remus.  
  
"Right, we'll meet you here later." Said Sirius as the boys rose and made their way to the stairs.  
  
The girls watched them leave and then turned to each other.  
  
"What do you think? Can we pull this off?" Asked Emma.  
  
"I don't know, but we can try." Katie replied.  
  
"Let's see if Lily is ready." Together, they walked up to their dorm.  
  
"Are you sure you want to go down to the Great Hall James? We could ask Minnie to bring your meal here." Said Mrs. Potter when James told her that he planned to go down to dinner.  
  
"I'm sure mother, I want to be with my friends." Slowly said James. Mrs. Potter knew that James was losing patience; he always called her mother when he did so.  
  
"Very well, if you are sure. Your father and I will sit by Dumbledore." She said.  
  
"Ok, I will see you down then." And James quickly made his escape out of his parents' room.  
  
Mrs. Potter sighed as James left the room. Mr. Potter smiled and put his arms around her shoulders.  
  
"Don't worry dear, he will be all right." He said as he kissed the top of her head.  
  
"I know, but I worry Aliaster, we almost lost him." She exclaimed.  
  
"I know. But we can't always be there to protect him Susan. We must leave him to learn things on his own."  
  
"You are right. But I can't shake this feeling that he is in danger."  
  
"We're doing all we can to find out who is responsible for all this."  
  
"And I know that you will succeed."  
  
"I'm glad you have faith in me my dear. Don't worry, he's safe now."  
  
"Are you sure?"  
  
"Yes, nobody would dare to hurt him while he's under Dumbledore's watchful eye." He said turning his wife to look at him and giving her a long kiss.  
  
  
  
  
  
A/N: Sorry it took me a while to post this chapter, but the beginning of the semester is always busy for me. I'll try to update more often. :) 


	14. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I do not owe Harry Potter or anything related to the HP world.  
  
  
  
Chapter 12 ~ The Perfect Plan  
  
  
  
The Great Hall was full of noise that evening. Everybody had heard of James release and was waiting eagerly for his arrival. The Gryffindor Table was buzzing with excitement and people kept looking toward the door every second.  
  
When James finally made his entrance, the Hall exploded into cheers and applause, people stood from their seats and clapped him on the back as he walked toward his customary seat. The only ones who seemed to not care was the Slytherin Table, but nobody paid them any attention.  
  
"Wow, I wasn't expecting a welcome like it." Exclaimed James as he took his seat.  
  
"You are lucky you are well liked." Laughed Peter.  
  
"Well, at least this is better than all the flowers and gifts you received." Said Lily in a curt tone. James was too busy waving to those around him that he didn't notice but the other did and looked at her with surprise.  
  
"You are right, this is much better." James said as the Hall quieted.  
  
"Hmph!" Lily grunted.  
  
Sirius smiled mischievously and looked from Lily to James. The others, except Lily and James, noticed this and smiled secretly.  
  
"So, are things going back to normal now that you are out of the infirmary?" Asked Katie as she piled some fruit onto her plate.  
  
"I'm sorry to say that it won't. I have to go to the infirmary at least once a day to be examined and my parents are staying at least one more week to make sure that everything is fine." Scowled James as he looked down to his plate.  
  
"Surely it won't be too bad." Said Emma.  
  
"Of course it will, mother will keep her eye on me all the time, I can't move back to the Tower until they are gone, and I won't be able to have fun while they are here." He complained.  
  
"You mean you won't get away with anything while they are here." Said Lily.  
  
"As I said, I won't be able to have any fun." He repeated.  
  
The rest of the group laughed while Lily only smiled. James was too busy eating as much as he could and talking to those around him that he didn't notice how quiet and aloof Lily was that night.  
  
Dinner went on with laughter in part of the students. The teachers looked on indulgently. The Potters looked with happiness at their youngest child, he seemed so healthy and carefree it was difficult to believe that he had been near death not so long ago.  
  
"Are you sure Albus that he is out of danger?" Asked Mrs. Potter as she looked at her son.  
  
"He won't be hurt while he is here. I cannot guarantee what will happen to him after he leaves, but I'll make sure that he is well prepared. He is very talented, and with the help of his friends and his wits he will get far." Said Dumbledore with a smile.  
  
"I am sure that he will, and with things as they are at the moment these young people need to be well prepared." Responded Mr. Potter.  
  
"I fear that things will get worse. He won't stop until he has taken total control, I don't know what has kept him from showing himself, but I do know that it won't be long until everybody in the Magical World will fear the name of Voldemort." Said Dumbledore in a serious tone.  
  
"I cannot believe that Riddle became this person, I thought he was brilliant but never expected that he could be so evil." Replied Mr. Potter.  
  
"He is very ambitious. The thirst for power can make us do things that we would never thought we would. I'm sorry to say that he has always felt superior to others, and it was this sense of superiority that has led him to follow this path. I just hope that somebody with equal power as his own exists that can lead to his defeat." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Do you think such person exist? This Voldemort sounds like somebody that could become undefeatable if he isn't stopped soon." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"I cannot say if there is, I just hope that he joins us in time. You need to speak with the people we discussed Aliaster, we need to start organizing, the sooner we do it the longer we can keep him from becoming too powerful."  
  
"Don't worry Albus, I will speak with them. I will search for others that might join us as well. We need all the allies we can get."  
  
"I trust that you will find them Aliaster. Owl me when you are ready." Mr. Potter nodded to Dumbledore and dinner continued.  
  
Hogwarts woke up to the first snowfall of the season. Classes continued as they always did, but this time James joined them. The teachers were glad to have him back, even Professor McGonagall, who always despaired from trying to keep the attention of the foursome, was seen to smile indulgently at James during the whole lesson; the fact that he was her best student didn't enter her mind.  
  
By the time classes were done, and students met around the school to do their work, the grounds were completely covered in white. There was frost on the windows and Hagrid could be seen defrosting the equipment left in the Quidditch Pitch.  
  
The group sat on the common room watching the snowflakes falling outside the window. Lily and James sat on the window enclosure while the others sat around them. They were laughing and enjoying their time together.  
  
"Are you serious, she actually did that?" Katie asked giggling.  
  
"Well, she is three years old, she doesn't know any better." Chuckled James.  
  
"Your sister must be going crazy with your nieces' antics." Laughed Remus.  
  
"She complains, but you can see how much she adores the girls. They sent me a nice owl yesterday, they liked all the gifts I sent." Said James.  
  
"You sent all those gifts you got? But they were meant to be get well gifts James, it seems kind of rude to give them away." Said Emma.  
  
"What was I going to do with a teddy, or a pair of golden combs, or a room full of flowers?" James exclaimed.  
  
"Well, the combs are easy, you could comb your hair." Said Lily. The group laughed and James glared.  
  
"Oh cheer up James, I'm sure your sister liked all the gifts." Said Peter.  
  
"Oh she did, but I think that mother told her where I got them from."  
  
The group laughed.  
  
The week quickly passed and the group continued to meet in the common room every evening until the time arrived for the Potters to return to London and James to move back to Gryffindor Tower.  
  
"Now James, you promised to be careful and to let us know if anything happens." Mrs. Potter urged as the elves got the luggage ready to be sent to the carriage.  
  
"Don't worry mum, I'll owl you regularly." Replied James as he sat in a chair in his parents' quarters looking at all the bustle that the move was causing.  
  
"Remember to take all your meals, and don't over do it when you practice Quidditch, I know how mad you are for the sport."  
  
"I'll take it easy."  
  
"Be sure to thank Lily for us for all the help she gave you during your convalescence. She is such a nice girl, I really like her."  
  
"I'll thank her, and I know that you liked her."  
  
"Maybe you should buy her some flowers or candy." When Mrs. Potter noticed the frown forming in her son's face she quickly added. "As a thank you gift from us, of course. Or do you think she would like something else?"  
  
"I don't know what she would like, but why don't you sent her an owl when you get back home. I'm sure that by then you will think of a perfect thank you gift."  
  
"You are right, she would like it better if it came from me."  
  
James gave a sigh of relief.  
  
"Now James, remember to behave yourself and to stay out of trouble." Mrs. Potter said as the room was emptied. The luggage had been taken and Mr. Potter was having a last minute discussion with Dumbledore.  
  
"I'll try mum."  
  
"Well now, good bye dear and remember that we want you to come home for the holidays, I'm thinking of inviting family over."  
  
"Very well, as long as you don't invite Aunt Amelia, she pinches my cheeks every time she sees me and I can't stand that cat of hers."  
  
"She is just getting old James, she is a nice lady."  
  
"Easy for you to say."  
  
"Well, we'll see, she might want to spend the holidays with her daughter in Spain."  
  
"I'll be crossing my fingers."  
  
"Now I must really go or your father will have a fit, he has missed too many days from the Ministry already. Good bye dear, and be careful." Mrs. Potter presented her cheek to James to kiss, which he promptly did.  
  
"Bye mum."  
  
James followed his mother out of the room and escorted her to the entrance hall of the castle where Mr. Potter stood waiting in the company of Dumbledore.  
  
"Now young man, behave yourself and I'll be owling you later."  
  
"Good bye father. Have a nice trip."  
  
Mr. Potter gave James a quick hug and then turned to his wife who was saying good bye to Dumbledore.  
  
James and Dumbledore stood upon the stairs watching the carriage disappear around the corner.  
  
Lily was stepping out of Professor Sprout's office when somebody bumped into her.  
  
"I'm sorry." James and Lily said at the same time. They laughed and together they started to walk down the corridor.  
  
"I hope you don't mind if I go with you to the tower." Said James giving her his most charming smile.  
  
"Of course not. Are you all set to move back to the tower?" Replied Lily with a smile of her own.  
  
"All my things are back in the dorm. Mum and dad just left."  
  
"Are you going to miss them much?"  
  
"Not as much as I did when I was a first year."  
  
"Of course. How is Minnie? I haven't seen her around."  
  
"She's being a slave driver. She is very protective of me."  
  
"I noticed that."  
  
"But I've been told that all personal elves are like that. My poor son will have to suffer her when I marry."  
  
"Oh dear, I hope he doesn't take after you, otherwise he won't know what to do with her, the poor child."  
  
James laughed. "It's just like you to feel sorry for a child that isn't born yet."  
  
Lily laughed in reply.  
  
"What did Professor Sprout want with you?" Asked James as they neared the tower.  
  
"It seems that her plants in greenhouse 7 have developed some problem and she wants me to try a charm on them."  
  
"Oh, well, you are the best at Charms so I expect that you can solve the problem."  
  
"Thank you for your vote of confidence. Professor Sprout said that I can collect some fruit and plants from her greenhouses when the charm has been performed, so I'm going to the tower to get some baskets."  
  
The couple had arrived to the entrance to Gryffindor tower. As the portrait opened, they were met by their friends who had been waiting for them.  
  
"Where have you two been?" Asked Sirius the moment he saw them enter.  
  
"Busy." Said Lily with a smile.  
  
"None of your concern." James replied.  
  
"Perhaps the question should be what were you doing?" Asked Sirius in a sly tone. Both Lily and James sighed in exasperation.  
  
"Take your mind out of the gutter Sirius, it doesn't suit you." Said James as he walked to the couch.  
  
"Fine. But where were you? We were looking for you all over." Sirius said as the whole group was settled around the fireplace.  
  
"I was saying goodbye to mum and dad, and you know how much mum worries." James said.  
  
"Oh, was she too worried about her baby?" Sirius teased. Katie pinched his arm while James glared at him.  
  
"I was at Professor Sprout's office, she needs me to do a charm for her. I'm going to get a basket, she said that I could pick some fruit and flowers from her greenhouses after the charm was done." Lily said.  
  
"Do you need some help?" Remus asked.  
  
"I don't think I will need all of you there." Lily smiled, "but I would appreciate a hand to carry the baskets."  
  
The group, except for James who was lying on the couch with his eyes closed, looked at each other before turning back to look at Lily.  
  
"Sorry Lily, Sirius and I are going to the library to do some research." Said Katie with a conciliatory smile.  
  
"Remus and I have plans as well, he needs to see Madam Pomfrey and I'm going to keep him company. Peter is going as well." Said Emma as Peter nodded.  
  
"I'll go with you Lily." Said James sitting up on the couch.  
  
"Thanks James." Lily smiled happily at him before skipping up the stairs.  
  
"Be sure to gather lots of fruit James, we could do with some midnight snacks." Urged Sirius.  
  
"Isn't the food Minnie brings enough?" Asked James with mock surprise.  
  
"Of course not, that's only dessert." Replied Sirius. The boys chuckled at his response.  
  
"Maybe you should go and get your cloak James, it must be cold outside." Urged Emma. James nodded and quickly went up to the dorm to get his cloak.  
  
"How did you get Sprout to ask Lily to do the charm?" Asked Katie turning to Remus.  
  
"Easy, Sirius here infected the plants while we were in class, when Professor Sprout noticed I happened to mention how brilliant Lily was with charms and that she could cure them in an instant. You know how Sprout is about her plants, and she isn't good with charms so I knew she would jump at the chance of having her plants cured easily. Then Peter staged a conversation with Sirius about how much Lily appreciated the flowers and fruit in Sprout's greenhouses and that a few of them would be readily accepted as payment for curing the plants. Next thing we know she was asking Lily to stay after class." Said Remus with a shrug.  
  
"How did you know that James would volunteer?" Asked Emma.  
  
"Or that Lily would like some help?" Asked Katie.  
  
"Lily wouldn't let the chance of gathering some fruit or flowers pass by. And James is so chivalrous he wouldn't let her go by herself, especially after she said that she would appreciate some help." Said Sirius.  
  
"And now what?" Asked Peter, looking at the stairs making sure that neither Lily nor James appeared and heard their conversation.  
  
"Now we let them be on their own for a while. The way they both act towards each other should lead to a natural pairing, if after this they don't get together then we need to think of something else." Said Remus.  
  
The group waited in silence for Lily and James to appear. Finally, they heard the couple coming down the stairs talking and laughing together.  
  
"We are going now, see you later." Said Lily waving at them and disappeared out the portrait hole.  
  
"Behave yourselves." Warned James.  
  
"We always do, you are the bad influence." Shouted Sirius as James followed Lily out of the common room.  
  
The night was chilly but clear. The moon lighted the path that had been cleared of snow toward the greenhouses. James was carrying one basket and Lily another.  
  
"Why two baskets?" He asked.  
  
"One for fruit and the other for flowers." She answered.  
  
"Taking advantage of Professor Sprout's offer huh?"  
  
"Of course, I don't know when I will get another chance."  
  
James laughed and Lily smiled cheerfully.  
  
"How does this charm work?"  
  
"It is a simple incantation, it makes a natural repellant for the infection that affects the plants."  
  
"Why didn't she ask Professor Flitwick to do it for her?"  
  
"Professor Flitwick was busy and Professor Sprout is not very fond of charms."  
  
"So what have you been doing lately, we haven't talked as much as we used to."  
  
"Well, I was not going to go to your bedroom to talk now was I?"  
  
"I wouldn't have minded."  
  
"I'm sure you wouldn't have, but I believe your mother would."  
  
"Probably. So what were you doing while I was all alone in my room."  
  
"Nothing much. All the Head Girl duties and class work."  
  
"Sorry you were left with double duty."  
  
"Don't worry, it wasn't too bad. If you had gotten sick while we were preparing for the festival then it would've been different."  
  
"Lord, I don't even want to think about it."  
  
"Are you feeling much better now?" She asked looking worriedly at him.  
  
"Yes, Madam Pomfrey still wants me to go to the infirmary regularly to make sure there are no side effects, but so far I'm doing just fine."  
  
"I'm glad."  
  
The couple had arrived at greenhouse 3, where Professor Sprout kept the most exotic plants. James looked around the room looking at all the plants while Lily went to work on the charm.  
  
Lily worked on the plants for just a couple of minutes and quickly joined James near a plant that looked liked a squid.  
  
"Are you done?" He asked as soon as he noticed her beside him.  
  
She nodded. "All set, we can go to greenhouse 7 now to gather the fruit and flowers."  
  
"Good. Do you know what this is?" He pointed at the plant and quickly pulled it back when the plant moved to grab his arm.  
  
"A Tarantella Plant, it is attracted to heat that is why is classified as a predatory plant." She responded.  
  
"Fascinating plant." He sarcastically said.  
  
"Come on." Lily pulled his shirt to get his attention and quickly walked to the entrance of the greenhouse.  
  
They quickly made their way to a greenhouse that was a little far from the others, it stood alone among the white ground.  
  
"This is perfect for a snow fight." James exclaimed.  
  
"I'm sure it is." Laughed Lily. Only James would think of something like that.  
  
Lily stopped laughing when she felt being hit by something damp.  
  
"You didn't!" She exclaimed turning to look at a smiling James.  
  
"Didn't what?" He innocently asked.  
  
Lily quickly used her wand to levitate some snow, which she swiftly threw to James. Among giggles and laughter a magical snow fight arose. James finally tried to put a stop to it when he reached for Lily to trap her arms but he slipped and both fell in a snow bank. Lily fell beneath James, both were breathing raggedly as they tried to catch their breath.  
  
"Give?" He asked.  
  
"What happens if I say no?"  
  
"You'll see."  
  
"You're bluffing."  
  
"Try me."  
  
Their faces were really close, something that they didn't notice until they looked straight into each other's eyes.  
  
Lily quickly looked away and James promptly stood up and reached down to help her up.  
  
"Er.sorry." James said.  
  
"There is nothing to be sorry about." Lily said.  
  
Both turned to shake the snow from their robes trying to avoid each other's eyes.  
  
"Shall we go on?" Lily politely asked as she picked up the basket she carried from where it had fallen.  
  
"Yeah, let's go." The couple continued on their way in awkward silence. Each immersed in thoughts.  
  
Was he going to kiss me? Oh dear!  
  
What was I doing? She is my friend for goodness sakes!  
  
The couple finally arrived at the isolated greenhouse. As the door opened it seemed like they had entered into a tropical world. All kinds of fruit trees and flowerbeds lined the outer wall. A path branched into different directions as they walked farther into the room. In the center they could see a sparkling fountain with a statue of the Greek Goddess Aphrodite in the center. The water bubbled up from the pedestal in which she stood and run down to the large pool underneath it.  
  
"This is beautiful!" Lily exclaimed in awe.  
  
"No wonder she keeps this secret. This is a perfect spot for lovers to hide." James said. Lily blushed as he mentioned the word lovers, and James flushed when he noticed his slip of the tongue.  
  
"Professor Sprout said that the berries were near the center and the citrus trees along the wall. Where should we start?" Said Lily trying to fill the awkward silence that followed James comment.  
  
"What about the berries? We are here now, makes no sense to start somewhere else." James replied.  
  
Both turned to look at the bushes of berries nearby. There were strawberries, blueberries, blackberries. They also say cherries and plums. They started to pick but somehow more berries made their way into their mouth than into the basket.  
  
"Oh look at these, they look ripe enough." Exclaimed Lily as she noticed some juicy strawberries. She picked some and tasted one. She closed her eyes with pleasure as she bit into it. James looked at her, and gulped. Lily opened her eyes and smiled. " They are truly delicious, here taste them." She picked another one and fed it to James. He bit into the berry and ate it very slowly. Lily's eyes widened and looked away blushing. James smiled mischievously when he noticed her rosy cheeks.  
  
They continued to pick the berries and eating as they did. When they thought they had enough, they turned to look at the citrus trees.  
  
"What do you want to pick?" James asked as he looked up to see how high the trees were and if he could climb them if she wanted.  
  
"Let's try those oranges there, they are not too high up. Can you reach them?" Asked Lily pointing to an orange tree near them.  
  
"Yes." James reached up and easily picked the oranges from the branches. Lily lifted the basket for him to place them in.  
  
"Now what?" James asked as he finished with the oranges.  
  
"Here let's pick some lemons as well. Have you ever eaten lemons? I like eating them with a coat of sugar." Said Lily walking to a small lemon tree.  
  
"I haven't tried it, but I will if you let me have some of these." James said as he followed her to the tree.  
  
"Of course you can have some. You are helping me after all." Smiled Lily. She had reached the tree and as she turned to look at James her robes got snagged by the tree. "Oh no! I can't get lose." She exclaimed as she tried to release her robes.  
  
"Here let me help you, you are going to rip your robes if you keep doing that." Laughed James as he saw her struggle against the tree.  
  
"I don't see the humor in it." Lily said with a glare toward James.  
  
"Of course you don't, but you would if you were in my shoes." Chuckled James, he reached for the snagging branch but his efforts were impeded by Lily's movement. "Would you keep still? I can't release you if you are moving." He said with an exasperated tone.  
  
"Sorry." She said and kept still while James tried to release her. Lily was very aware of James nearness. She could smell the scent of his soap mixed with the cologne that he used. She tried to keep her mind on something else, but her senses kept coming back to it.  
  
"There you go." James said with a sigh of relief. He looked down at Lily and what he saw made him hold his breath.  
  
Her eyes had turned smoky green and James felt like he was being pulled into the pools of her eyes. He breathed deeply and slowly lowered his head.  
  
Their lips met. He kissed her slowly and when he felt her sigh he deepened the kiss.  
  
Neither had noticed a small part of the glass wall that was clear, behind it five pairs of eyes were looking in on them and when their lips met, neither heard the whispered "Yes!"  
  
  
  
A/N: I hope you like this chapter! Please review and let me know. : ) 


	15. Chapter 13

A/N: Hello there, thank you all for reviewing, I like to read what you have to say.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter nor anything related to him.  
  
  
  
Chapter 13 ~ A New Beginning  
  
  
  
Lily and James took their time in the greenhouse, they were enjoying their time together and were loathing the moment to leave.  
  
"How do you think the rest will take this piece of news?" Asked James giving Lily a quick peck on her lips as they finished picking the fruit they wanted.  
  
"Considering that they have been matchmaking the whole year, I'm guessing they are going to be thrilled." She smiled.  
  
James laughed and swiftly took her in his arms. "I think you are right, why were we so against it?" He looked down at her with a mischievous glow in his eyes.  
  
"I don't know." She blushed. This was all new to her, she loved the feel of his arms around her and it was so hard to believe that a new phase to their relationship was beginning.  
  
"Sickle for your thoughts." He asked as he noticed her far away look.  
  
"I'm sorry." Lily blushed at the thought of being caught with her mind on the clouds. "I was just thinking how things might change. Do you think we're doing the right thing?"  
  
"Do you regret what happened?" He asked. He was dreading her answer, what would he do if she said she did? He liked the feeling of her near him and didn't want to ever let her go.  
  
"Oh no! I could never regret it." She stood on her toes and reached up to him to kiss him.  
  
The moment their lips met, James pressed her against him and deepened the kiss. Lily put her arms around his neck and readied to enjoy the kiss. Couple of minutes later, James lifted his face and looked down at her.  
  
"I don't think we could ever go back." He said.  
  
"I'm so afraid James, what if it doesn't work out? Will it ruin our friendship?"  
  
"It's a risk I'm willing to take, I don't think I can continuing thinking of you as just a friend, not after tonight." He said. He looked into her eyes, he thought they were very expressive and he could see her thoughts clearly through them.  
  
"You are right, I don't think I could either." She smiled sweetly at him and he smiled back as he leaned his head against hers.  
  
"Everything will be fine, you'll see." He said and gave her a quick kiss before letting her go. "We have to return. It's starting to get late."  
  
"Let's go. The rest must be curious to know what happened to keep us here for so long." She smiled.  
  
"I bet." James laughed.  
  
They picked up their baskets, and made their way to the entrance.  
  
"Are you sure you have all you need?" James asked as he reached to open the door.  
  
"I'm sure, I don't think I need anything else." Lily replied.  
  
James opened the door and then reached for Lily's hand. With entwined hands they left the building, but as James turned to close the door, he noticed something.  
  
"What is that?" He asked.  
  
"What?" Lily turned to look at what had grabbed his attention.  
  
Remus, Sirius, Katie and Emma were sitting near the fireplace, Peter had gone up to bed earlier but the rest decided to wait up for Lily and James.  
  
"Ahh! I'm so glad they finally came to their senses." Sighed Katie as she leaned back and snuggled against Sirius. Sirius quickly put her arms around her and settled back on the couch.  
  
"We would've thought of something if they hadn't." He said.  
  
"I suppose, but it's easier this way, now we don't have to look at them being so stubborn." Said Emma. She was sitting in a couch nearby and Remus was lying with his head on her lap. She stroke his hair back as they group talked.  
  
"I think it's because they are afraid of what might happen. And you know that Mrs. Potter's machinations have not helped either. They have only made James more stubborn to stay single." Said Remus. He liked the feeling of Emma's hands through his hair; he found it very relaxing.  
  
"She is a very stubborn lady isn't she?" Giggled Katie.  
  
"James got it from her." Sirius laughed.  
  
The portrait opened at that moment, the group turned to look toward it and waited to see who it was. James entered first and Lily quickly followed. The group quickly noticed they were holding hands and that their baskets were overflowing with fruit and flowers.  
  
"Hello there, did you have any fun?" Asked Sirius with a sly smile.  
  
"Oh yes, we found lots of fruit and flowers." Happily exclaimed Lily.  
  
"We can see that, did you find anything else besides plants in there?" Urged Katie. Why didn't they say about their relationship the minute they entered?  
  
"No, place was crawling with plants." Responded James as he put his basket on one of the tables. He had released Lily's hand the moment they were inside and the portrait had closed.  
  
"Did nothing exciting happened?" Emma asked with a frown. Did they decide that they wouldn't become a couple? She knew they were too stubborn for their own good.  
  
"Nothing, we did find this exquisite fountain in there, the water was so clear and sparkling." Exclaimed Lily.  
  
The others looked to each other with a questioning look. What had happened after they had left? They were doing so well in there.  
  
"What have you lot being doing?" Asked James. He was having a hard time keeping from laughing; he had an idea of what the others were thinking. He was glad he had that talk with Lily as they returned to the castle.  
  
"Nothing much, nothing exciting." Said Remus with a sad little smile. The others were also wearing crestfallen expressions, it looked as if their most sought after wish had not turned into reality.  
  
"Why are you looking so down, did we missed anything?" Innocently asked Lily.  
  
"No, nothing happened, quite an ordinary evening." Sighed Katie.  
  
James just couldn't resist it, he exploded into laughter, Lily giggled as she looked at James his laughter was infectious.  
  
"What is so bloody funny?" Asked Sirius in exasperation.  
  
"I'm sorry, I just couldn't keep my face straight. You lot need better things to do than go spying on people." James said.  
  
"What do you mean?" The group asked in unison. Their confused expressions showed how surprised they were by the turn of events.  
  
"You left your footprints where you stood outside of the greenhouse." Said Lily as she sat in a chair near the others.  
  
"Oh!" Said Katie. The rest looked embarrassed that they had been caught.  
  
"Sorry." Said Emma.  
  
"Hmpff!" Snorted James as he sat on the arm of the chair where Lily sat.  
  
"So?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"So what?" Asked James.  
  
"Don't tease him James, he is about to explode if you don't confirm that you two are a couple." Laughed Remus.  
  
"Oh very well, yes we are a couple now. Happy?" Said James with an exasperated tone.  
  
"Yes!" Said the others at once.  
  
"It was about time." Said Sirius as he stood to clap James on his back.  
  
"I'm so happy for you Lily." Said a giggling Katie giving Lily a quick hug.  
  
"Congratulations." Said Remus shaking James' hand.  
  
"Come Lily we have to talk." Squealed Emma. The giggling girls left the room and quickly disappeared up the stairs to the girls' room.  
  
The boys laughed at the excitement of the girls. James noticed that Lily had left the baskets on the table and was about to take them to her but was held back by Sirius.  
  
"So tell us, when is your first date?" Sirius asked.  
  
"We haven't discussed it." Replied James.  
  
"I see. Wink, wink, nudge, nudge, huh?"  
  
"Sirius, get your mind out the gutter." Exclaimed Remus. James just shook his head.  
  
"Sorry."  
  
"Really Sirius, sometimes I wonder about you." Said James.  
  
"Oh very well, I will behave myself. I don't want to make Lily feel embarrassed." Said Sirius with an innocent smile.  
  
"Yeah, right." Said Remus.  
  
Giggling could be heard from the girls' room. Merriment and expectations filled the air.  
  
"So tell us, how was it?" Squealed Katie.  
  
"Honestly Katie! I don't kiss and tell." Said Lily feigning surprise.  
  
"Oh come off it, we tell each other everything, you know how Remus and Sirius kiss." Exclaimed Katie. The girls exploded into laughter as they blushed remembering previous conversations.  
  
"I don't think the boys would like it if they find out that we talk about them." Replied Lily.  
  
"Hmpf! Knowing them they probably feel flattered to know that they are being talked about. Men can be so vain sometimes." Said Emma.  
  
Katie laughed. "I hate to say it but you are right. Sirius would probably strut around the school as if he was a gift to womankind."  
  
The others laughed. "I can see him doing it too." Exclaimed Emma. "But we are changing the subject, which is what I think Lily had in mind." She said turning to look at Lily.  
  
"I see that it didn't work." Lily sighed.  
  
"Oh come on Lily. Tell us." Urged Katie.  
  
"What is it that you want to know?" Lily warily asked.  
  
"What did he say to you?"  
  
"How did you feel?"  
  
"How does he kiss?"  
  
"All right, all right! I'll tell you." Giggled Lily putting a stop to the rapid bombardment of questions thrown her way.  
  
The discussion continued for several minutes until they were interrupted by somebody knocking on the door.  
  
"I wonder who that could be?" Asked Lily.  
  
The others shrugged they couldn't think of who would be outside the door. Lily stood and reached for the knob.  
  
The door opened silently and Lily was surprised at seeing James on the other side.  
  
"James! You can't be in here." The others giggled when they heard who was their nocturnal visitor. Lily pushed him back and walked out the room closing the door swiftly behind her.  
  
"What are you doing here? Boys are not allowed on this side of the Tower." She exclaimed as she pulled him down to the common room. "You will get in trouble if you are caught in there." She said as they walked down the stairs.  
  
"Relax Lily, who is going to catch me the Head Girl? You are the Head Girl." He chuckled.  
  
"Oh, you are right." Lily looked at him with surprise, how could she had forgotten that?  
  
"Perhaps I scrambled your senses that you forgot that simple fact." He said wiggling his eyebrows at her.  
  
Lily laughed and hit him softly on the arm. "Very modest are you? Stop that you loony, it looks like a pair of caterpillars are dancing on your forehead."  
  
James quickly stopped but smiled at seeing the happy expression that graced Lily's countenance. Why was I so blind and didn't notice how beautiful she was. But deep down he knew that he wasn't being honest with himself. He had noticed that Lily had become a beautiful young woman, he just didn't want to see it because he was afraid of the feelings that she was evoking in him. But things were different know and he was going to take advantage and enjoy his time with her.  
  
"So, what did you want?" She asked looking down as she noticed his scrutinizing look. He smiled when he saw the pink glow that spread through her face in embarrassment. Lily still wasn't used to being looked at the way James did.  
  
"What do you thing I wanted?" He whispered in her ear.  
  
Lily quickly looked up with a scandalized look but quickly smiled as she noticed his amused glance.  
  
"I don't know, what did you had in mind?" She asked huskily. James blinked a couple of time in surprise, he didn't expect her to turn the tables on him and didn't know what to say.  
  
"Er." He said.  
  
Lily laughed and gave him a quick peck on his lips. "If you have forgotten I'm going to return to the dorms." She said.  
  
"Wait!" He said reaching for her arm.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"You forgot these earlier." He said presenting her with the baskets of fruit and flowers that they had collected.  
  
"Oh, thanks. And here I thought you just wanted to see me." She pouted.  
  
"Of course I wanted to see you, I could've just left them at your door you know." He said putting his arms around her waist and pulling her to him.  
  
"Hmmm.I suppose that's true." She smiled.  
  
"You are fishing for compliments. There is no need you know. There are simply no words to describe you." He said with a smile.  
  
"Flatterer." She said.  
  
He leaned his head and kissed her swiftly, Lily sighed in contentment and gave herself to the moment and enjoyed the kiss.  
  
By the next morning the rest of the school knew that James and Lily were the new couple on campus. The gossip had spread like wildfire, they even knew about James going to the girls' dorms looking for Lily. Nobody knew for sure what had happened after the dorm's door closed behind her. As a result, speculation ran rampant and wild stories were spread. Everybody was happy about the new turn of events; they all thought they made a wonderful couple. Only one student on the Slytherin Table wasn't happy about it.  
  
"So what are you going to do now Jezy? Do you still think you can get him?" Said Narcissa with a sly smile. She was enjoying herself immensely.  
  
"It will not last." Jezebel curtly replied.  
  
"Are you sure, they seem to get along well with each other, even before they became a couple." Said Maureen.  
  
"I will make sure that it doesn't." Was all Jezebel said.  
  
"What are you going to do?" Narcissa asked.  
  
"Just wait and see." Jezebel said with a predatory light in her eyes.  
  
The Gryffindor Table seemed to be in really good humor that morning, more than it usually was. The teachers had also heard of the news and some thought it was good tidings, while others were skeptical about the rightness of it.  
  
"I'm sure that both know what they are getting into but I wished they had waited until they were done with their training." Commented Professor McGonagall during breakfast that morning.  
  
"I surprised at you Minerva, you know how important relationships are to young people, I hope you have not forgotten your own experiences." Responded Dumbledore with a slight smile.  
  
"It was different them." She quickly responded.  
  
"Times might be different, but human instincts and desires do not change. Let them enjoy their time together, we don't know what may happen in the future. We might find that together they will become great wizard and witch." Dumbledore said. "Don't worry Minerva we will see how it all works out."  
  
The Marauders and the Sirens were sitting at their customary place at the table, others tried to join them in their conversation but found that the group could become rather reserved and wouldn't join in their gossip.  
  
"I wonder how they found out?" Said Lily after a third year had tried asking some questions to the new couple. Her questions fell on deaf ears and she finally left them alone.  
  
"You didn't tell anybody else besides us, did you?" Asked Remus.  
  
"Of course not! The question is did you talk to somebody about us?" Asked James.  
  
"How could you think that we would? We wouldn't do so without your permission." Said Katie in a hurt tone.  
  
"I'm sorry if I thought otherwise but there is a reason why all these people know about it." Grumbled James.  
  
"It is possible that someone came into the common room last night without us noticing them." Said Emma.  
  
"It doesn't matter that they found out, they were going to anyways." Said Sirius.  
  
"He is right, we just have to deal with all this attention sooner than we wanted to. Don't let them get to you James, new gossip will make them turn to something else soon." Said Lily in a soothing tone as she patted James hand.  
  
James took her hand in his and held it for a moment. "You are right, but I still hate it when they come asking questions." He said.  
  
"I know I hate it too. But it's human nature for people to be curious about the lives of others. You would hate my sister. Petunia can't keep her nose out of other people's lives even if her life depended on it." Said Lily.  
  
"You are not very fond of her are you?" Asked Remus.  
  
"Who would be fond of a sister like that?" Said Katie. "Don't worry Lily, after graduation she will be married and gone and you don't have to deal with her anymore."  
  
"I can't wait for her to be gone, she is a nightmare." Said Lily.  
  
"Well, I would like to hear more of this nightmarish sister but if we don't leave now we are going to be late for class." Said James gathering his things.  
  
The group promptly got their things and left the Great Hall toward their classes.  
  
Time passed quickly for students in Hogwarts. Lily and James were seen having a great time together taking walks on the grounds, having snow fights, and sitting by themselves in a corner of the common room. The couple had become the favorite on campus and when their first date happened everybody was anxiously waiting to see how it had gone. The couple decided to take advantage of their prize from the Festival. When they were chosen King and Queen of the Festival, they were awarded a dinner for two at The Three Broomsticks and a shopping spree at Gladrags Wizardwear. Lily and James went on the last weekend of November to go on their date. As Head Students they had the privilege to go to Hogsmeade whenever they wanted, as long as they requested it and was approved by Professor McGonagall and Dumbledore of course.  
  
They had a good time shopping for Christmas gifts for their friends and family, they bought several candy and party tricks for a celebration that was being planned for Gryffindor in the common room before the Holiday Break. And ended the day with a wonderful dinner and dancing at the Three Broomsticks.  
  
Everything seemed rosy and calm in their world and both sincerely hoped that it would continue to be that way.  
  
Soon enough, students took the exams for the first semester and were packing to go home for the holidays.  
  
  
  
A/N: Here you go, I tried to get this to you as fast as I could. Hope you enjoy it. : ) 


	16. Chapter 14 The House Party

A/N: Because this next chapter is very long I decided to do the same thing I did with Chapter 8 and divide it into parts. Hope you all enjoy it.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own HP, only the plot and secondary characters of this specific story.  
  
  
  
Chapter 14 ~ The House Party  
  
  
  
The Gryffindor common room was busy on the morning of the twentieth of December, students were packing last minute things and others kept returning to their dorms because they thought they had forgotten something. Some were all done and were waiting in the common room for their friends to return. The Marauders were sitting in their customary place waiting for the girls.  
  
"What is keeping them? We have to be at Hogsmeade Station in forty five minutes." Said Peter in an exasperated tone.  
  
"We'll be on time don't worry, girls just like to take their time packing." Said Sirius lying on one of the couches with his eyes closed.  
  
"What is so difficult in packing?" Peter wanted to know.  
  
"It's just that they like to make sure that they have everything they need, and whenever they think that they are ready something else comes to mind and they simply can't leave without it." Said Remus.  
  
The others laughed at this, they had enough experience with girls to know that what Remus had said was very true.  
  
"What are you guys laughing at?" Asked Lily as the girls approached the boys.  
  
"Yeah, why don't you share the joke?" Urged Katie.  
  
"You girls wouldn't like it." Quickly replied Sirius. The girls looked at them with a suspicious glance but decided not to argue about it.  
  
"We should be going to the station now, I'm sure that the carriages are waiting up front." Said Emma.  
  
"Are these all the luggage you are taking?" Asked Remus as he took notice of the trunks and hand-boxes the girls carried.  
  
"Yes, Katie couldn't find her journal so we had to unpack everything until we found it, that's why we took so long." Explained Lily.  
  
"I didn't know you kept a journal Katie. Dare I hope to one day have the privilege of reading some of it?" Said Sirius as he put his arm around her and started leading the group to the portrait hole.  
  
"Don't hold you breath, you are not getting your hands on my journal even if we married." Responded Katie.  
  
The others laughed at the expression of shock that passed through Sirius face.  
  
Students enjoyed their few hours of freedom as the train traveled toward London. The Marauders and the Sirens shared a compartment, each couple enjoying the time they had left together.  
  
"I'm going to miss you." Said Lily in a small voice as she settled into James arms. She had her back to him, pressed against his chest, and his arms around her waist.  
  
"I'm going to miss you too. I'll owl you everyday." He whispered in her ear and giving her a quick kiss on her cheek.  
  
"I'll look forward to them. I promise to answer them as soon as I get them. Iocasta will love to fly more often." Lily replied.  
  
"I will be expecting her every day." James said.  
  
On another corner of the compartment Sirius was sitting with Katie on his lap. Laughter and giggles could be heard from their corner but the others were too occupied to pay much attention to them. Remus and Emma were sitting in front of Lily and James. They were whispering to each other and making plans to meet sometime during their break.  
  
"I'm sure that Diagon Alley will be very festive this time of year, and I would really like to take you to dinner there." Said Remus.  
  
"I would love it, I'll owl you the moment I know what my family's plans are and we could fix on a day." Emma replied.  
  
"I'll be looking forward to it." And he leaned to her and kissed her swiftly.  
  
Peter was the only unattached person in the compartment but he didn't seem to mind, he just kept his mind on several pieces of parchment that his parents had sent him and were expecting him to know by heart when he arrived.  
  
The trip eventually ended and the group kissed and hugged as they said goodbye to each other before splitting up and going their own way.  
  
Lily saw her parents waiting for her at the barrier.  
  
"Hello Princess! You don't know how much I missed you." Said Mr. Evans as he hugged his daughter.  
  
"Hello daddy! Hi mum!"  
  
"Hi dear. Do you have all your things? I don't want to come back later because you've forgotten something."  
  
"I'm all set, didn't forget anything."  
  
"Let's go then, I hope to be there before dark." Said Mr. Evans as he led his ladies to the car.  
  
"Daddy, what is this luggage doing here?" Said Lily as she saw several pieces of luggage packed in the trunk and the backseat, there was barely room for her own luggage and herself.  
  
"I'm sorry Hun, I forgot to tell you that we're going to a house party this Christmas. Don't worry," said Mrs. Evans when she saw the confused look Lily had on her face, "I packed the necessary clothes for you, I also bought some things that I think you would like."  
  
"Thanks mum, but, where is this house party?"  
  
"It's in the cottage of family friends in a small town in the outskirts of London, it will take us a while to get there because it is hidden to the common eye and we have to look very careful to make sure we don't miss it." Said Mr. Evans as the car pulled out of the parking lot.  
  
"Which friends are these?" Asked a curious Lily.  
  
"I don't think you've met them dear, although maybe you've heard of them. They're very influential people in their circle after all and I've heard their son is very popular with the girls." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"A son, and I'm guessing he's single." Said a suspicious Lily. She hadn't told her parents about her relationship with James she was too afraid of what her mother would do if she knew that Lily had a boyfriend.  
  
"Well of course he's single dear, he is rather young, I think he's about the same age as you are."  
  
"Now mum, you're not going to start matchmaking are you?"  
  
"Now dear, why would you say that?"  
  
"Never mind mum, I don't want to arrive at this party in a bad mood. Where's Petunia, is she meeting us there?"  
  
"Petunia isn't coming dear, she decided to spend the holidays with her fiancé and his family. I really think it won't be long before they tell us about that they had finally set on a wedding date."  
  
"They haven't decided yet? I just hope that this means that Vernon is having second thoughts." Said Lily.  
  
"Now Lily, your sister is good looking and outgoing, it isn't a surprise that she met a boy she wants to spend the rest of her life with-"  
  
"If you say so mum." Muttered Lily.  
  
"- and after all, she's 20, it was about time for her to think of having a family and leave us. In fact, that's something you have to start thinking of now that you're almost done with school." Continued Mrs. Evans as if Lily hadn't spoken.  
  
"Speaking of school," interrupted Mr. Evans noticing the expression on Lily, "how has been your year so far Lily?"  
  
"Oh, it's been great dad. The Festival we planned for Halloween was a great success. But then something happened to James and he had to be kept in the infirmary for quite some time."  
  
"James? Is that the boy you told us about before Lily, the one that was named Head Boy?" Asked Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"I would like to meet him dear he sounds like a nice young man." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"How long will it take us to get there?" Lily asked trying to change the subject she didn't think she was ready to tell her parents about James yet.  
  
"Let me see, Aliaster said that we needed to take this street and follow it for 60 miles, then turn right on the road to Sussex and continue for 100 miles until we find a small country road, Godric's Lane I think he called it and that will take us to the town of Godric's Hollow. From there we just need to follow the lane that leads to the lake, Aliaster said that if we have any problems finding our way, people in that area can give us directions." Said Mr. Evans, who looked very proud of himself that he remembered the directions without reading the piece of paper in front of him.  
  
"Godric's Hollow? I've never heard of it." Said Lily.  
  
"Neither had I until they invited us to attend." Said Mrs. Evans as she saw the shops and houses pass by.  
  
"You should've told me we were going somewhere else for Christmas, I didn't do any shopping for anybody other than family and close friends, it seems kind of rude to go to a House Party and not having anything for those who will attend." Said a disgruntled Lily.  
  
"Don't worry about that dear, I was told that the Town Square has a huge variety of shops where last minute shopping could be done." Soothed Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Well that's good, I wouldn't want to give our hosts a bad impression."  
  
"You could never give a bad impression Princess, you're perfect."  
  
"Daddy!"  
  
"Hey James, who's supposed to come for us? Because it seems that they have forgotten us." Said Sirius as they waited in front of the station to be picked up.  
  
"Mum said they might be a little late. And it's your mum the one who's picking us up."  
  
"Should've known, she's probably looking for us in some other part of the station, she always looses her way."  
  
"She's coming in a Ministry car, father said it would be faster."  
  
"Hope so because I'm getting hungry."  
  
"How can you be hungry? We just ate in the train."  
  
"But that wasn't food, it was candy, that's not enough for a big man like me."  
  
"Oh please."  
  
At that moment a black car stopped just in front of them and the head of a woman with shiny brown hair and sparkling gray eyes appeared on the window.  
  
"There you are dears, I was looking for you at the other side of the station, I swear, my memory gets worse every year."  
  
"Hi mum, you know your memory has always been bad, but that doesn't mean that your beauty has diminished from the time you were 15." Said Sirius, kissing his mother's cheek.  
  
"You flatterer, but I love you just the same." Said a giggling Mrs. Black.  
  
"Hello Mrs. Black, I hope you will enjoy the holidays with us." Said James as he settled in the car.  
  
"Hello James dear, I was so happy when your mother invited us to spend Christmas with you, I haven't been in the country for the holidays in quite a while and I always thought that Christmas in a country house would be just perfect."  
  
"Who else is going to be there mum?" Asked Sirius as he settled into his seat.  
  
"I'm not sure dear, I think some neighboring families were invited for a dinner and dance, and perhaps other close friends. But you'll see when we get there. Your mother, James, made sure we had this car, because she wants you there when the guests start to arrive."  
  
"I bet, she just wants me to be ready when her friends with daughters arrive."  
  
"Oh no dear, I'm sure she missed you and just wants to spend some time with you before people arrive."  
  
"No she wants him to get a girlfriend." Said Sirius.  
  
"And what's wrong with a mother wanting her child to think of the future? You both are almost 18, and just 6 more months until you're done with school. By this time next year you will, hopefully, have a job and new responsibilities so you have to start thinking of what are you going to do. And a family it's an important part in everybody's life."  
  
"Mum, we're not 18 yet, we're not done with school, and we don't have a job. I would think that you would want me to be able to take care of myself before I can even start thinking of a wife."  
  
"But you have to think seriously about this, I don't want to see get trapped by a hussy just because you weren't ready."  
  
"Mum, a hussy? Really, I'm not an idiot mum."  
  
"Sirius, such language, I didn't raise you like that."  
  
"Sorry."  
  
Silence settled among the passengers, each lost in their own thoughts that they didn't notice when the car stopped in front of a large house. The house was built in the Elizabethan style. The house was constructed with marble, big white columns adorned the entrance where two doors were open, with a woman standing beneath them waiting to greet the newcomers.  
  
"There you are, I was getting worried you might've gotten lost."  
  
"Hello mum, I've been told we're going to have guests this Christmas." Said James as he approached his mother and kissed her cheek.  
  
"Yes, I thought that if you were inviting some of your friends I might as well invite some of mine and have a small house party. We can also make it a celebration for your last year in school, this is going to be fun, don't you think?"  
  
"I hope so mum. Who did you invite?"  
  
"Let me see, the Blacks, the Lupins, the Petegrews couldn't come they already had plans; The Holmes, the Sinclairs, the Bennets, The Robinsons, the Hortons, the Mulliens, the Averys, the-"  
  
"I thought you said it was a small house party?" Complained James.  
  
"It is a small party compared to others we've had." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"You know with the Sinclairs and the Hortons here you're going to have to tell the house elves to stay in the kitchen, we don't want to scare any muggles while they're here."  
  
"That's already taken care of dear, that's why we have our muggle servants."  
  
"I know mum, who else is coming?"  
  
"Let me see, I think that was all.no, I'm missing someone.hmm.oh here they are." She said as a car pulled over in front of the house.  
  
James saw a couple, a red haired lady and a brown haired man getting our of the car, servants run to help with their luggage and couldn't see the third person who got out of it. James got distracted by Sirius, who came to stand by him, while his mother greeted her friends.  
  
"James dear I don't think you know Rose and Edward. And here is Lily, so nice to see you again my dear, I hope James didn't make a nuisance of himself after we left."  
  
Surprise was seen in every expression standing on the stairs, the only one who wasn't surprised was Mrs. Potter but James knew that she had a reason not to be surprised.  
  
"You know each other?" Asked Lily, James, Sirius and the Evans at the same time.  
  
"Oh dear, didn't I tell you?" Innocently asked Mrs. Potter.  
  
"No mum, you didn't say anything about meeting Lily's parents." Said James frowning at her.  
  
"Oh, I thought that I had." She said.  
  
"Mum, how come you never mentioned that we were going to the Potter's?" Lily asked. "And that you had met them."  
  
"I thought you wouldn't like it. Why didn't you say that you had met them?" Rose Evans asked.  
  
"Because it was no big deal." She said.  
  
"Would you mind if we take this inside? I'm hungry." Said Sirius.  
  
"Shut up Sirius!" Snapped Lily and James.  
  
"Lily!"  
  
"James!"  
  
"Sorry mum." They said in unison.  
  
"It's that young man you should be apologizing to, I'm ashamed Lily, I didn't raise my daughter to be rude. I'm starting to think that this school of yours is having a bad effect on you." Scolded Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Rose is right, the same goes to you James. And Sirius is right, we should take this to the sitting room is rude to keep our guests standing on the door." Said Mrs. Potter. "Why don't you young people go to the kitchens and grab something to eat, we won't have meal set out until everybody is here. You can show Lily her room after you have eaten James."  
  
"Yes mum."  
  
The group went toward a door in the right of the front door. A footman opened the door for them. A nice sitting room with antique looking furniture and colorful rugs graced the room. Wall length windows stood covered two sides of the room and showed a gorgeous countryside view.  
  
"Will you require something Madam." The footman asked after the adults had sat. The young people stood by the door making sure that their parents didn't need them anymore.  
  
"Just bring some tea and biscuits Eric, thank you." The footman bowed and closed the door.  
  
"We are going to the kitchen mum." Said James.  
  
"Behave yourselves." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
James, Lily and Sirius left their parents and walked down a wide corridor to the kitchen.  
  
"What was that all about?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"I don't know but I bet my mother instigated it. I can't believe she didn't tell me about meeting your parents." Exclaimed James turning to look at Lily.  
  
"I can't believe mine didn't tell me either. I hope they didn't have matchmaking schemes in mind." Replied Lily.  
  
"That's probably what they were thinking of when they planned this house party." Smiled Sirius.  
  
"Oh dear." Lily maoned.  
  
"Well at least now I get to spend time with you." Said James putting his arm around Lily.  
  
"I am so glad. We've got to tell our parents." Said Lily putting her head on his shoulder.  
  
"Do we have to?" He asked kissing her on the top on her head.  
  
"Yes we do." She said turning up to look at him and kissing his chin.  
  
"Can I get an analgesic, I think I'm going to be sick." Sirius feigned a groan.  
  
"Shut up Sirius. Let's see how you react when Katie comes.  
  
"She is coming?" Lily and Sirius asked.  
  
"Yes, mother told me just before you came in Lily."  
  
"Yay!" Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
Lily and James laughed. The trio had arrived at a set of doors; James quickly opened it and they were instantly engulfed by the culinary aromas permeating the air.  
  
"Welcome home Master James, can we bring you something Master James." A squeaky voice asked from behind them.  
  
The trio turned to look at a chubby looking elf, he was obviously the cook for the family as he was wearing a tea towel as if it was an apron. He was just finishing putting a tray together with tea and biscuits which Eric, the footman, was waiting for to take to the sitting room.  
  
"Hello Otty, I see you still reign over the kingdom of the kitchens." Teased James. The elf didn't seem to be offended by this, on the contrary he seemed very happy by James comment.  
  
"Oh, Master James was missed, sir. Kingdom of the kitchens indeed." Chuckled the elf. He magically cleaned a table by the corner and piled it with food, he pulled out the chairs and motioned to the three young people to sit. "Here is your food Master James. Please tell Otty if sir needs more." The elf quickly turned to direct the other elves working in the kitchen.  
  
"Nice elf." Said Sirius as he piled his plate with food.  
  
"He has always been my favorite, he knows exactly what I like." Said James as he pulled out a chair for Lily and then sat beside her.  
  
"I can see that he is, you even named him ruler of his own kingdom." Laughed Lily.  
  
"What can I say? I know how to flatter those I need something from." Replied James with a sly smile.  
  
The others laughed. The trio spent the next hour eating and talking as the elves around them worked on a banquet fit for a king.  
  
In the living room, the adults took their tea and talked about their children.  
  
"We instantly went to Hogwarts after receiving the note of course, you can imagine how scared I was." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Oh I can well imagine, I would have been scared as well if the note was about Lily. Of course you had to go. We wouldn't have been able to do so." Sighed Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Why not? I'm sure that you would like to see Hogwarts." Susan Potter responded with surprise.  
  
"But we aren't magical Susan, we wouldn't be able to see it even if we stood on the doorstep. Lily explained to us how Hogwarts was hidden to the, what is the word my dear?" Mr. Evans asked turning to his wife.  
  
"Muggle." She answered.  
  
"Yes that's it, Hogwarts was hidden to the Muggle eye." Mr. Evans finished.  
  
"Oh yes, I had forgotten that, but I'm sure that Dumbledore would make an exemption under especial circumstances." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"You met Lily then while you were there?" Asked Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Oh yes. You have a wonderful daughter, I hired her you see, to tutor James while he was in the infirmary." Exclaimed Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Oh, she probably liked that. She likes teaching, I have a feeling that she will become a teacher after leaving Hogwarts." Responded Mrs. Evans.  
  
"I sure that she would be a great teacher, my dear." Mr. Evans said as he finished sipping his tea.  
  
They heard a car stop in front of the house. They turned to look out the windows and found that a car had indeed stopped and the passengers were just getting out.  
  
"Our guests are finally starting to arrive. Eric, can you please ask Mrs. Nichols to come here please." The footman bowed and left the room. He had been standing by the door the whole time in case his employer needed something. "Mrs. Nichols is our housekeeper." Mrs. Potter explained to the Evans after Eric had left. "She will show you the rooms that we had prepared for you. We will all meet here at 7:00 for dinner."  
  
"Thank you Susan, I'm sure it will be lovely." Responded Mrs. Evans. At that moment the door opened and a thickset woman with a cheery disposition entered the room.  
  
"Ah there you are Mrs. Nichols, can you show the Evans their room please." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Of course Ma'am, if you will follow me please." Mrs. Nichols led the Evans up the wide staircase that graced the entrance hall and branched into two wings. The East Wing where the family rooms and private rooms were and the West Wing were the guest rooms were located. Mrs. Potter returned to the sitting room and waited for her guests to be brought in.  
  
James, Lily and Sirius had left the kitchen after eating as much as they could. In James and Sirius case, five times more than is humanly possible. This made the elves very happy and kept serving food as soon as the plates were emptied.  
  
"I cannot believe that you two eat that much. I just get sick thinking about it." Said Lily as the trio took the servants stairs to the upper levels.  
  
"I can only eat as much as I want when I'm at school or in the kitchen, mum would have a heart attack if I did so during her dinner parties." Complained James.  
  
"And with good reason." Chided Lily.  
  
"But Lil! We are growing boys, we need to eat as much as we can, our metabolism is at its peak you know." Said Sirius.  
  
"Oh please Sirius, don't try to bamboozle me with your excuses. I know you better." Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"Oh all right, but we can't help it, we get hungry." Pouted Sirius.  
  
"Hmpf! It's a miracle that you two don't gain any weight, you would be the size of a baby whale by now." Responded Lily.  
  
"A nice sight that would be." Laughed James. "We have to turn here, mum said that she had given you the floral room." James directed his friends down a corridor. Door after door, after door, the corridor seemed to be composed of an endless number of rooms, and Lily was sure that she could easily get lost.  
  
"James, how will I know which is my room? There are so many here." Lily gasped.  
  
"And Lily, this is only one corridor out of many in this wing." Said Sirius having fun at her expense.  
  
"Don't worry Lily, you will know which room is yours. You have a good memory." Said James trying to soothe Lily.  
  
"I'm going to get lost." She replied.  
  
"Then I'll the same thing Ariadne did with Theseus and give you some string so you can find your way out." Said James with a smile. Lily giggled and Sirius laughed as he imagined Lily unrolling some string in the corridors.  
  
James stopped in front of one of the doors. "This is your room Lily." He turned the knob and opened the door and motioned Lily to go in.  
  
Lily gasped at the sight. The walls were covered with floral paper, it seemed as if the flowers were real and they even emitted floral perfume that permeated the air and gave the room a calm and welcoming atmosphere. In the center of the room stood a large canopy bed, the curtains were of a light lavender color and a bowl of fruit stood on a table by the door and the fireplace was lit giving some warmth to the room.  
  
"Oh James, this is beautiful!" Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"Mum choose good, this is perfect for you." Said James as they looked around the room.  
  
"Are we all going to get fruit in our rooms?" Asked Sirius as he noticed the bowl and chose an apple from it.  
  
"Honestly Sirius, can't you think of anything but food?" Said Lily.  
  
"Yes, I can." He smiled.  
  
"What do you think of besides food?" Asked James turning to look at his friend who was enjoying his apple.  
  
"Why, of me of course." Said a voice from the door.  
  
The trio turned to look who it was, Lily squealed with contentment, James smiled at Lily's excitement and Sirius whole expression lighted up.  
  
"Katie, what are you doing here?" Asked Lily as she hugged her friend.  
  
"The same thing you are I expect. Can you believe my parents, they didn't even bothered to tell me that we were coming here for the holidays." Said Katie as she kissed Sirius on his cheek and gave James a quick hug.  
  
"I can believe it, my parents did the same thing; they didn't even bothered to tell me that they knew James' parents." Said Lily.  
  
"I was wondering what you were doing here. But what have they said about you and James?" Katie asked.  
  
"They haven't said anything yet because they don't know." Said Sirius.  
  
"Aren't you going to tell them?" Said Katie with surprise.  
  
"We are, just not yet." Said James.  
  
"Why not?" Somebody said from the door.  
  
"Remus!" The group exclaimed.  
  
The next few minutes were spent in welcoming each other.  
  
"Right! What were we speaking about?" Asked Sirius as everyone settled down and chose a couch to sit. The room contained a pair of small couches near the fireplace and it was here that the group settled to talk.  
  
"I asked why not. Why aren't Lily and James going to tell their parents that they are a couple?" Remus responded.  
  
Both Lily and James sighed as the others turned to look at them with questions in their eyes.  
  
"I'm not going to tell mine because I want to know how they met Lily's parents and what is mother planning." Said James.  
  
"What about you Lily?" Katie asked as minutes passed without Lily making a comment.  
  
Lily sighed and said. "I'm worried about what my dad might say, he might not be too happy, I'm his Princess you see."  
  
"Should I be worried?" Asked James who was now getting very nervous.  
  
"I don't know, I just hope that he gets to know you and then he will be happy that we are together." Said Lily giving him a quick kiss on his lips.  
  
"Oh I'm sure that he would love James he is perfect in everyone's eyes." Said a laughing voice from the door.  
  
"Really James, I will require a different room it seems that this one is too accessible to others." Said Lily as the rest turned to welcome Emma.  
  
"It would help if you closed the door." Emma replied as she turned to close the door shut.  
  
"Who left the door open?" Asked James in mock anger to the others.  
  
"We all did." Replied Sirius. "It was open when Katie came in because we were showing Lily her rooms, she left it open, then Remus left it open. Therefore, we all left it open."  
  
"Thank you Sherlock Holmes for an outstanding conclusion to our mystery." Laughed Remus.  
  
"Elementary my dear Lupin, elementary." Sirius said.  
  
"Honestly, you boys are so childish sometimes." Exclaimed Katie.  
  
"We are?" Exclaimed the three boys.  
  
"Yes." Said the girls.  
  
"Oh well, we just like to have fun that's all." Said Remus.  
  
"Speaking of fun, where is Peter?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"What does Peter have to do with fun?" Asked Katie.  
  
"He is a Marauder." Said Sirius.  
  
The girls rolled their eyes and shook their heads.  
  
"He is not coming, his family had other plans." Said James.  
  
"Oh well." Shrugged Remus.  
  
"We can still have fun without him." Said Sirius as he walked to the basket of fruit to chose something else. This time he took an orange.  
  
"Sirius, would you please stop eating my fruit? Why don't you ask for something from the kitchen?" Asked Lily.  
  
"Because this is here and I don't want to wait for the servants to bring me something." Replied Sirius.  
  
"Really Sirius! You have a basket in your own room, leave Lily's alone." Said James.  
  
"But I'm not in my room now." Sirius responded.  
  
"You could go and start getting ready. In fact, we all should go, Lily hasn't had the chance to unpack yet and we need to get ready for dinner." Said Emma.  
  
"You are right Emma, we have been very inconsiderate. Sorry Lily." Apologized Katie as she started to pull the boys from the room.  
  
"That's all right, but I would like to rest before going down to dinner." Said Lily.  
  
"We are meeting in the front parlor at 7:00." Said James as the group started to leave the room. "I'll see you then." He gave her a quick kiss and softly closed the door behind him.  
  
At 7: 00 the guests started to go down to the front parlor, there was a wide door on one side that opened to show the formal dinning room. James and his parents were first to arrive in order to welcome their guests.  
  
"All our guests have arrived." Mrs. Potter reported. "The Robinsons were the last to come, but with Jack being so busy in the Ministry they couldn't come earlier."  
  
"The Ministry has been in chaos during the last months." Said Aliaster Potter. "I'm not surprised that he couldn't get away."  
  
"Mum, I thought you said this was going to be a small house party, I counted thirty one guests, not including us and Aunt Joy, cousin Mark, Uncle Norm and Aunt Agatha." Complained James. He was angry at his mother for inviting all these people, he didn't mind his friend and family, but why did she have to invite Jezebel and her friends? He knew that it was going to create some problems.  
  
"It is a small party James, that is only thirty eight people at our table, we have had larger parties." Susan Potter replied.  
  
"I suppose." James grunted, there was nothing for him to do but make the most of his time with his friends, especially Lily.  
  
At that moment the guest started to come in, the Bennetts were first to arrive.  
  
"Lyndon, Marie, I'm so glad to see you could make it. How is Hogwarts treating you Katie, I didn't have a chance to talk to you while I was there." Greeted Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Hello Susan, we were so glad to get your invitation." Responded Marie Bennett. Mr. Bennett thanked Mrs. Potter for her invitation and turned to Aliaster Potter and they settled at one end of the room to talk about business.  
  
"Hello Mrs. Potter, I understand that you couldn't speak with us, you had your hands full with James here." Said Katie as she nudge James in his arm.  
  
"I let you know that I behaved myself." Said James with a dignified look. Katie laughed, the ladies smiled and James glowered.  
  
Others were starting to enter the room and groups started to form.  
  
"Marie, let me introduce you to Rose Evans, her daughter Lily goes to school with our children." Said Mrs. Potter as she greeted Mrs. Evans. "Rose, this is Marie Bennett, I'm sure Lily has mentioned Katie to you."  
  
"I'm pleased to make your acquaintance Mrs. Bennett, Lily has talked endlessly about Katie." Responded Mrs. Evans with a smile. "You don't know how glad I am to finally meet my daughter's friends and their families.  
  
"I can say the same, Katie has told me all about Lily, you must be very proud of her, there aren't many talented girls like her." Said Mrs. Bennett truly happy to finally meet the Evans.  
  
"Marie, you remember Elizabeth Holmes, Elizabeth this is Rose Evans." Said Mrs. Potter introducing a newcomer to the group.  
  
"Marie so glad to see you." Elizabeth Holmes greeted her friend with a kiss on her cheek and turned to greet the new member of the group. "Very pleased to meet you Mrs. Evans, are you by chance the mother of Lily Evans?"  
  
"Why yes I am, I expect Emma is your daughter?" Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Oh yes, I've heard a lot about Lily, but I suppose you have done the same about out daughters." Mrs. Holmes laughed.  
  
"Our children do seem to get along very well." Laughed Mrs. Potter as she spied the group of young people forming not far from them.  
  
Guests continued to arrive and introductions were done. The Ladies formed a group near the windows where large couches and several chairs were. The men stood by the fireplace talking about hunting, business, and politics. The young people were divided into several groups some mingled others stayed with their own personal friends. Footmen walked around the group with glasses of refreshments. The group talked and laughed as they waited for the butler to tell them that dinner was ready.  
  
The door to the dinning room opened and a tall, thin, stately man appeared. He stood up straight and cleared his throat. The group fell silent and turned to look at him.  
  
"Ma'am." He said. "Dinner is served."  
  
"Thank you Roberts." The butler bowed and turned to open the doors wide.  
  
Mrs. Potter stood and took the arm of Jack Robinson as Mr. Potter gave his arm to Lauren Robinson. The group behind them paired up and walked into the dinning room. Mrs. Potter directed her guests to their seats, small cards marked where each guest were placed. Once the group was sitting, the footmen came into the room carrying trays of food. The butler started to serve the guests as they chose from the trays. Conversation flowed and good spirits abounded.  
  
"James, why did your mother invite them?" Asked Katie motioning to Jezebel and the others.  
  
"Because of dad, Mr. Robinson and the others work in the Ministry and they meet often in social parties. Mr. Robinson is Head of the Potions Division of the Experimental Magic Department you know." Said James to his friends. They were sitting all together at one end of the table near Mrs. Potter. Jezebel and her friends were sitting on the other end of the table.  
  
"I knew that he worked in the Ministry but never thought that he was the Head of the Potions Division. I've heard that they are working on some secret potions lately." Said Emma.  
  
"Father says that their work is important and that it might change lives someday." Replied James.  
  
"I suppose he didn't say what this work was about." Commented Remus.  
  
"No, it's top secret work." James responded.  
  
"Do you think it has something to do with what is going on, with all the disappearances and deaths I mean." Asked Katie.  
  
"Could be. The Ministry is not looking good at the moment are they? These things started five years ago and they still haven't found anything of importance." Said Sirius.  
  
"I think that they do know something, they just haven't made it public yet." Said Lily. "And with all the deaths and disappearances happening in the Muggle world they have to find out if they are related to what is happening in the Magical world."  
  
"Things are definitely getting worse, I read in the Prophet that there are finally witnesses to one of these crimes. They described the group that committed them." Said Remus.  
  
"But no one can be apprehended, these people were masked. They obviously knew that they were being watched. It seems that they are getting ready to show themselves and let people know what it is they want." Said James.  
  
"Do you have any idea of who is behind all of this?" Asked Katie.  
  
"I think Dumbledore knows, he knows everything that goes on in the world." Said Sirius.  
  
"Don't let Professor Mysticity hear you say that, according to her she is all knowing and can see everything." Laughed James.  
  
"She is just I joke, I wonder where Dumbledore found her." Said Remus.  
  
"I wonder who is going to take her place. I heard she is planning to retire after this school year." Said Katie.  
  
"I just hope that whoever it is will be better than her, I don't want my children to be taught by a fraud." Said James.  
  
"I just want our children to inherit our map. I think James' first born should have it, because James came down with the idea. But he has to lend to our kids as well." Said Sirius.  
  
"I cannot imagine you as a father Sirius. To be frank, you are not father material." Said Remus.  
  
"And can you imagine how much trouble these kids will get into with their fathers cheering them on?" Asked Katie.  
  
"Poor Dumbledore, he is getting rid of these four and they are already planning on a new set of Marauders to came after them. I hope Dumbledore retires before it's their turn to go to Hogwarts." Said Emma.  
  
"Oh no, Dumbledore is young still, I bet he will be glad to see our children arrive at Hogwarts." Said Sirius.  
  
"I bet he will. He will probably shake his head and instruct the teachers to keep a close eye on them." Said Lily.  
  
"Poor children, to have to suffer the indignity of being labeled as troublemakers even before they are born." Laughed Emma.  
  
The group smiled and continued with their dinner. On the other end of the table Jezebel sat with her friends and their partners.  
  
"They look to be getting along quite well, no problems in paradise." Said Narcissa as they looked toward the lively group at the other end of the table.  
  
"Do you think their parents know about their relationship?" Asked Maureen.  
  
"I don't think so, James has been trying keep away from his mother's matchmaking schemes for so long I don't think he wants her to know about Lily." Said Jezebel.  
  
"Are you going to mention it? That would cause some frictions among them." Said Narcissa.  
  
"No, it would only make his mother happy and I don't know how Evans' would react. There are too many unknowns and I want to be able to keep control of the situation." Jezebel responded.  
  
"Not to mention their friends. They would become an obstacle." Said Maureen.  
  
"I can't do much in this house party, I would be calling attention to myself, and a lady never should do so. I'll let them enjoy their holidays but once we are back in Hogwarts it will be much easier to keep them apart." Said Jezebel.  
  
The other two girls exchanged a knowing glance before turning their attention back to their food.  
  
Dinner lasted a couple of hours, when it was done the group went back to the front parlor to talk and entertain themselves. They separated into groups once more as chatter and laughter filled the air.  
  
"James." Mrs. Potter said above the noise after a while. "Do you have plans with your friends for tomorrow?" She asked.  
  
"Not yet mum." Said James.  
  
"Good, I thought that it would be nice for the young people to go skating. The lake in the back of the house has frozen and our groundskeeper has assured me that it is quite safe to have a skating party." Mrs. Potter said to all those assembled in the room.  
  
All the young members of the assembly cheered and the adults smiled indulgently at their offspring's high spirits.  
  
"We would enjoy that mum." Exclaimed James.  
  
"I rather take offense Susan that you think that only our young guests would enjoy such a treat. I assure you that I would enjoy it as much as they will." Said Mr. Potter with mock anger.  
  
His wife laughed and cheerily said. "I'm sure that you would enjoy it Aliaster, you are as childish as your own children, few people would believe that you are already a grandfather. But if that's how you feel, I'm sure that there are others who would like to join you. We can make it a family outing. I can ask the servants to build fires by the lake and we can serve hot chocolate and cider for those who prefer to watch instead of skating." Mrs. Potter replied.  
  
The group assented to the plans for the next day, especially the young people who were really looking forward to showing off their skills.  
  
The party broke off a few moments later and the members of the house party made their way to their respective rooms.  
  
James and the others had stayed behind as the party had started to brake up. Sirius and Katie sat together at one end of a couch while James and Lily shared the other end and Remus and Katie shared a love seat beside the one the rest were sitting.  
  
"If your mother has plans for us for every single day of our stay James, we will be too tired when we return to Hogwarts." Said Sirius.  
  
"Mother does have her moments." Laughed James.  
  
"I wonder what we should wear tomorrow. Why don't we go up and see if what we brought?" Katie said to her friends. The girls quickly left the room among whispers and giggles.  
  
"We're in for it now, they are hatching something. And when they plan you know that we are the ones who will suffer for it." Said Sirius as he watched the girls disappearing from the room.  
  
James and Remus laughed, they were remembering the last time the girls had decided to get even with them and they really didn't want to stand naked in front of their parents.  
  
"We haven't done anything to them for them to hatch something against us, so I don't think we have anything to worry about." Replied Remus.  
  
"Well I'm going to get some rest before facing them in the morning." Said Sirius trying to hold back a yawn.  
  
"Yes, we have done quite a lot today haven't we? It seems like it has been quite a while since we left Hogwarts." Said James.  
  
The boys got up from their seats and started to climb the staircase toward their rooms.  
  
"Have a good night." Said Remus as they reached the landing that separated the family rooms from the guest rooms. "We'll see you tomorrow James."  
  
"See you lot tomorrow, I'm finally going to have a night without hearing your snores." Teased James.  
  
"You are the one that snores, I don't snore." Said Sirius.  
  
The boys laughed as they split and made their way to their rooms.  
  
  
  
  
  
A/N: This is the first part of this chapter, the rest will be posted soon. ; ) 


	17. Chapter 14 part 2 Holiday Entertainments

A/N: I'm back again, I will continue with the House Party now, I hope you will all enjoy it.  
  
Disclaimer: Anything you are familiar with, I do not own.  
  
Chapter 14 ~ The House Party  
  
~ Holiday Entertainment ~  
  
Fun and excitement permeated the house party everybody looked forward the afternoon activities. People woke up at all times during the morning and breakfast was served in the informal dinning room in the back of the house during all hours of the morning. Those that woke up earlier than the rest decided to spend their time in quiet entertainment. James, Remus and Sirius decided to go to the game room, a billiard table stood in the center of the room. On one side stood an entertainment center, TV, stereo and couches in front of it. On the other side were arcade games and tables with muggle board games.  
  
"Why is everything in here Muggle?" Asked Sirius as he trying using one of the pinball machines. He obviously was not very good at it.  
  
"Because of our Muggle guests, it wouldn't do to have magical games in front of Muggles." Replied James.  
  
"Makes sense. How do you play this?" Asked Remus as he looked at the billiard table.  
  
"Here let me show you." James spent the morning trying to teach Remus and Sirius how to play billiards, once the girls joined them Lily partnered him and together they showed the others how a game of billiards was played.  
  
By luncheon time everybody was already up. Luncheon was a happy and cheerful occasion and when it ended the group quickly started to get ready to take part of the skating party. Servants were seen going toward the lake with logs, kegs of cider and pots of hot chocolate. The guests eagerly reunited in the entrance hall and waited for their hostess to tell them that everything was in order for them to go to the lake.  
  
"Is everybody here?" Asked Mrs. Potter as she finally joined her guests.  
  
"Yes." Everybody exclaimed.  
  
"Very well." Mrs. Potter laughed at the enthusiasm of her guests. "Sleighs will be brought to the door and they will take us to the lake. There are six of them and each will seat seven people." She replied. At that moment the bells of the sleighs were heard and the butler opened the door to let the stream of people pass. Groups quickly formed and filled the sleighs. The six friends chose one of the last sleighs and settled into the seats. Warm blankets were found at their feet and they quickly pulled them and tried to keep warm. The sky was cloudy and seemed like there was going snow, but that prospect was eagerly awaited and seemed like a perfect end to a perfect afternoon.  
  
The sleighs slowly lurched forward and started to turn toward the lane that lead to the lake. The lakeshore seemed a peaceful and magical area. Several fires lined the shore with chairs near them and servants standing by ready to feed the fire and serve the hot drinks. When the vehicles stopped the group rapidly walked toward the chairs. The young people strapped their skates and soon were skating around the frozen lake. The parents settled in groups around the fire and watched their children have fun on the ice. Few of them chose to join the fun on the ice, most preferred to stay near the fire.  
  
"Come Susan, let's show these young people how it's supposed to be done." Urged Aliaster turning to his wife. Mrs. Potter giggled as if she was a young girl once more, and hand in hand joined the young people on the ice.  
  
"What say you Rose, should we join them?" Asked Edward Evans to his wife.  
  
"I think we should, somebody must keep an eye on our daughter." Mrs. Evans said with a smile.  
  
The couple joined the others on the ice. James and Lily enjoyed watching their parents skating around the ice. They quickly formed a kind of competition among the couples to see who was the most skilled. Laughter filled the atmosphere as couple after couple did the most outrageous moves trying to show off and as they did so, couple after couple ended up hitting the ice. The ones to win the dubious honor of being the couple to hit the ice more often were Sirius and Katie, but they didn't mind it a bit, they enjoyed themselves and had a lot of fun.  
  
The refreshments on the shore were constantly refilled and the fire was kept burning. Soon it got dark and only the fire lighted the shore, Mrs. Potter called for the sleighs and the group returned to the house to get ready for the evening meal.  
  
Because of the constant flow of refreshments during the afternoon, Mrs. Potter decided to serve a light repast for dinner and have a musical evening in the parlor afterwards.  
  
The meal was served as a buffet. A table laden with salads, cold meats, fruit and soups stood by the side of the formal dinning room. The group served themselves before sitting wherever they liked. It was an informal meal and everybody enjoyed the change.  
  
"I thought of enjoying a musical evening after our meal, I'm sure that our young ladies would like to show off their talents." Mrs. Potter informed her guests as the meal was almost over.  
  
Some of the girls blushed from the thought of having everybody watching them play, others smiled superiorly happy to show off. Boys groaned knowing that they would have to sit through the performances which some would surely try their patience.  
  
The group left the dinning room and walked toward the front parlor, they quickly noticed that a pianoforte was brought into the room. There was also a harp and a flute for those who preferred to use those instruments.  
  
The furniture was lined up against the walls and chairs were brought in forming a semi circle around the instruments.  
  
"Let's see, James why don't you take Lily up to the piano and turn the pages for her." Urged his mother.  
  
James led Lily up to the piano and sat beside her on the piano bench ready to turn her pages. Lily read through the music sheets on top of the piano searching for one that she was familiar with, she really didn't want to try something new in front of all those people, better do something she was familiar with less chance of making a fool of herself.  
  
"Are you ready?" Asked an impatient James.  
  
"Hold on to your knickers, don't hurry me." Whispered Lily.  
  
"Hold on to my knickers? Really Lily I didn't know you were so interested in them." Chuckled James.  
  
"Will you keep quiet, you are making me even more nervous." Responded Lily more heatedly.  
  
"Sorry, but I hate it when mum puts me on the spot like this. And I know she is trying to pair me up with you, did you noticed that she put the card with your name on it next to mine at the table? Really, I'm starting to think that maybe we should tell them about us, it will save us from all their schemes." Complained James.  
  
Lily laughed softly and finally chose a piece of music. James stood beside her and she started to play. She chose a piece that her mother liked and as a result Lily had played it regularly and knew it from memory, "Red, Red Rose." By Robert Burns. Lily started to play and soon her contralto voice joined the music.  
  
O my luve's like a red, red rose  
  
That's newly sprung in June  
  
O my luve's like a melodie  
  
That's sweetly play'd in tune  
  
As fair as thou my bonie lass  
  
So deep in luve am I  
  
And I will luve thee still my dear  
  
Till all the seas gong dry.  
  
The room was silent as Lily sang. People were mesmerized by her voice and the sweet Scottish lyrics of the song.  
  
Till all the seas gang dry, my dear  
  
And the rocks melt wi' the sun  
  
And I will luve thee still my dear  
  
While th' sands o' life shall run  
  
And fare thee weel my only luve!  
  
And fare thee weel a while!  
  
And will come again my luve  
  
Tho' 'twere ten thousand mile  
  
James stood transfixed beside Lily, he had never heard her sing before, if he had, he thought, he wouldn't have taken so long in making his feelings known.  
  
Lily played the last note of the song. The audience stayed quiet for a moment before exploding into applause. Lily blushed at the warm reception of her song, she thanked them and then returned to her original seat, James walking beside her.  
  
"That was excellent Lily. Now who shall go next? Miranda dear, maybe you would like to give it a try?" Asked Mrs. Potter turning to a young brown haired lady, a bit older than Lily, but with a cheerful countenance.  
  
"I'm afraid it will be quite a poor showing after Miss Evans' performance." She said but went toward the piano all the same. "Come brother dear, turn the pages for me." She said and Remus quickly left his seat to stand by his sister.  
  
"I didn't know that Remus' sister was here." Exclaimed Emma.  
  
"What nervous about meeting his family?" Teased Sirius.  
  
"Well of course she is you oaf." Said Katie hitting him lightly in the arm.  
  
The others laughed and then turned to Lily who had just finished settling in a chair.  
  
"That was well done of you Lily, I didn't know you sang so well." Exclaimed Emma.'  
  
"Well it is important in Muggle society for a young lady to play and sing. I had tutors since I was six years old and mother has made sure that Petunia and I are very competent in the womanly arts." Said Lily. "I'm kind of thirsty, James would you mind bringing me something to drink?" She asked James with a beguiling smile.  
  
"Of course." He said and left the room to ask Roberts for some refreshments.  
  
"You have him whipped Lily. What have you done to him?" Exclaimed Sirius looking aghast at his friend promptly doing what a mere girl had asked him to do.  
  
"It's love Sirius and it seems that you know nothing about it." Said Katie a bit angry and quickly left her seat and joined her parents at one of the couches.  
  
"Now you've done it." Said Emma.  
  
Sirius groaned, he knew that he was going to have to grovel in order to get Katie to talk to him once more.  
  
The evening passed by, most of the girls entertained the group, some better than others. Sirius kept trying to get Katie to notice him the whole evening but she ignored him, to the amusement of their friends and parents who quickly figured out the reason for their amusing behavior.  
  
The next day Mrs. Potter planned for a gathering party. The guest would join the servants in the woods near the house and gather some greenery. Mrs. Potter was also hoping that the men would join in the search for the yule log and help bring it into the house. The young people were looking forward to spending more time outdoors, and the adults decided to join in the fun.  
  
The sleighs that had been used the day before were brought out once more. And the guests poured out and settled in them once more making sure to keep themselves warm with the warm blankets found in the seats.  
  
The forest looked like a living Christmas card, all the treetops glistening with snow and paths cleared for the comfort of those who chose to look for the greenery  
  
Sirius meant to take advantage of this activity to get Katie back. But what did he have in mind? That was the question his friends had.  
  
Katie sat with her parents while Sirius sat with Lily, James, Remus, and Emma.  
  
"Sirius, you better grovel and beg on your knees to get her to forgive you, I don't want one of my best friends sitting apart from us because of you. Otherwise you boys better get through this without us." Said Lily crossly, looking angrily at Sirius.  
  
"Sirius, my friend, you know that we are here to help if you need us." Said James. Then he leaned and whispered in his ear. "And you better do it fast, I don't know how to handle an angry female." He quickly said.  
  
Sirius smiled at his friends. "Don't worry I have a plan."  
  
"You better, because I don't want Katie to feel that her friends have left her all alone." Said Emma.  
  
"Don't worry just leave it all to me." Sirius exclaimed with a cocky smile. He seemed so self-assured that the others gave a sigh of relief and planned to enjoy the day. Sirius was scared to death, he really didn't have a plan, what if Katie was still angry at him and wouldn't let him get near her, what was he going to do?  
  
The group spilled into the wintered countryside, and separated into groups, the young people were told to gather the greenery and to keep their eyes open for mistletoe, which grew in abundance in the area.  
  
"Here, let's go this way, pine and mistletoe is found in this side of the woods." Said James to the group. Katie, Emma, Lily, Remus and Sirius waited for James to join them. Miranda, Remus sister went off with Vivian, Daniel, and Marcus Sinclair as well with Gabriel and Rupert Horton, offspring of two of the couples that had been invited by the Potters; they were later seen with Mark, James' cousin. They were Muggle and Miranda knew quite well how to behave around them. Jezebel, Maureen and Narcissa were joined by Maureen's brother, Martin, and Jezebel's, Dean and Michael. The group split and went their own way. Lily, Emma and Katie walked in front of the boys, whispering and giggling among themselves. The boys walked steadily behind them trying to keep an eye on them.  
  
"We'll take Lily and Emma away from Katie and leave you for some time. That should be enough for you to charm Katie." Said James.  
  
"I think we can only give you half an hour to work it out, the girls would get suspicious if we take them for longer than that." Replied Remus.  
  
"Very well." Said Sirius. He was getting really nervous now, he still wasn't sure of what he was going to do.  
  
The group continued on, stopping once in a while to gather some greenery, the girls were carrying the baskets and it was the boys' job to climb the trees to get what the girls needed to decorate the house.  
  
"Honestly Lily, the branch in the bottom is just the same as this one, why did I have to climb up here?" Asked James as he tried getting his balance from a very high branch.  
  
"But the greenery looks better, it's more fresh, the one down here are too flat." Responded Lily as she looked up at James.  
  
James grunted but continued to reach for the branch that Lily wanted. Honestly! The things men had to do to keep women happy.  
  
"Hurry up James, my feet are starting to freeze." Urged Lily.  
  
"Hold on I almost got it." Said James. A couple of minutes later he landed beside Lily and dropped a branch into her basket. "There." He said with a sigh of relief.  
  
"Come, I saw another tree that I want to try." She said taking his hand and pulling him toward a clearing.  
  
"I'm not climbing a tree as high as that one." Replied James.  
  
Remus was having a similar conversation with Emma on another side of the clearing.  
  
"I'm not climbing that tree Emma. I don't have that good a balance like James and Sirius, I'm going to break my neck." Remus was saying.  
  
"Really Remus is not that very high, we do need some mistletoe you know." Urged Emma. When she noticed that Remus kept shaking his head she approached him and put her hands on his chest; that grabbed his attention instantly. "Please Remus, you are very athletic, I'm sure that you can handle it." She softly said as she put her arms around his neck pressing herself against him.  
  
Remus felt a lump in his throat and tried swallowing past it. "I can?" He croaked, his voice sounded breathless.  
  
Emma smiled and gave him a peck in his lips. "I know you can." She whispered.  
  
"What was it that you wanted me to reach?" He asked.  
  
Emma pointed to the branch of mistletoe she had seen and Remus quickly climbed the tree and reached for it.  
  
Katie stood below a tree looking up searching for some mistletoe. When she turned to ask Lily and Emma something she noticed that they weren't there.  
  
"Honestly! Where did they all go?" Said Katie in exasperation.  
  
"I believe they have gone to look for more greenery with James and Remus." Said a voice behind her.  
  
Katie turned to see Sirius leaning against the trunk of a tree watching her with a smug smile.  
  
"What are you smiling at and I'm not speaking to you." Snapped Katie crossing your arms.  
  
"I know you aren't, it's easy to notice the silence when you are usually speaking too much." Said Sirius. He regretted his comment the moment he said it and knew that it was too late to take it back.  
  
Katie gasped and hissed at him. "Are you implying that I talk too much?" She was really angry now, she knew that she talked a lot but nobody had been so rude about it before.  
  
"No, I'm just saying that I miss your voice." He quickly said. He rapidly approached her and put his arms around her.  
  
Katie pushed him, at least she tried to, but he wouldn't budge. Finally she gave up, he was too strong for her, so she stood rigidly in the circle of his arms.  
  
"I missed you." He whispered. He kissed her ear, he liked her ears, they were small and perfectly shaped.  
  
"You didn't act like you did." She said grudgingly. She knew that Sirius could quickly crumble her defenses and that eventually she would forgive him but she didn't want to give in so soon. He deserved to suffer.  
  
"I was only putting a bright face to the party, it wouldn't do for them to know that one special girl can bring me to my knees with just one smile." He said.  
  
"Were you really, and are you on your knees right now?" She didn't want to but a small smile appeared on her lips.  
  
"Do you want me to be?" He asked looking her in the eyes.  
  
"I don't think it will be necessary." She said with a smile. She leaned in and pressed her lip to his.  
  
He quickly pressed her against him and deepened the kiss.  
  
Four pairs of eyes looked from the bushes on the opposite side of the clearing.  
  
The Gryffindors emerged from the woods looking victorious. Nobody understood why, their baskets were not full of greenery. They obviously spent their time doing something else.  
  
"Did you have fun?" Asked Mrs. Potter as she saw the group joining the rest by the sleighs.  
  
"Yes mum, lots of fun." Replied James kissing his mother on her cheek.  
  
The group quickly climbed into a sleigh and waited for the others to be ready to go back to the house.  
  
The ride was full of merriment and laughter. At the end the group started singing and arrived home just as the last note died down.  
  
Roberts waited on the door to take the coats from the guests, footmen stood behind him waiting to assist him on this job.  
  
The party went on to the front parlor for afternoon tea. After refreshments they were allowed to do whatever they liked.  
  
The young people decided to go to the game room, where they all split into different groups.  
  
"Do you know what your mother has planned for tomorrow?" Asked Sirius as the group stood around the billiard table.  
  
"I think she is planning to decorate the house, so I'm sure she will ask the girls to help her with that." He said as he leaned over the table to take his shot.  
  
"Oh, I would love to help her with that." Exclaimed Katie.  
  
"Do you think she will let us do a kissing bough?" Asked Emma. The girls giggled at the mention on the customary decoration they were all looking forward to get caught underneath the mistletoe by some special guys. The boys, chuckled and a mischievous twinkle entered their eyes. They definitely had plans to catch the girls underneath the kissing bough.  
  
"What about you lot, I cannot imagine that Mrs. Potter would like to have you idle the whole day." Said Lily, she also knew that they would not like to have them under foot the whole day while they were decorating.  
  
"I think she will send us out to hunt for Christmas dinner. The grounds are full of game and we can easily spend the whole day out with just a rifle." Said James.  
  
"The poor animals." Exclaimed Emma.  
  
"We do have to eat you know, that's why women are not asked to go hunting, they would let the creatures go out of pity." Scoffed Sirius. Katie quickly jabbed him in the ribs and glared at him. Sirius turned an innocent look toward her.  
  
"The only reason men can hunt it's because you are barbarians." Snapped Emma.  
  
"Yes we are, that's why we need women in our lives to ring out the human part of our characters." Said Remus in a soothing voice as he put his arms around her.  
  
Emma smiled and leaned her head against his chest.  
  
"Why can't you be more like him?" Asked Katie hitting softly Sirius' arm.  
  
"Because he is more sentimental than I am." He said with a smile.  
  
Katie sighed and said. "Sometimes I wonder why I like you so much."  
  
"Because I'm irresistible." He exclaimed.  
  
"And apparently extremely modest." Laughed James. The others laughed as well and then continued with their game.  
  
At another corner of the room, Jezebel, the Avery's and Maureen sat in front of the entertainment center playing muggle cards on top of the tea table.  
  
"I don't see what he sees in her, she seems too mousy, who likes red hair over blond?" Asked Jezebel with anger.  
  
"To each his own, I just cannot believe that he would deem it appropriate to get involved with a mudblood. He is a pure blood for Pete's sake." Exclaimed Martin Avery, Maureen's brother and fellow Slytherin. Martin and Maureen were twins.  
  
Narcissa scoffed. "I think he doesn't cares, the Potters have always been too radical."  
  
"How they became so close to the Minister, I just don't know. Mr. Potter has become the Minister right hand man, that they are always seen together. I've heard that the Minister doesn't approve of a law until he has discussed it with Mr. Potter. That's too dangerous in my opinion." Said Maureen.  
  
"The Potters have always been too influential in the Magical World. If they were not Ministers themselves, then they were advisors to the Minister. That's why is so important to have them as acquaintances; you might never know when you might need their help." Said Jezebel.  
  
"Not to mention their wealth. They can be very kind to their friends." Said Narcissa with a sly smile.  
  
"Only you would think of that." Scoffed Martin.  
  
The groups played well into the night. It was until Mrs. Potter told them to go to bed that they all left the game room and went up to their respective rooms.  
  
Lily woke up to find a sunny and clear morning. She walked up to her window and opened it. She noticed that all the men seem to be leaving. Horses, dogs and voices could be heard disappearing into the forest. It seemed that James had been right and the men had gone hunting while the girls stayed indoors and worked on the decorations.  
  
Lily turned as she heard a knock on her door. "Enter." She said.  
  
"Morning Lily, did you see the boys leave?" Said Emma entering the room. She promptly sat on the bed and was quickly joined by Lily.  
  
"Yes, just noticed them leaving. How long do you suppose they will be gone?" Lily asked as Emma took a brush from the night table and started to brush Lily's hair.  
  
"I don't know, I suppose they will be gone for most of the day. That's what happens when my father has a hunting party." Emma said.  
  
"I don't remember going to a hunting party. My parents usually prefer to stay in the city, that is why it's so surprising to me that we are here." Said Lily.  
  
"They seem to be having fun." Emma said. Another knock sounded from the door and before Lily could say 'Enter' the door opened and an excited Katie came into the room.  
  
"Don't you ever wait?" Laughed Lily.  
  
"No, can't wait for things in life, you have to grasp them." Said Katie in a cheerful voice.  
  
"Now that we are all up, we might as well get dressed and go down to breakfast. I don't know about you but I want to hear Mrs. Potter's plans for today." Said Emma.  
  
"Very well." Said Katie. Both girls walked toward the door after a "see you then" from Lily.  
  
Half an hour later the girls met in the hall and walked down to the dining room were they met the rest of the women.  
  
"Ah! Glad you could join us dears. You can sit wherever you like, we have enough room for everybody." Greeted them Mrs. Potter.  
  
The girls served themselves from the dishes on a side table and sat together near the middle of the table.  
  
"I'm sure you are all wondering what we will be doing today. I thought it would be fun if we decorated the house, the Christmas Ball will be tomorrow and I'm sure that you would prefer to spend the morning on some last minute shopping."  
  
"Oh that sounds perfect Susan, I could do some shopping tomorrow, there are some things that I will surely need tomorrow for the Ball." Mrs. Black replied.  
  
"Do you have any idea on what you want us to work specifically on?" Asked Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Yes, I thought the young ladies would enjoy working on the kissing bough and the placement of the mistletoe. Rose, Jean and Norma, maybe you can help me in planning for the placement of the furniture and the placement of the rest of the greenery and other kinds of decorations. Lauren, Nina and Grace, you can work on the entertainment and the linen that we can use for tomorrow. And Marie and Elizabeth maybe you can help me with the planning of the menu."  
  
"Of course."  
  
"Sure."  
  
"Now young ladies I will leave you to your task. The ball room, the entrance hall, the dining room and the staircase are to be decorated, do your best." Said Mrs. Potter as she stood up and got ready to leave the room. The other adults also stood up and left right behind her.  
  
"So Evans, I see you start to move in the best of circles." Sneered Narcissa the minute their mothers left.  
  
"I have always moved in the best social circles Mulliens, that we haven't met during our social entertainment say something about your circles not mine." Lily retorted.  
  
"Very clever Evans, but the fact that you are here doesn't mean that you and your kind are up to our standards. The Potters are rather radical and free thinking, but that doesn't mean that you would be accepted by the rest of the best families." Said Jezebel.  
  
"Indeed, well you wouldn't be accepted by 'my kind', doesn't matter how wealthy you are. They are rather picky you see, you would get lost in my world, and you wouldn't know what to do." Lily said mockingly.  
  
"We wouldn't want to get lost in your world Evans, we wouldn't lower ourselves to your level." Snapped Maureen.  
  
"You mean you cannot get high enough to be in her level. Everybody knows that the Evans are rather well known and respected in all social circles, yours is rather closed don't you think? Yours is barely accepted in our circle." Said Katie with a superior smile.  
  
"I'm sure that we all would like to hear about each other's social position, but I rather think that it's rather superfluous. Let's go to the parlor and assign what we need to do." Said Miranda Lupin. She gave the Vixens a dark look as she noticed that Narcissa was about to cut in. She stood up and the lead the girls into the front parlor.  
  
After the assignments were given, the girls broke into groups to work. Lily, Emma and Katie sat at one corner of the room with bows, string, flowers and mistletoe to work on a kissing bough.  
  
"Not being good enough for their circle, as if I wanted to be part of their circle." Huffed Lily. She was clearly still upset from the confrontation at the table.  
  
"Don't pay them attention Lily, they are just jealous, especially Jezebel." Said Emma in a soothing tone.  
  
"She probably thinks that she can make Mrs. Potter see you in a bad light. You know that she has wanted James for the longest." Said Katie.  
  
"Of course, that's it Lily. She wants to brake you two up." Exclaimed Emma.  
  
"I still don't like it. What makes them think that they can tell that I'm not good enough because of who my parents are. I don't see the Potters and others having a problem with it." Said Lily.  
  
"Most wizarding people don't mind it, if we hadn't accepted muggle borns and inter-muggle marriages, our kind would have disappeared long ago. But there are some old families that don't like it. Some have married within their families that's why there are so many relations among them." Said Emma.  
  
"That's why there are so many wierdos among them, interfamily relations, honestly! One of these days a troll will be born from them." Said Katie. The others laughed and thought that there were already some trolls among them. Just look at that Flint from Slytherin, he certainly could pass for a troll.  
  
"All that matters is what James and his family think, and they like you Lily. I don't think you have anything to worry about. But we are going to keep an eye on Jezebel, I wouldn't be surprised if she tries something to split you up." Said Emma.  
  
"James doesn't like her. He thinks she is too forward for her own good." Said Lily.  
  
"She is, they all are. Did you see what they were wearing during the skating party? It's a miracle that they didn't freeze out there." Exclaimed Emma.  
  
"I wonder what they will wear tomorrow night." Said Lily.  
  
"Probably something of bad taste." Exclaimed Katie.  
  
"I'm looking forward to the shopping expedition for tomorrow. There are a lot of last minute gifts that I need to get." Said Emma.  
  
"I want to get some pins, for my hair. I don't know how but I seem to loose a substantial quantity of pins everyday." Said Lily.  
  
"Maybe James stole them to open the doors with them." Laughed Katie.  
  
"They probably did. Knowing that group, nothing would surprise me." Said Emma.  
  
The rooms slowly started to look festive. The day quickly passed and soon it was time for afternoon tea and the men would soon return and join them.  
  
The women were sitting in the front parlor, chatting and taking refreshments, when a commotion could be heard from the entrance hall. The parlor door was promptly opened by a footman, and the men started to enter the room. They seemed to be sweaty, dirty but very happy of spending the morning out doors.  
  
"Don't you come near me Aliaster James Harold Potter. You are dirty." Squealed Mrs. Potter as her husband tried to kiss her.  
  
He chuckled and swiftly stole a kiss before Mrs. Potter knew what he was about. "Don't worry Susan I will take this grimy lot upstairs to tidy up I just wanted to let you know that we are back." He said.  
  
"Were you lucky in your endeavor?" Asked Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Oh highly successful. You are in for a treat ladies." Chuckled Mr. Evans.  
  
Before they were inundated with questions, the men quickly left the room and went to their respective rooms to clean themselves up. Some of the ladies excused themselves to help their husbands in their efforts.  
  
"It seems that they enjoyed themselves." Laughed Mrs. Black. The other women laughed and returned to their gossiping while they waited for the others to join them.  
  
Footmen were seen passing in front of the door toward the kitchens with their arms full of the fruits of the hunting session.  
  
Dinner that evening was a lively affair. The men kept the women entertained with stories of their exploits in the hunting field.  
  
"And when the gun went off Sirius was thrown back and fell on a pile of snow, it was so funny." Laughed James as Sirius blushed in embarrassment while those who heard the story laughed.  
  
"Poor Sirius." Said Katie, giving his hand a squeeze underneath the table. It would do for their parents to see it.  
  
"Your cook is excellent Susan, this venison is delicious. Do you think I can steal your cook from you?" Mrs. Sinclair said laughingly. Her family were muggle friends of the Potters.  
  
"I doubt it Jean, he is special you see." Said Mrs. Potter. Her cook was special and she didn't think that the Sinclairs would know what to do with a house elf.  
  
"Do you think he would give me the recipe?" Mrs. Sinclair asked.  
  
"I'll ask him, I'm sure he wouldn't mind."  
  
"What can you tell us Mrs. Potter about the stores in the village square, will they have what we need?" Asked Narcissa trying to turn the conversation to a subject that she would be able to take part of.  
  
"I'm sure that you girls will like it. The stores there have the latest in fashion and accessories." Replied Mrs. Potter.  
  
"How are we going to get there?" Asked Maureen.  
  
"Our vehicles will be at your disposal of course, unless you prefer to use you own. Servants will be available to you as well if you need help with your purchases." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"That would be nice Susan, I don't think any of us would like to carry the purchases that our ladies buy." Said Mr. Black chuckling. All the men around the table seemed to agree with him.  
  
"I thought as much." Laughed Mrs. Potter.  
  
Dinner continued with the same lighthearted atmosphere and when it was over they decided to go to their rooms instead of going to the parlor. Everybody was looking forward to the next day. A day full of frivolity and cheer before Christmas day sounded like fun.  
  
Light snow was falling the next day when the occupants of Godric's Hollow woke up. After a light breakfast, a caravan of vehicles was seen going into the village square. The whole group stopped in front of the village inn and parked.  
  
"We'll meet here in four hours after we are done with our purchases. I reserved a private room here and we can take our luncheon here before returning home." Said Mr. Potter.  
  
"Sounds like a good plan. We'll see you in four hours." Said James leading his friends toward the exit and losing themselves among the constant traffic of pedestrians.  
  
After the young people's unceremonious exit, the guests split up and went their own way. The morning rapidly passed by as people went in and out of shops. A constant stream of last minute shoppers were seen on the streets of the small village and the businesses took advantage of it and made sure they carried the latest of everything they could offer. Clothing stores, jewelry stores, book stores, music stores, and gift stores were the most visited by shoppers as a result they had hired extra help. The Potters seemed to be well known in the area and every time one of them went into a store, they were treated with the outmost respect. In some cases the owners of the shop would give them preferred discounts and to those who toured around the stores with them. The Marauders and the Sirens had fun going around the stores, the candy store being among their favorites.  
  
"You are going to lose your teeth after eating all that candy." Said Emma after they left the store.  
  
"Oh this will last us for a while, we just had to take advantage of that discount." Said Sirius with a smile.  
  
"Of course you had to, I'm just glad they don't have a Zonco's here, you lot would lose a lot of time in there." Laughed Katie.  
  
"Yes, too bad this is a Muggle village, but it has its perks." Said James.  
  
"Did you see that sales girl flirting with James? Honestly James! One would think that you would refrain from flirting when your girl is with you." Teased Sirius.  
  
"What do you mean me? I didn't do a think, if you noticed I ignored her the whole time. You were the one flirting with her, I'm surprised Katie didn't beat you." James exclaimed.  
  
"Oh no, I enjoyed seeing him making a fool of himself." Laughed Katie.  
  
"Hey!" Sirius said while the others laughed.  
  
The hours passed quickly by and the shopping bags filled and increased in number. The boys were very happy that Mrs. Potter thought of bringing servants to help with the purchases, they weren't very keen on the idea of having to carry all of the boxes and bags for the girls. At the end of the four hours the inn played host to a group of merry shoppers.  
  
The Potters were well known for their generosity and sense of duty among the inhabitants of the small village, and as their house was the largest and wealthiest of the area, they were being look upon as the leaders of their community.  
  
Ever since the first Potter had settled in that small town, they had brought work and wealth to the shabby town. The town had progressed and had become one of great wealth and production. For that reason, the town was named after that first Potter settler, and his descendants were treated with respect.  
  
The innkeeper had been too happy to host the party from Godric's cabin. His wife was determined to serve only the best and the employees dressed up to the nines, and made sure the place was spotless for their guests. The town had quickly heard that the Potters and their guests would be in town that day and that would eat at the inn. They sent provisions and made sure to have the best in their shops in case the party decided to pay them a visit. As a result the Potters and their guests had been able to pay for the best the town could offer and had a great time enjoying themselves.  
  
When the group entered the reserved private room at the inn, they noticed the warmth coming from the lit fireplace, the cheerful decorations that graced the walls, and the laden table with all kinds of delicious food. They quickly served themselves and sat around the large table in the middle of the room.  
  
"Is there anything you need Mr. Potter?" Asked the innkeeper after everybody was served.  
  
"This is all thank you Mr. Ballard. Although, I would like a bottle of that delicious cider of yours. I vow is the best homemade cider I have tasted." Mr. Potter said. The innkeeper was only too happy to serve his cider, he knew that with praise like that he would have better business and his cider would sell very well. He promptly sent a servant to get a couple of bottles from the bar and respectfully presented it to Mr. Potter when it was brought in. After bowing to the Potters and their party he led the servants out of the room and softly closed the door behind him. In that instant he decided to send a keg of cider to the cabin as a thank you gift to the Potters.  
  
"You didn't lie Aliaster, this cider is incredible." Exclaimed Edward Evans after he tasted the cider that had been served to the party. Others nodded their agreement and happily continued to drink and eat.  
  
"The food is not far behind, I must ask Mrs. Ballard for the recipe, this ham is truly delicious." Said Mrs. Lupin relishing the spicy taste of the ham.  
  
"Yes, the town was very lucky when the Ballards decided to build this inn. It's my understanding that the cider has been passed from generation to generation as the inn has. And all Ballard men had been blessed to wed the best cooks in the county." Said Mr. Potter.  
  
"Does he sell bottles of cider?" Asked Mr. Black as he poured more into his goblet.  
  
"Yes, most people around here buy a couple of bottles during especial dinners." Replied Mrs. Potter.  
  
"In that case, I think I will buy a keg before I leave at the end of our visit. Keep it in the wine cellar and have some during dinner." Said Mr. Lupin.  
  
"I'm sure Ballard will be happy to accommodate you." Smiled Mr. Potter.  
  
The conversation quickly turned from food and drink to the ball, taking place for that evening. Neighbors had been invited to join the members of the house party. As a result a large number of people would be taking part on the fun.  
  
"What are you wearing Lily? I saw you buying red ribbon this afternoon, is that for your gown?" Asked an excited Katie.  
  
"Yes, I plan to wear it for my hair." Replied Lily. "Mum bought my dress, I'm not sure how it would look, I haven't had the chance to try it on yet."  
  
"Oh but, what will happen if it doesn't fit?" Asked Emma.  
  
"She brought others, but I doubt I will have to try them all on, mum is very good at choosing clothing and she knows my measurements quite well."  
  
"I haven't decided what to wear. But no matter, mum usually decided for me, and her taste in fashion is as good as mine." Said Emma with a shrug.  
  
"Oh, I chose my dress the minute I heard there was going to be a ball, but I'm not telling you, I want to surprise you all." Exclaimed Katie.  
  
"Well, no matter what you girls wear, I'm sure that you all will look gorgeous." Said Sirius. He was getting tired of the fashion conversation.  
  
"Awww." Sighed the girls and Katie swiftly kissed him before they turned the conversation to other subjects. Sirius turned a smug look toward his friends who just smirked at him before the girls turned to them.  
  
The luncheon continued with merry conversation and good food. Finally the group was done and left the inn, satisfied and looking forward to that evening. The innkeeper made sure that their transportation was waiting for them at the door, and waved goodbye to them as the cars disappeared down the road.  
  
The hours previous to the ball were hectic ones, especially for the ladies. Maids were seen coming in and out of the ladies rooms with clothes to press, ribbons forgotten in another room, and other little things that the ladies were sure they needed for that evening. Most of the men decided to keep away from the bustle of the rooms and met in the games room to play, drink and joke while they waited for things to settle down in the upper rooms before they returned to their chambers to dress. Mr. Potter was the perfect host and kept his guests entertained until an hour and a half before dinner, it was then that the group returned to their respective rooms to get ready.  
  
"Where have you been Aliaster? You know that we have to be ready before everyone else, we have to meet them in the parlor before dinner." Exclaimed Mrs. Potter the moment her husband entered the room.  
  
"I'm sorry darling, I was trying to stay out of your way and entertaining the other men while they waited as well." Said Mr. Potter giving his wife a swift kiss before going into the dressing room. "But don't worry, you know Lotty will have me presentable in a few moments. Isn't that so Lotty?" He asked the small figure waiting for him in the dressing room with all the clothing that Mr. Potter was to wear that evening . "Lotty will have Master Aliaster dressed in a moment sir." The squeaky voice of the elf replied.  
  
"Well if you are going to do it the magical way, of course you don't need to start at an early hour." Snapped Mrs. Potter, it was clear that her nerves were getting too much for her as she had forgotten that she used the elf to help her dress for that evening.  
  
"Really dear, there is nothing that you need to concern yourself with, everything I settled for this evening and I'm sure that it will be a great success." Said Mr. Potter from behind the screen. Flashes of light were seen from behind it.  
  
"Are you sure? I want to make sure that our guests have a great time." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"I'm sure they will have a great time, don't worry my dear." Mr. Potter said as he stepped out of the screen and the dressing room to meet his wife in their dormitory.  
  
After making sure that they were both ready, they left their rooms and walked toward the stairs. But before they reached them Mrs. Potter stopped in front of her son's door.  
  
"James dear, are you ready?" She asked.  
  
"Nearly mom, Minnie is just trying to comb my hair." He replied.  
  
"Minnie, don't worry about it, James' hair cannot be control, you would be there forever if you try." Said Mr. Potter.  
  
"Very funny father!" Yelled James.  
  
"Come James, we must be in the parlor before our guests."  
  
"I'm coming mum."  
  
The Potters continued on their way to the front parlor and settled down to wait. James soon joined them and servants came in carrying trays with wine glasses and bottles of wine and cider ready to be served for the guests.  
  
"James dear, we never had an opportunity to ask you about school." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"I'm doing fine mum."  
  
"What about Charms? You weren't doing so well on it during the past years." Said Mr. Potter.  
  
"Lily has been helping me, you hired her to do so remember?"  
  
"It's working out all right then?" Asked Mrs. Potter eagerly.  
  
"Well enough." James responded. He knew hat his mother wanted to know about his relationship with Lily, but he wasn't about to tell her about it. At least, not yet.  
  
The entrance of the Blacks stopped Mrs. Potter in mid question. James sighed with relief before being joined by Sirius.  
  
"I see the girls are not here yet." Sirius said as he accepted a glass of cider from James.  
  
"No you are the first to join us." Said James, sipping from his own glass.  
  
"I wonder what they are wearing? But above all, I wonder if I can get Katie underneath the mistletoe." Said Sirius. James laughed but chocked when he turned to look who the new arrivals were.  
  
Three girls stood by the door, but his eyes were drawn to only one. Lily's appearance left him speechless. He already thought she was beautiful, but with that dress she was drop dead gorgeous. She was wearing a skin-tight red velvet dress, with faux white fur around the collar and on the wrist of her sleeves. She was wearing her hair up, which was being held by a silken ribbon. Her companions were also wearing red, Katie's dress was strapless with white lace adorning the collar and the sides of the thigh high slit at both sides the dress; Emma on the other hand was wearing a creation of sparkling red, also skin-tight and a strap that surrounded her neck.  
  
Both boys just stood gaping at them as Mrs. Potter greeted them and offered them some cider. The girls accepted and slowly made their way to the frozen boys.  
  
"Something wrong? Don't you like our dresses?" Asked Katie in a nervous tone. She thought she was looking very well, but what if Sirius didn't like it? What if his parents didn't like it?  
  
"I must keep my eye on you tonight, someone might try to kidnap you." Whispered Sirius as he leaned in to give her a quick kiss on the cheek. Katie looked at him with a brilliant smile.  
  
"You look stunning." James had pulled Lily away from the others for just a moment.  
  
"Thank you. Do you really like it?" Lily was biting her lower lip with a look of apprehension on her face.  
  
"Yes I do, you're gorgeous." He replied smiling down at her.  
  
"Isn't Remus down yet?" Emma was looking around the room looking for the one missing from their group.  
  
"He should be down soon, we still have to wait for the other guest to join us then we will go to dinner. The neighbors will join us afterwards for the ball." Said James.  
  
"How many are you expecting?" Katie wanted to know.  
  
"I'm not sure, mother told me but I really didn't pay much attention." James shrugged.  
  
"You are not sure of what?" Said a voice behind them. They turned to see Remus who was looking at Emma, she blushed slightly and smiled timidly at him. "You look great." He said.  
  
"I'm glad you think so." She said looking at him from beneath her fluttering lashes.  
  
"Minx." He laughed as he gave her a swift kiss, before turning to greet the others.  
  
James gave him a glass of cider when he finished flattering the girls.  
  
"If I didn't know any better I would've guessed that Remus was the flirt of your little group." Laughed Lily. "Sirius, you have competition."  
  
"But not for long." He said with a mischievous smile.  
  
"Hmmm.I'm not sure we want to know what you have in mind." Said Katie with a wary look. The others chuckled and giggled when Sirius wiggled his eyebrows at her. Katie laughed and teasingly hit him on the arm. "Looks like a couple of worms are dancing on your brow."  
  
"I see that you are having fun." Said Mrs. Potter as she joined their group.  
  
"We are fine mum." James motioned for a footman, who was carrying a tray with glasses, he put his empty glass on the tray and grabbed another when the footman approached them.  
  
"I'm glad, James dear give me your arm, we must mingle among our guests. I sure your friends won't mind if I steal for a bit." Mrs. Potter looked at the others who were shaking their heads.  
  
"We don't mind Mrs. Potter, you can keep him for as long as you want." Sirius responded.  
  
"Trying to get rid of me are you?" Exclaimed James. "I wonder why is that."  
  
"Don't worry, we'll keep an eye on him." Said Remus with a laugh.  
  
James and his mother left them to entertain themselves while they mingled with the other guests. The room was a kaleidoscope of colors and sounds. People laughed and cheered every time a couple was caught underneath the mistletoe, some of which had been done by design. For half an hour the group waited until the butler announced time for dinner.  
  
Mrs. Potter took her son's arm as she lead the group into the dinning room.  
  
The rooms was sparkling, the crystal chandelier above the table shined with the light of dozens of candles. Only those who were wizards and witches noticed that they were bewitched for the flames to look like little bulb lights. The plates were of the best china, the utensils were made of the finest silver, and the glasses of the clearest crystal. Everything seemed perfect, fitting for dinner with a king.  
  
Little white cards with golden letters showed the placement of the party. Everybody looked for their names and sat in their seats. Once all were settled, Mrs. Potter motioned to the butler. Roberts opened a side door and footmen came into the room with trays on their arms. Roberts walked before them towards Mrs. Potter and started to serve. As the food was chosen and placed on their plates, the guests talked with their neighbors. Merriment and good will permeated the air.  
  
Dinner lasted for a couple of hours. When it was done, the guests started to file into the ballroom. It was decorated with the greenery that the party had collected. Mistletoe and pine everywhere, white curtains around the windows and small, decorated, Christmas trees surrounding the wall every fifteen feet. The party quickly spread through out the room as the band started to check their instruments ready to start playing as soon as they got the signal for them to begin.  
  
The Potters lined up at the entrance of the ballroom ready to greet their neighbors as soon as they arrived. Roberts and his footmen stood at the entrance hall to dispose of coats and to lead the guests into the ballroom.  
  
Soon, cars and sleighs were heard arriving at the door, the neighbors had begun to arrive. A line started to form at the entrance of the ballroom as the Potters greeted those who had accepted their invitation. The rooms slowly started to fill up. People mingled and socialized. After staying at the entrance for half an hour, the Potters joined their guests on the dance floor and the signal was given for the band to start playing.  
  
Mr. Potter led his wife to the center of the floor as a soothing waltz was played. James soon joined them leading a reluctant Lily, she was worried about what their parents would think by this. Others soon joined them on the floor and by the middle of the waltz the dance floor was crammed by couples as they twirled around the room.  
  
"You shouldn't favor me James, our parents are going to suspect something." Chided Lily as James twirled her.  
  
"I've been thinking. It isn't fair to keep them in the dark for too long, they are already suspecting something as it is. Maybe we should tell them. I don't want to return to Hogwarts without telling them." Lily was biting her lower lip as James talked. James had noticed that she bit her lip every time she was nervous or deep in thought.  
  
"I suppose you are right, I hate having to keep secrets from my parents. How do you think they will react?" She asked apprehensively.  
  
"I don't know, mother I think will be happy, but I cannot be sure. We'll just have to wait and see." Lily bit her lip while James tried to soothe her nerves. She never thought that letting her parents know of her relationship with James would be so nerve-wracking.  
  
"When do you think would be the best time to do so?" She said tentatively.  
  
"Tomorrow. It's Christmas morning, they are bound to be in good spirits." James smiled nervously at her, but she could see that even though he tried to put a brave face forward he was still nervous about it.  
  
"I suppose it would be the best time." She smiled sadly. "Couldn't we just leave them in the dark?"  
  
James chuckled. "I think they will eventually figure it out and will be more angry if they find out by any other means than if we tell them."  
  
"I hate it when you are right." Lily childishly stuck out her tongue at him and he laughed.  
  
Harmonious melody traveled through the air as some couples danced, others rested on chairs placed around the walls, while others stayed close to the refreshment table or near the windows to have some respite from the heat in the dance floor.  
  
"Do you reckon I should cut in, he is holding her too close for my taste." Grumbled Sirius as he watched Katie dance with one of the Potter's neighbors. Remus tried to hide his smile, who would have thought that Sirius would be so possessive of someone.  
  
"She can take care of herself my friend. If he does something objectionable she will know what to do. You don't want to make a scene in here do you? Mrs. Potter would kill you." Said Remus once he overcame the urge to laugh.  
  
"Hmmm.I suppose." Sirius grudgingly stayed where he was.  
  
Luckily the song ended soon and Katie returned to his side. The young man she was dancing with bowed to her and thanked her for the dance and soon lost himself in the crowd.  
  
Katie took a cold glass of cider trying to cool off. The dance floor had been so warm because of all the body heat and dancing.  
  
"Having fun?" Asked Sirius as he watched her use her fan to cool herself.  
  
"Oh yes. Mrs. Potter certainly knows how to give entertainments." Katie said laughingly. She certainly seemed in good spirits.  
  
Emma soon joined them, she had been dancing with another young man, guest of the Potters.  
  
"What about you, having fun?" Asked Remus with a smile.  
  
"Oh loads. I've never been in a muggle formal ball before, but it doesn't seem too different from ours." She replied as she sipped from the glass that Remus given to her.  
  
"Our worlds are not too different only our abilities." Replied Remus. The others nodded and continued looking at the couples that graced the floor with their dancing.  
  
"Lily seems to be enjoying herself." Giggled Katie as Lily passes by in front of them dancing with a handsome young man.  
  
"I don't think I can say the same of James." Chuckled Sirius. James was trying to make conversation with a young lady as they danced. But the young lady seemed to want only to flirt and grab his attention. The group saw James give an exasperated sigh that somehow seemed to escape the notice of his partner.  
  
"Poor James, but it is his duty to do the pretty and entertain his guests." Said Emma with a smile.  
  
"Serves him right. Did you see James and Lily dancing earlier? They seemed to be having a serious conversation out there." Speculated Sirius.  
  
"I noticed, wonder what they talked about." Remus had a frown on his brow as he recalled the dance Sirius talked about.  
  
"We'll find out, they tell us everything." Said Katie with a shrug. She put her empty glass on the table and grabbed hold of Sirius' hand. "Come let's dance."  
  
"You should wait until you are asked you know, it's the right thing to do." Sirius chided as Katie pulled him to the floor.  
  
Emma and Remus laughed as they say their friends join the crow in the dance floor. Remus turned to Emma with a smile. "Care to dance?" He said as he extended his arm.  
  
"It will be a pleasure." She said with a teasing smile.  
  
"Let's see if you say the same after I've stepped on your toes more times than you can count." He laughed.  
  
At the sidelines the adults laughed and chattered as the kept an eye on the young people to make sure that they didn't cause any trouble.  
  
The party lasted well into the night. It was two in the morning when the first guests started to leave. An hour later most of the guests staying in the house had retired to their respective rooms and had fallen asleep. The servants took care of the cleaning with the help of the elves and their wands. Now that everybody was in bed it was safe to use magic. Mrs. Potter had left orders to serve a late breakfast to the sitting rooms of each room, she expected her guests to sleep late and to spend the morning with their own family as they exchanged gifts privately. The servants finished the cleaning and went off to their beds with cheery spirits. The Potters were well known for their generosity toward their employees.  
  
  
  
  
  
A/N: Sorry it took me so long to bring you this piece but I hope you enjoy it. Remember to review : ) 


	18. Chapter 14 part 3 Merry Christmas

A/N: Here is the third and last part of Chapter 14, I hope you all enjoy it.  
  
Disclaimer: Do I really need to write it once more?  
  
Chapter 14 ~ The House Party  
  
~ Merry Christmas ~  
  
Snow fell overnight, the windows were frosted and the air seemed chilly. But inside the house the fireplaces were lit and the rooms were warm and cozy. Each member of the house party woke up with a feeling of expectation. Mrs. Potter had thought they would stay in bed until late, but she was wrong. The young people woke up early and enjoyed waking up their parents in order for the opening of the presents to commence.  
  
The rooms of each member from each family were connected by a sitting room. Soon each sitting room was filled with laughter as the customary exchange was made.  
  
Servants brought in trays of food to each sitting room before retiring to the kitchens were Mrs. Potter had asked the elves to prepare a special breakfast for the servants. Each seat was decorated with greenery and a present for each stood on top of each empty plate.  
  
In the Evans' sitting room a trio sat around the decorative Christmas tree. Lily was sitting on the floor, while Mr. and Mrs. Evans sat in armchairs beside the tree.  
  
"This is for you mum." Lily extended a golden wrapped gift to her mother. "Here dad."  
  
The Evans smiled at their daughter. "You will find yours right by your feet dear." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
The next minutes were spent in opening presents. Giggles and exclamations of surprise were heard as the presents were unwrapped and shown.  
  
Lily received a set of pearl chocker and matching earrings from her parents. Remus had given her books on Charms, Sirius a box full of the best candy from Honeydukes, Emma a set of magical stationary (the quill was golden, the ink changed color, and the parchment was of the finest quality), and Katie gave her a set of golden brushes. Lily was a little upset when she noticed that James had not left a gift. But then figured that he would most likely give it to her himself and cheered up.  
  
"I see that your friends were very generous." Mr. Evans said as he saw the pile of gifts Lily had accumulated beside her.  
  
Lily smiled brightly. "They certainly seem to be so."  
  
"This is a nice stationary, you must let me use it sometime Lily." Mrs. Evans exclaimed as she looked over the presents had received.  
  
"Of course mum."  
  
The phone in the bedroom rang. Mr. Evans got up and entered the bedroom to answer. Mrs. Evans looked at her daughter, who was still dressed in her silken nightgown with the matching robe. Lily sat on the floor with her arms around her legs and her chin resting on her knees. She was looking at the fire deep in thought. Mrs. Evans frowned as she watched her daughter, I wonder what is on her mind. Could it be the missing gift of a certain boy that has her so deep in thought?  
  
"Lily dear, is something the matter? You seem so quiet."  
  
Lily smiled sweetly at her mother. "Nothing is wrong mum, just something on my mind."  
  
"Does it have to do with James?" Lily turned a surprised expression toward her mother. How does she know? She wondered.  
  
"Why do you say that?"  
  
"You two seem to be getting along very well. Susan told me that she hired you to tutor him when he was sick."  
  
"Yes she did." Lily warily said. She knew that now was the time to tell her mother about her relationship with James, but the closer she got to tell her the more nervous she became. Butterflies were doing summersaults in her stomach.  
  
"Was he really that bad of a student that you don't want to talk about it?" Mrs. Evans laughed.  
  
"Oh no mum, he was perfect." Lily exclaimed.  
  
Mrs. Evans smiled. "Do you love him?" She said in a soft tone.  
  
Lily looked at her mother with a look of trepidation. Mrs. Evans scooted over in her chair and patted the seat for Lily to join her. Lily quickly joined her mother on the chair and rested her head on her mother's shoulder.  
  
"I don't know if what I feel for him is love mum, I like him and I enjoy spending time with him. And when he kisses me I feel a shock of electricity run throughout my body. Is that love mother?" Lily turned to look at her mother with a hopeful expression.  
  
Mrs. Evans smiled and said: "It certainly sounds like it to me. Does he feel the same way?"  
  
"I think he does. He hasn't said anything about it. Mum?"  
  
"Yes Lily?"  
  
"James and I are a couple."  
  
"I thought you were." Mrs. Evan said hugging her daughter close to her. They grow up so fast. My baby is in love. She thought with a smile.  
  
"Do you think I should tell daddy? He is so scary sometimes." Lily whispered.  
  
"I'll tell him dear, I know how to deal with your father. Why don't you go to dress, I'm sure that James is eagerly waiting for you to show up to give you his gift." Lily kissed her mother's cheek and happily walked to her room. Mrs. Evans looked as her daughter left with a wistful smile.  
  
Some time later, Mr. Evans returned to the sitting room and noticed that Lily was no longer there.  
  
"Who was that dear?" Mrs. Evans asked the moment her husband entered the room.  
  
"Petunia. She wanted to know if she could stay longer with Vernon instead of joining us here for New Year's."  
  
"Why didn't you tell me that Petunia was on the phone? I wanted to talk to my daughter."  
  
"She didn't want to stay on the phone, said that she would call you later. Where is Lily?"  
  
"She is dressing. Edward, I need to speak with you." She said in serious tone. Mr. Evans' brow lifted, his wife only used that tone when she was sure that whatever she was going to say he wouldn't like it.  
  
Lily had finished dressing. She had chosen a plaid two piece suit and was now sitting in front of the dresser putting up her hair, when she heard something that made her drop her comb and go pale.  
  
"LILY VIVIANE EVANS COME HERE THIS MINUTE!!"  
  
James woke up very early that same morning. He eagerly run to his parents' door and knocked.  
  
"Mum, dad wake up!" He knocked very loud.  
  
"Calm down James, you are not a child, remember that!" Yelled his mother thru the door. She wasn't a morning person and didn't like being woken up so abruptly the morning after a major event.  
  
The Potters heard James shuffle off to the sitting room. Mr. Evans sighed and got up from bed, he knew that James was too excitable the mornings of his birthday and Christmas and he would never go back to bed in such a state.  
  
"You might as well get up Susan. Our son won't allows us to go back to sleep." He whispered in her ear before he kissed her cheek.  
  
Mrs. Potter groaned, she really didn't want to leave her warm bed but knew that her husband was right. James had inherited traits from both parents and the fact that both were very excitable and stubborn meant that James was born with twice the dose. She rolled off the bed and reached for her robe. She might as well join her family and open the presents.  
  
James was waiting impatiently by a table laden with food. He frowned as he saw his parents walk into the room.  
  
"What took you so long?" James grumbled.  
  
"Really James, you need to be patient. I don't know how Lily can stand you." Snapped Mrs. Potter.  
  
James promptly sat up straight and stared warily at his mother. "What does she have to do with this?"  
  
"Just that the two of you are spending a lot of time together, she is bound to see you at your worst one of this days." Said Mrs. Potter startled by her son's reaction.  
  
"Is there something we should know James?" Asked Mr. Potter. He wasn't an advisor to the minister for nothing. Aliaster Potter was well known for his power of perception.  
  
James sighed and put the core of the apple he had been eating aside. "Nothing important, but I guess you are bound to find out. Lily and I are a couple that's all." James said with a shrug.  
  
"And why weren't we told before." Mrs. Potter put her hands in her waist and glared at James. "You know we liked this girl, we wouldn't have said anything against it."  
  
"You might not be against it, but her father might. Lily just wanted him to get to know me better without any prejudice."  
  
Mrs. Potter snorted and Mr. Potter chuckled. "Edward is a bit too protective of his girls, especially Lily, she seems to be the apple of his eye." Said Mr. Potter.  
  
"Well at least that girl has common sense, she is bound to be a good influence to you. We haven't received any owls from Dumbledore so I suppose you are starting to behave yourself." Grudgingly said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Really mum!" Exclaimed James. "Can we open the gifts now?"  
  
"Yes James, we can opened them now." Replied Mr. Potter shaking his head, he remembered how excited he got about the holidays in his younger years.  
  
James whooped and threw himself on the floor and dived for the gifts. He then divided the presents into piles, one for him, one for his mother and the other for his father. He then pushed the piles to their respective owner and turned to unwrap his own.  
  
Remus had given him a pile of books about the history of Quidditch and Transfiguration. He laughed when he opened the gift that Sirius had given to him, a pile of prank sets had fallen to his lap. His parents shook their heads.  
  
"Seriously, that boy needs some talking to."  
  
"Susan don't get involved. You know it's not his fault." Warned Mr. Potter. James kept silent he had heard this before, so he just continued with his gifts.  
  
"All right, that woman needs some talking to then. Honestly doesn't she know how dangerous it is to favor an only son?" Mrs. Potter exclaimed. James snorted. She did just the same to him.  
  
James opened the gift Katie had given him, it was a golden set of wizard chess. He smiled and turned to the next one in the pile. A set of Quidditch robes fell to his lap. Emma certainly knew how to make somebody happy, he thought. Lastly he saw a squared box, it was from Lily.  
  
He quickly opened it and saw a round silvery ball.  
  
"Where did she find that?" Exclaimed Mr. Potter who had been looking over James' shoulder.  
  
"What is it dad?"  
  
"It's a pensive."  
  
"But I thought pensives were like basins with fluid in it."  
  
"They usually are, but these are very rare." Mr. Potter said as he took the small ball in his hand.  
  
He took it between his middle finger and his thumb, there were small grooves were they should be placed. The moment he placed his fingers in these indentations the ball started to glow. Both James and Mrs. Potter gasped and surrounded Mr. Potter to see what happened next.  
  
The ball glowed for a minute or so, then started to turn to crystal. It now looked like a Remembrall as a silvery fog filled the ball.  
  
"How does it work dad?"  
  
"Have you seen how the other kind of pensives work James?"  
  
"Yes, the fluid in the basin glows, you take your wand point it to your head, say the spell to retrieve memories and then you point it to the basin."  
  
"Well it's pretty much the same with this. You take your wand and point it to your head, say the spell and point it to the ball. The fog inside should start to glow once the transaction is complete. To recall a memory you turned the ball like this." Mr. Potter turned the ball upside down. "You point your wand to the ball and try to recall of who or what the memory is about it should appear before you instantly."  
  
"Wow. This must be very valuable." James exclaimed. How did Lily get this? He thought.  
  
"It is very valuable, they are even more rare than invisibility robes. They are also very old, they haven't been manufactured since two hundred years ago when the pensives we have today were invented, they were more easy to do you see, thus allowing the manufacturers to do more at a time. Usually these are kept within families, just like invisibility robes, they are handed down from generation to generation."  
  
"How did she came by it then? She certainly likes you James to spend so much money on you." Said Mrs. Potter as she saw the ball in her husband's hand in awe. "I hope you got her something that would be as worthy as this."  
  
"Now I'm not sure, I certainly spent a lot of money in it, not that I really cared you understand. But still, I thought she would like it." James was getting nervous. He hadn't put his gift underneath Lily's tree because he wanted to give it himself. But what if it wasn't good enough? She spent so much for him, what if she thinks his gift isn't worth half of what she had given him?  
  
"Don't worry James, I'm sure she would like it." Said Mr. Potter giving the pensive to James.  
  
"Let me see what you got her James. I'll tell you if she will like it." Said Mrs. Potter. She didn't have a clue of what Lily would like, but she was curious on seeing what her son got. She also wanted to make sure it wasn't anything of bad taste. Not after what Lily gave him.  
  
James thought about it and decided that he would like to hear what his mother had to say about his gift. He nodded and went to his room. He promptly returned and presented a long box to her. She opened the box, Mr. Potter standing behind her to see the gift as well, and both gasped when they saw what was inside.  
  
"Oh James!" Mrs. Potter exclaimed.  
  
"Daddy!"  
  
"Really Edward, Lily is old enough to have a boyfriend. She is past the age when girls go out and meet boys." Mrs. Evans was exasperated. How can an intelligent man like her husband be so bullheaded?  
  
"But she is too young! If that young puppy has dared to touch my daughter I will take him apart." Mr. Evans was yelling and Lily's eyes had started to fill with tears.  
  
"Honestly Edward! You are being pigheaded and insensitive. She is seventeen for goodness sakes, soon enough she will be eighteen and ready to leave home to take life on her own. Are you telling me that she isn't ready to have a relationship? Honestly Edward! I was sixteen when I met you, eighteen when you proposed and twenty when Petunia was born. Don't tell me that she isn't ready! She can have a bloody boyfriend if she wants and you better be nice to that boy if you know what is good for you." Mrs. Evans was now yelling, her gaping husband out of words and Lily surprised to hear her soft spoken mother stand up to her father in that way. She was glad her parents loved each other and fights had not been prevalent during her childhood.  
  
"All right, I'm overreacting. But that boy better be good to my daughter if he wants to continue to live." He grumbled. He knew when he was bested and he also knew that he didn't want his little girl to return to school mad at him.  
  
"Oh daddy!" Lily squealed and hugged her father.  
  
"There, there, Princess. You better get ready if you are going to meet this boy of yours downstairs." He smiled as he hugged her back. When had his little girl grown up?  
  
It was two in the afternoon when the Potters and their guests left their rooms and finally went down to join the rest. Most had just returned to their own beds after the gifts were opened and didn't got ready until much later.  
  
The servants had laden the side table in the dinning room with all types of foods ready for those who were hungry to serve themselves.  
  
The Potters were the first to arrive, they were soon joined by the Lupins, the Evans arrived a few minutes later, and they were followed by the rest of the party. The dinning room was soon full and laughter filled the air.  
  
James noticed that Mr. Evans kept looking at him and started to get nervous. Obviously Lily had told her parents about their relationship and as expected, Mr. Evans wasn't too happy about it.  
  
Lily was sitting beside James and noticed her father looking menacingly toward them. She frowned but brightened when she noticed her mother getting her husband's attention. This is going to be difficult, she thought. She took hold of James' hand underneath the table and gave it a reassuring squeeze. James turned to look at her and smiled.  
  
"I have something for you. Should we meet in the garden after luncheon?" He asked.  
  
"If that's what you prefer." She replied with a smile. She knew it, she knew that he hadn't forgotten her.  
  
Lily spent the rest of luncheon in a state of curiosity and expectation. What had James gotten her? And why did he prefer to give it himself instead of leaving it for her underneath the tree?  
  
Soon, luncheon was over and the guest went to do as they please. Everybody wanted to spend a relaxing day, to regain their energy from such a vigorous day as the one before.  
  
Lily slowly made her way to the garden after making sure that her father was occupied somewhere else, she didn't want to give him cause to get angry and she knew that even though he had accepted her relationship with James he was still not happy about it. But at least he didn't react as bad as the day when Petunia brought home her first boyfriend at the age of 15. Lily was sure that the poor boy was probably still in therapy after such a traumatic experience. But the scene also served to sever the relationship between Petunia and her father. Lily loved her father and didn't want that same thing to happen to her, she was glad that her mother had been there, she knew how to get through him.  
  
Lily patiently waited for James, wondering why he had chosen the garden. It was barren, covered with snow and cold. Not a very romantic place in her opinion. Lily heard somebody nearing the garden, snow crunching beneath heave footsteps.  
  
She smiled as she saw James appear with a basket in his arm and warm blankets in the other. "Need help?"  
  
"No it's fine, I can handle it. Follow me, I have something to show you." He said with a sunny smile that made her forget about the cold and the snow and brightened her day. She nodded and followed him toward an end of the garden.  
  
They stood in front of a door. The garden was enclosed by walls covered with ivy, and the door was well hidden underneath it that if somebody didn't know it was there it wouldn't have been seen. James put the basket and the blankets on the floor and took out a key from his pocket. He turned the key and the door swiftly opened.  
  
"After you my lady." He bowed allowing her to enter.  
  
She gasped at the site that met her eyes.  
  
"Oh James this is beautiful!"  
  
"I'm glad you like it. It made reminded me of you when I was here the other day helping mum." He said with a sheepish smile.  
  
She turned to smile at him and kissed him softly before entering to peruse the greenhouse. The greenhouse was similar to the one in Hogwarts and understood why it had reminded him of her. It was in a greenhouse when they finally understood their feelings for each other and their relationship had commenced.  
  
As Lily walked around the greenhouse tasting a grape here, a strawberry there; James took the blankets to a clearing in the middle of the glass building. He smoothed one of the blankets on the floor and put the others at one end so they could use it if they felt cold or as pillows. He then started to empty the basket. Cold meats and sweets came out; James figured they wouldn't need any fruits as the greenhouse was full of them.  
  
Lily walked up to the blanket and smiled when he saw what James had brought.  
  
"Really James, we just had luncheon, we don't need any more food." She laughed.  
  
"Oh I know we are not hungry now, but maybe a little later. I want to show you the place first." He replied.  
  
James took her hand and led her through the greenhouse to show her around. They spent an hour just walking around. Lily exclaimed at every piece of exotic fruit found in there and was quite delighted when James took her to one end of the building and opened the door to show her the Potter personal aquarium.  
  
"Oh James, this is extraordinary." She exclaimed as she walked by the glass aquarium looking at all the exotic fish in the collection.  
  
"Mum likes plants and dad likes fishing, looks like a nice way to combine their hobbies."  
  
"I must say! Oh James look, water lilies." She smiled.  
  
"I thought you might like those." He laughed.  
  
They spent another hour or so in the aquarium. Lily wanted to know where each fish had come from and James patiently answered her questions. When they arrived at the end of the aisle, Lily noticed a large tank with dozens of fish swimming, but unlike the other tanks (that had been combined and allowed the fish to swim from one to another) this one was separated from the others and the fish couldn't socialize with the rest.  
  
"Why are these fish separate James?"  
  
"Because these are specially bred for the pond. When the right time comes, they will be released into the lake and the river that borders the northern part of the state and father will have enough for fishing. These are trout see, and the water hereabouts has been treated to be right for them."  
  
"Oh. What does your father do during the winter?"  
  
"Like any other aficionado, he ice-fishes. There is a small shack on one corner of the lake where he goes off once in a while and tries to catch something." Laughed James.  
  
"Does he catch something?" She smiled.  
  
"Occasionally, the fish that was served last night came from his efforts, and some of the servants as well. He doesn't believe in just coming in here and catch the fish with a net, he says it's unsporting. He says that the fish should be given an opportunity to make their own choices, if they fall for the bait, that was their choice."  
  
"That seems fair."  
  
"I think so as well."  
  
They laughed and returned to the greenhouse and made their way to the food that James had brought in.  
  
"I'm starting to feeling a bit hungry now." Lily laughed as she settled down onto the blanket.  
  
"So am I. Here let me serve you. What do you want?"  
  
Lily instructed him and he served. Soon both were laughing and chatting as the food was slowly consumed.  
  
When the plates were empty and the chilled cider had been drunk. Lily and James fell into a companionable silence. Lily watched the fruit trees, while James stretched on the blanket and watched Lily looking around the place. He was glad that he thought of this excursion for them. Since they had arrived they didn't have a single minute to themselves. But now, their parents knew about their relationship and they could have a few stolen moments alone.  
  
"I haven't given you my present yet." He suddenly said.  
  
"I was beginning to wonder if you had forgotten." She smiled.  
  
"I would never forget about you." She said in mock hurt. Lily laughed and James smiled. He retrieved a thin package from the pocket of his jacket and gave the box to Lily.  
  
She quickly unwrapped it and gasped. "Oh James, this is gorgeous."  
  
Lily stared at the contents in the thin box. A golden bracelet rested in the satin lining. Golden strands entwined loops falling down. At the end of the loops small charms twinkled. They were in the form of small lilies with a sparkling diamond in each base.  
  
"Oh James, you shouldn't have. This must have cost a small fortune." She exclaimed  
  
"No more than what you obviously spent for me. I never thanked you properly did I?"  
  
"I'm glad you liked it, I wasn't sure if you would." She smiled shyly at him. They had been going out for only a month she thought she still had lots to learn about James.  
  
"I liked it, but I must tell you, I'm afraid father might want to keep it, he was very impressed by it." He laughed remembering the expression on his father's face the moment the pensive had been unwrapped.  
  
Lily laughed and leaned in toward James. A long kiss ensued. Some minutes later they emerged to get some much needed air.  
  
"Here let me help you to put it on." Said James as Lily reached for the bracelet which was still resting in the box that she clutched in her hand.  
  
James took the delicate bracelet and reached for Lily's right wrist.  
  
"Hold still," he laughed, "you're going to make me brake it."  
  
"Sorry, I just wanted to see." She answered.  
  
"There, done."  
  
Lily shook her arm and watched the small lilies twinkle in the light. She smiled at James and leaned in to kiss him once more. "Thank you." She whispered against his lips.  
  
The young couple stayed a little longer in the greenhouse before putting away the plates and gathering the blankets and returned to the house.  
  
Lily wasn't surprised when she opened the door to her room and found Katie, Emma and her mother waiting for her.  
  
"What took you so long? What kind of a gift would've lasted so long?" Exclaimed Katie in an exasperated tone.  
  
"Lily dear, I hope you didn't do anything that you might regret later." Said Mrs. Evans in a worried tone.  
  
"Don't worry mum, we didn't do anything of that sort. James took me to the greenhouse and prepared a picnic for us. Did you know that the Potter have their own private aquarium? It's exquisite." She reported.  
  
"That was sweet of him. I still remember the first time your father took me for a picnic." Said Mrs. Evans with a wistful smile.  
  
"What did he give you Lily?" Asked Emma expectantly.  
  
The three women knew that James had asked her to meet in the garden where he would give her his Christmas gift and they were all eager to see what it was.  
  
Lily extended her arm and they saw the sparkling golden bracelet that graced her arm.  
  
Katie squealed, Emma gasped and Mrs. Evans clapped with laughter.  
  
"Oh it's perfect." Mrs. Evans exclaimed.  
  
"Oh it's gorgeous."  
  
"Do you think I could borrow it sometime." Asked Katie with a wistful tone. "Why can't Sirius be as sweet as James?"  
  
"You would get bored of him in a matter of days." Chuckled Emma. But she was thinking of the same thing in regards to Remus.  
  
Mrs. Evans laughed. "Don't worry girls, I'm sure that those boys of yours will not appreciate James making them seem so unromantic and will try to outdo him soon enough." The girls brightened and turned to tease Lily unmercifully about her afternoon with James.  
  
"How did it go?" James was asked the moment he entered his room. Sirius and Remus were sitting in the couches near the fireplace with a bottle of cider on a table beside them.  
  
"Quite well." He said with a serious expression. He wasn't going to make it easy for them to find out he decided. Besides, he wanted to keep the memory of his afternoon with Lily to himself for a while longer.  
  
"The question I have is, why did it take so long?" Said Sirius with a leering smile.  
  
"It wasn't that. Honestly Sirius, you have a bloody dirty imagination, do you know that?" Said James in exasperation.  
  
"Yes, I know."  
  
Remus shook his head and asked once more. "How did it go? Did she like it?"  
  
"She loved it." Smiled James.  
  
"You know that you put us in a difficult position now." Grumbled Sirius.  
  
"What are you talking about?" Asked James in surprise.  
  
"Well, you planned a very romantic afternoon for Lily to give her your gift. We just put their gifts with the rest. Now the girls will be mad at us and expect something else form us." Said Sirius.  
  
James laughed. "It's your own fault, don't blame for your deficient nature."  
  
"Hey." Two voices exclaimed.  
  
The afternoon had a calming effect for those in the house party. The young women stayed in their rooms doing their own thing and the young men stayed either in their own rooms or joined others in the game room. But of course the Marauders couldn't do the common thing and do the same as the others.  
  
Sirius had gotten hungry and just couldn't wait like the rest for dinner to be served, they still had to wait for two more hours!  
  
The Marauders were sitting in the kitchen at the moment. The cook elf had made them his official tasters and they were eating a little of all the dishes that were being prepared.  
  
"Now Master James, take your hands out of my pudding!" Warned Otty as he caught James trying to reach for the Christmas pudding that was cooling off on one side of the table.  
  
"But Otty, I thought we were your tasters, how would you feel if the pudding needs a little more and you don't know until it's time to serve it, you know that it doesn't take the same way if you magic it." Exclaimed James. He then turned a hopeful and wistful look toward the elf, who was standing on the table in front of the stove.  
  
"Oh very well, just a small taste Master James." Said Otty and carefully served a bit of pudding into three plates and put them in front of the boys.  
  
"Thank you Otty." The three said.  
  
Unlike most house elves in the rest of the magical world the Potter elves were relatively free. They could leave the house whenever they wanted (but they never did). The Potters had also given them allowance for them to use however they wanted (they never spent it, as a result there was a vault in Gringotts that kept accumulating). Even though they had all that and much more they preferred to stay at home and work for the Potters, they had done so for generations and nothing would change that. They were also very fond of the family, especially of James, he was such a rapscallion as a child and brought them hours of entertainment. As a result James had been spoiled by the elves and he always got what he wanted from them.  
  
"Otty, thanks for the basket you packed for me, it was great." Said James as he licked the plate clean.  
  
"Oh Master James, Otty was glad to do it, Otty likes Miss Lily Master James." Exclaimed Otty. Like in all families, servants and elves found things out faster than their masters. And James' relationship with Lily had been known in the servant's quarters before the Potters did.  
  
"Thank you anyways Otty." James pushed his plate away and got up ready to leave the kitchens. "We must leave you to finish our dinner Otty and we must get ready to meet the rest of the party in the parlor." He nodded to the others and together walked to the door.  
  
"Bye Master James." Otty said before he immersed himself into the preparation of the ham and the fish that he was about to prepare.  
  
James led the others up the servant's stairs toward the guests' wing.  
  
"I'll leave you here, mum will have a coronary if I don't change now." Said James rolling his eyes.  
  
Remus laughed, but Sirius frowned, he obviously had something on his mind. "Right, we'll see you later." He said and quickly walked toward his room.  
  
James and Remus stayed where they stood looking as Sirius closed the door of his room behind him.  
  
"What's wrong with him?" Asked James with worry in his expression.  
  
"Don't know." Said Remus with a shrug. "Should we follow him and ask him?"  
  
"No, let's leave him for now, if he continues to act so we'll intervene." Said James.  
  
Remus nodded and after saying a 'see you later' to James he walked on to his room. James followed the corridor that connected the guest wing to the family wing.  
  
James found Minnie putting his laundered clothing into his dresser and closet.  
  
"Thank you Minnie." He said when he came in.  
  
"Minnie is here to serve Master James. Does Master want his gray suit or the black Master James?"  
  
"I think mum said to wear the black."  
  
"Minnie will press it for Master James." Minnie quickly entered the walking closet on one side of the bedroom and disappeared underneath all the hanging suits.  
  
James started to discard the clothes he had been wearing. He remembered when he first was given Minnie as his personal elf. He was very self conscious and refused to get dressed in her presence but after his mother threatened to undress him herself he gave up and allowed Minnie to help. He was used to it now, but he still preferred if Minnie had been a male elf instead of female. He couldn't wait until he had his own son and then Minnie would go to him and he would inherit his father's personal elf, Lotty, who, to his relief, was male.  
  
Minnie had returned with a black suit and a bow tie in one hand.  
  
James groaned. "Minnie I don't want to wear a bow tie."  
  
"Mistress Susan wants you to Master James, makes you look smart." Said Minnie as she placed the clothing on the bed and turned to James to see if he needed something else.  
  
"Oh very well, but I still don't like it." He pouted and stepped behind the screen to change.  
  
Because that night was Christmas night, the Potters had planned a formal dinner for their guests. Everybody was going to dress formally and then would retire for a little entertainment in the parlor.  
  
Half an hour later, the Potters sat in the parlor waiting for their guests to arrive.  
  
"How did Lily like your gift James? I didn't have a chance to ask earlier." Said Mr. Potter watching his son. It was uncanny how similar James was to him. He hoped that when James had his own son he would take after his mother, it would be too confusing to have all the men in one family to look so alike.  
  
"She liked it, she was quite happy about it." Said James with a smile.  
  
"I'm so glad James, I quite like this girl you know. Wonder how Edward took it, I must speak to Rose." Said Mrs. Potter with a frown.  
  
"I don't think he was too happy about it." Responded James with a grimace.  
  
"I can understand, I wasn't too happy when Elizabeth started dating, especially when she got engaged." Laughed Mr. Potter.  
  
"I don't think I will have a daughter if I'm going to be like that." Said James shaking his head.  
  
"Oh no, you'll have a son who will be twice the trouble you were. See how you will like that." Retorted Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Don't worry mum, I'm sure the lady I marry will know how to take care of us just as you do." James said kissing his mother's cheek.  
  
Mrs. Potter was prevented to answer by the entrance of her guests. The parlor was soon full, refreshments had been served while they waited for Roberts to tell them that dinner was ready to be served. They didn't have long to wait. The doors to the dinning room soon opened and Roberts appeared. There was a collective sigh of relief. Even though luncheon had been served late nobody ate as much as they regularly did. But now they were famished and were really looking forward to the elaborate dinner the servants were serving tonight.  
  
Mrs. and Mr. Potter led the group into the dinning room, James followed with Lily, the rest paired off and followed.  
  
Usually Roberts and the footmen walked round the table serving the food, this time the platters were set along the table and golden plates were set in each seat. The young people turned to look at each other with the same thought 'just like Hogwarts'.  
  
Everybody settled into a seat and soon were relishing their food.  
  
There wasn't too much talk as there had been on previous occasions. Everybody was just too busy eating as much as they could without looking like pigs. As a result, dinner lasted longer than usual and Roberts and his footmen had to refill drinks and bring out more platters of food as soon as the original were empty.  
  
When dinner was over, the Potters and their guests moved to the parlor, where they sang carols, told stories and the Potters gave a small gift to each of their guests. The others had also something for their hosts and fellow guests, thus, a second wave of gifts exchanges ensued.  
  
The party broke up soon enough, and everybody retired to their own beds. It had been an exhausting day and they looked forward to making up for lost sleep.  
  
Christmas was now over and New Year's was soon upon them. There were hunting expeditions, skating parties, shopping expeditions, and the rest of the guests were taken through a tour of the greenhouse and the aquarium which became a regular place to visit.  
  
Everybody in the party now knew that James and Lily were a couple and Mr. Evans became more comfortable with the idea as he noticed how much they got along. But he still made sure that James knew that if he ever did something to hurt Lily, wizard or not, he would take him apart piece by piece. Needless to say James had nightmares that same night.  
  
Soon it was time for the house party to end. The muggle guests went back to their jobs and hectic lives, while the magical folks returned to their ministry jobs and worry about the dark times that their world was going through. The young people stayed behind, their parents thought they might as well be together as they only had a couple of days left of their break left and would soon be returning to Hogwarts.  
  
The young people were left to their own devises. James moved to a room in the guests' wing so he could be near his friends. It wasn't so surprising, for those few adults left in the house, when they were suddenly awoken one night by an explosion coming from the guests' wing. It was decided that it was a waste of breath to try to silence them and a silencing charm was summoned for the wing.  
  
James and the others had tried improvising a set of exploding snaps, but it backfired on them. The girls had too much fun teasing them about it for the rest of the break.  
  
One day, the adults woke up with a sigh of relief. Today the youngsters would be returning to Hogwarts.  
  
Pandemonium ensued during the first hours of the day as everybody went around picking items and making sure nothing was forgotten. Three black cars were brought out front of the house and servants brought out the trunks and bags that would accompany their owners on the train.  
  
A couple of hours later, Mrs. Potter led the small group through the barrier where the scarlet engine awaited its passengers.  
  
"Now behave yourself James, I don't want to hear from Dumbledore this semester unless it's good news." She was saying as she tried to straighten his hair and his clothing.  
  
"Mum! My friends are watching. Honestly!" He exclaimed as he tried to get away from her. The girls giggled in the background and he turned to glare at them. This only caused them to laugh more.  
  
"Now, make sure that you eat well and please try to do much better in Charms, you did well last semester but I really know you could do much better. And please try to prepare for the N.E.W.T.s, they are very important." She had finally given up trying to tame James' wild hair, and now stood looking at her son. How fast he had grown, she thought, her baby was almost done with his training and would soon go out in the world on his own.  
  
"Don't worry Mrs. Potter, we'll take care of him. Lily here will train him for the tests." Said Sirius with a smile. Lily hit him softly in his arm and James just rolled his eyes.  
  
Mrs. Potter saw the young people board the train with a smile. She stood on the platform waiving until she lost sight of the engine and dissaparated.  
  
  
  
A/N: There you are, the holidays are over and they are back in school. The next chapters will be a bit darker, and in some cases sad, but I'm sure you might enjoy it. 


	19. Chapter 15

A/N: I'm sorry it took me a while to get this chapter up, but I haven't really had time to edit my chapters lately, I hope you like this chapter, some of my previous readers might remember this chapter, as it is the pivoting point of the whole story, at least I think so.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and his wonderful world.  
  
Chapter 15 ~ The Unexpected Events  
  
  
  
The snow started to melt, the Quidditch Cup Competition was in full swing (in which Gryffindor was on the lead), and the seventh years had noticed the increase of class work. They were now near the end of March, spring was beginning and it was time to start preparing for end of the year exams.  
  
Seventh years had twice the work load than all the other students. N.E.W.T. exams were just around the corner and the preparations for the Seventh Year Ball were falling in nicely.  
  
James, Lily, Emma and Sirius along with other seventh years were meeting in the empty Transfiguration Class that night. At the moment the seventh years were reading a long parchment sitting in front of them. They were all reading in silence, occasionally, the scratching of a quill could be heard.  
  
James lifted his head and looked around to see who else was finished with the parchment. He noticed that only Lily was ready to resume. He smiled at her and she smiled back.  
  
After a few minutes everybody else was ready to go on with the meeting.  
  
"What do you lot have to say? Should we keep it as it is, or does it need some changes?" Asked James.  
  
"I think it's fine as it is, that idea of Sirius was perfect, it will give the garden that sense of mystery that we wanted to accomplish." Said a Hufflepuff girl looking flirtatiously at Sirius. Sirius beamed from her praise while Katie glared at both of them.  
  
"Well I don't know if I agree but it would serve." She said crossing her arms. Sirius turned a hurt look at her but she just ignored him. Lily had to cover her mouth with her hand to keep from laughing. James was the only one who heard her muffled giggles.  
  
James cleared his throat and resumed. "So we all agree to buy a colony of fairies then. It would become a good investment, once the Ball is over we can build a colony for them in the Forest and the school can use them again for balls in the future."  
  
"And the garden will look so magical, I'm really looking forward to dancing underneath a cloud of fairies." Said a Ravenclaw girl with a sigh.  
  
The rest of the girls seem to agree with her, and the boys groaned knowing that at one point during the Ball they were going to have to leave the Great Hall to dance beneath the stars in the garden.  
  
"Yes well, let's continue." Said James.  
  
The meeting continued. New ideas were created, some of the previous plans were changed and debates sprung any time something new came up. James had a great time, he liked debating, he always thought that he would've liked to join a debate team if the school had something like it, but unlike muggle schools that had the opportunity to have one, Hogwarts was out of the way and debating would not be something that would make schools in other countries want to travel.  
  
Lily was very quiet that night, she usually joined in the debates and in most cases was the voice of reason within the group, but this time, she didn't join in and as a result several fights almost broke out and James had to subtract points off from several students.  
  
James was the only one to notice that Lily was distracted. She hadn't said anything but he planned in finding out. All he had to do was wait for the right time.  
  
"It's getting late, off you go to bed. Remember that our next meeting will be in one month, I expect you lot to bring materials to start with the decorations. We only have ten weeks to prepare and two of those weeks we are going to be too busy with exams." Said James as the group started to leave the room. The group groaned at the mention of the exams, they would've preferred if James hadn't reminded them.  
  
Lily was putting her notes again and checking that nobody had left anything behind. James waited patiently on his chair, looking at Lily waiting for her to be done. Lily started to get her things together; she was still distracted and hadn't noticed that James was still in the room.  
  
James was quite surprised when he saw her leave the room without looking back. He quickly followed her and soon caught up with her.  
  
"Lily, something wrong?"  
  
"Huh? Oh James, I didn't see you there." She said with surprise.  
  
"I noticed. What is wrong?"  
  
"Are you sure you want to know?"  
  
"Of course I want to know. Maybe I can help."  
  
"I doubt it."  
  
"Just try me."  
  
Lily battled with her indecision for a few moments but James knew that she wouldn't hold out for long. Lily wasn't like that. She needed to talk about her problems, it helped her to see things clearly and put her problems into perspective.  
  
"Do you remember I told you about my sister and her boyfriend?"  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"I received a letter today."  
  
"And?"  
  
"I found out just how much my sister hates me. She got engaged a week ago and decided that since I wasn't important enough for her, she wasn't going to wait for me to be able to go to her engagement celebration. She had an engagement party last Saturday. She didn't even had the courtesy to invite me, even if she knew that I couldn't attend."  
  
"I'm sorry Lily, but she isn't worth it you know. She can have her bloody party and her bloody wedding, you don't need her."  
  
"Oh I know all that, but it still hurts to think that my sister hates me that much. I always thought that it was a matter of time until she accepted what I was."  
  
"Prejudiced people live from the beginning of time Lily. The magical world wouldn't have gone into hiding in the Dark Ages if it hadn't been so. There was a time when muggles and wizards worked and lived together but people are always afraid of what they don't understand."  
  
"I know that, but you would think that family at least would be supportive. My parents are wonderful, I don't know where Petunia got all her bigotry from."  
  
"Don't worry about her, you are better off without her. Besides, after Hogwarts I'm sure you won't see much of her."  
  
"It depresses me to think that my kids will never meet their aunt and that I won't meet my own nieces and nephews."  
  
"You are not missing anything, knowing them, their kids will be fat, short and dumb." James said with a snort.  
  
"Really James! That was mean." She chided through her laughter.  
  
"You know it's true, your kids don't need to get involved with people like that."  
  
"Maybe. Thank you James, you really know how to make me feel better." She smiled sweetly.  
  
"That's what I'm here for." He smiled back. Lily stood on her toes and kissed him. They were standing in front to the Fat Lady portrait, who smiled indulgently at the pair.  
  
After some minutes the pair entered the common room and met their friends who were waiting up for them.  
  
"What took you so long? Katie and Sirius have been here for hours!" Exclaimed Peter. Remus nudged him in the arm and the others glared at him. "What?"  
  
"We were just talking, there is no need to glare at Peter." Said James shaking his head.  
  
"See! Thank you James." Peter said.  
  
"If you say so. What are going to be doing this spring break, we have one whole week to rest." Asked Sirius.  
  
"I don't know about you lot, but I want to study for the exams, we have eight more weeks to prepare for them." Said Lily  
  
The group groaned.  
  
"Why did you have to remind us Lily, now we won't have fun thinking of these exams." Whined Sirius.  
  
"Honestly Sirius, you sound like a child. And it isn't Lily's fault that you are not ready for those exams, and I agree with her. I'm going to join you to study Lily, that is if you don't mind." Said Emma.  
  
"Of course I don't mind."  
  
"I'll go with you as well, I need some help with Charms and you can help me with it Lily." Katie left her seat and started walking toward the stairs. Lily and Emma followed her out.  
  
"Told you, now we aren't going to have fun." Grumbled Sirius.  
  
"We might as well join them. I have a feeling that everybody is going to be too busy during this spring break." Said Remus as he watched the girls disappear from sight.  
  
"I think so too. Let's go to bed, we'll know what we need to do later." Said James as he lost his battle with sleep and gave a big yawn.  
  
"Tired?" Said Peter as the group started up the stairs.  
  
"Very. I hadn't expected all this load of work to be given to us. I honestly thought that it couldn't be any worse than the load given to us in fifth year in preparation for the O.W.L.s."  
  
The others just shook their heads. What was the world coming to? They though, how could it be possible to have a whole week off from school but still have lots of assignments to do?  
  
James was dreading the arrival of the next week. His birthday was coming up and he knew that his friends would be planning a surprise party in Gryffindor common room for him. They did so every year and they always thought that he had no idea but after six years he knew the routine quite well.  
  
Sirius and Remus would become secretive, Peter would be off somewhere and never be able to be found. The only difference this year was that the girls seemed to have joined in the planning. Now Sirius, Remus, Katie and Emma were being secretive and Peter was missing.  
  
Lily seemed to have plans on her own but unlike the others, she wasn't so obvious about it. James knew that she planned something, she had told him so, but he expected that it was just a gift, but he did wonder what was Lily doing when she disappeared for hours every day.  
  
  
  
The dreaded day arrived, and as usual, he was woken up by pillows hitting his face.  
  
"Would you lay off. Nice way of waking a body up on his birthday." He groaned.  
  
"Hurry up, I want to see what you got." Sirius was saying in an impatient tone.  
  
"Really Sirius, it's hard to believe that you are over seventeen and that you are almost out of school." Mocked Remus shaking his head.  
  
Sirius responded by hitting him with his pillow. Soon a pillow fight ensued when James and Peter joined in the fun.  
  
"And I thought that they were quite grown up." Said a voice from the door.  
  
The boys stood still and turned to see who had interrupted their game. Lily was giggling, Emma was laughing and Katie just smiled.  
  
"Want to join in?" Asked Sirius from underneath Remus. James was kneeling on the bed with his pillow above his head and Peter stood by the bed with his pillow in his hand.  
  
"No thank you, we've outgrown that behavior years ago." Katie said.  
  
Sirius snorted. "Yeah right." Remus had rolled from him and Sirius now stood up. His boxers were quite colorful as zooming broomsticks moved from one corner to the other.  
  
The girls laughed.  
  
"Nice boxers you have there." Said Lily as she entered the room. The others followed her in and Emma closed the door behind her.  
  
"What are you doing here? You are not supposed to enter the boys' dorms." Hissed James into Lily's ear as she gave him a hug and a peck on his cheek.  
  
"Just came to wish you Happy Birthday. Are you sorry we did?" She asked as she turned to look at him with a pout and sad eyes.  
  
James groaned, she knew that he couldn't say no to her when she turned those pouting lips at him.  
  
"Will you at least give me some privacy, I need to dress you know." He said.  
  
"Very well, we'll wait for you lot in the common room." Lily said and led the girls out of the room closing the door behind them.  
  
"We better get dressed, if we don't join them soon they might come back and read us a lecture on punctuality." Said Sirius from his bed. He had laid down on his bed and returned his pillow to its proper place.  
  
"Accio clothes." Whispered James and made a run to the bathroom before the others got to it first.  
  
"Hey!" Three voices said as the bathroom door closed behind him.  
  
The girls were sitting in their customary seats when the boys joined them. The common room was empty still, many students were still out for Spring break and the ones who had stayed behind were still in bed. Only the Marauders and the Sirens were known to be up at an earlier time.  
  
"Should we go to breakfast first or open the presents?" Asked Emma as the boys sat with them.  
  
"Couldn't we do both?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"I don't see how, I'm sure James wouldn't like to open his gifts in the Great Hall where everybody would walk in." Said Lily putting her arms around James giving him a tight hug.  
  
James smiled and hugged her back.  
  
"Well the same could be said about this place. If we stay here, the others will soon be down and want to join us." Said Remus.  
  
"Why don't we go to the astronomy tower, nobody will be there, the weather is nice and we can have a picnic, well sort of a picnic." Said Katie.  
  
"That's a great idea, we will need only half an hour to get some food from the kitchens and you girls can take some pillows and blankets to make it cozy." Said Sirius, warming up to the idea.  
  
"Why don't we get Minnie to get the food for us and then we will all work on the tower, somebody will need to take the presents up there." Said Peter.  
  
"It would be easier, and quicker." Said Remus.  
  
"Ok, I'll get Minnie to bring us food to the tower and you lot get it ready." Said James.  
  
Everybody got on their feet and ran around the Gryffindor tower looking for the things they will need. James stayed in the couch and waited. A minute later, a pop was heard and Minnie appeared before him with her eyes wide open.  
  
"Did Master James wanted something from Minnie?" She asked hesitantly. Elves were connected to their masters, as a result the masters only needed to think of the elf for the elf to appear before them. Minnie seemed very surprised that James had called her. Usually it was Minnie who asked James if he needed her.  
  
"Yes Minnie, my friends want to do something special for my birthday and we'll be having a picnic in the astronomy tower, can you bring us some food there while we get the tower ready?"  
  
"Oh yes Master James, Minnie will bring food to the tower. Right away Master James." There was another pop as Minnie disappeared.  
  
James sighed and got on his feet ready to join the others.  
  
Half an hour later the astronomy tower looked exquisite. Warm blankets covered the floor and colorful pillows surrounded the walls. If James didn't know any better, he would've said that he was in the castle of a sultan.  
  
"It looks great!" He exclaimed. The others smiled and congratulated themselves they really wanted to give James something to remember on his birthday, considering that it was going to be the last one they were going to celebrate together. Minnie appeared in that instant with several trays in her arms.  
  
"Minnie, you didn't need to bring all of this." Chided Lily reaching for the trays to try to relieve Minnie of their weight.  
  
"Minnie wanted to bring special breakfast for Master James." Said Minnie looking a bit hurt.  
  
"That's sweet of you Minnie." Said Emma. "I'm sure that Master James will enjoy it very much, but you didn't need to bring it all at once you know, you could've brought only a bit now and a bit later. This lot is always hungry." She said with a smile. Minnie seemed to cheer up and smiled back.  
  
"Does Miss wants something else?" Minnie asked. She really liked James' friends, they didn't treat elves like slaves as others did.  
  
"No Minnie, this will be all." Katie said with a smile. She had never met an elf who was so fond of her master before, it showed how well the Potters looked after their employees, she knew that they didn't look at their elves as slaves but as employees who just happened to belong to them.  
  
Minnie smiled and with a pop left the group on their own.  
  
"Well, now that the food is here let's get this show on the road, shall we?" Said Sirius with enthusiasm.  
  
The others agreed. Soon the sound of laughter and joy filled the air. Professor Dumbledore smiled as he heard the noise from one of the windows of one of the upper towers. Professor McGonagall's smile seemed rare in her otherwise austere expression.  
  
"They seem so young and carefree Minerva. It seems too bad that this joyful atmosphere will be disturbed too soon."  
  
"Are you sure you read the signs correctly Albus?" She asked with hesitancy.  
  
"I'm sure Minerva, I spent the whole night trying to make sure."  
  
"Oh dear."  
  
The day was full of surprises for James. Minnie had delivered a first rate breakfast for him, consisting only of his favorite foods. His friends had given him loads of things that he had no idea what to do with them.  
  
The sunny spring weather allowed the group to have fun on the school grounds much to the consternation of Hagrid, who had to keep an eye out for them, they were quite known to get into trouble too often.  
  
Hagrid sat on a bench in front of his cabin, carving some wood and a young puppy at his feet.  
  
"Hello Hagrid, where did you get this pup?" Asked Lily as she led the others to the cabin.'  
  
"Hello Lily, got 'im for Christmas I did. Gift from Dumbledore." He said with a happy smile.  
  
"Oh he is so cute! What is his name?" Asked Emma as she scratched the puppy behind the ears. The puppy blissfully let her and stayed panting on the floor.  
  
"Fangs." Hagrid said.  
  
The group turned a surprised look to Hagrid, the name didn't seem to suit the puppy at all.  
  
"Hmmm.no offence Hagrid but the name doesn't seem to suit the puppy." Said Remus with a smile.  
  
"Oh, I though' it was cute." Said Hagrid with a sad expression.  
  
"Oh it's cute Hagrid, Fangs is a great name for a puppy." Exclaimed Katie with a glare toward the boys. They seemed to get her unspoken mandate and stayed quiet.  
  
Hagrid cheered up and invited them to stay for tea and biscuits. The group had learned from early on not to accept any edibles from Hagrid if they didn't want to hurt his feelings and brake their teeth at the same time.  
  
"No thanks Hagrid, we have to return soon to the castle we still have lots of class work to do." James said quickly.  
  
"Ok. See you lot later then." Said Hagrid as he waved to them.  
  
The group slowly made its way to the castle. A pair of eyes following their every step. The day had been loads of fun and joy nobody thought that a dark cloud hanged above them.  
  
Dinner had been a joyful occasion. Hogwarts Express had returned early that evening with the students who had chosen to go home for the break. Dumbledore had given his customary welcome back speech as well as a Happy Birthday for James and to James' surprise and embarrassment a birthday cake appeared before him as the Great Hall broke into song. If people had paid close attention, they would've noticed the jealous silence from Slytherin Table and speculative expression from one of its members.  
  
Dinner was soon over and everybody had gone up to their respective common rooms. James had stayed behind at the request of Dumbledore. Lily had left him with a promise to a special surprise for him at his return to the Tower.  
  
James walked down the corridor with a preoccupied air. Dumbledore had wished him a happy birthday before asking him about the signet ring that had made him sick on the previous fall. James had forgotten all about it and it seemed out of place for Dumbledore to ask about it now after so many months. James wondered what had happened to make Dumbledore ask about that ring, did it have anything to do with the news he read on the Prophet the day before?  
  
A report had appeared in the Daily Prophet about a Dark Wizard named Lord Voldemort. Nobody knew what he looked like or where he had come from but it seemed that he was the one in charge of the group of Dark Wizards that had terrorized the magical community for the last six years. The terror now had a name and the Ministry a new target. But what did it have to do with James?  
  
Everything seemed to become too complicated, thought James, how was a young wizard to survive in a world where terror and darkness seemed to be getting the upper hand. He didn't notice when he passed by the portrait of the Fat Lady until she called him back.  
  
"Where are you going?" She called to him. "Are you feeling all right?" She looked at him as he turned back to stand before her. "You seem quiet, too quiet. I just hope that it doesn't mean you and your friends will keep me up until too late."  
  
James smiled. The Fat Lady always complained whenever they had a party in the common room but he knew that she enjoyed herself as well.  
  
"Don't worry, as far as I know there is no party, unless you are saying that there is." He said in a speculating voice, even though he knew that his friends had planned one but it wouldn't do to let it be know that he knew.  
  
"I'm not saying anything, you better get in, there is no need for you to stand there, go on say the word."  
  
"Very well, gibberish." He said and the portrait opened for him.  
  
As he had expected, a yell of 'surprise' greeted his entrance. And as expected from those inside, he acted surprised and pleased. He was lead to a place of honor by the fireplace where he was piled with more gifts and well wishes. He opened the gifts and thanked each giver as it was oohed and aahed by the inmates of the tower. After all the presents had been opened, music was heard through the room and the party began in earnest.  
  
The dancing and the chatter lasted until Professor McGonagall barged in on them and asked them all to retire for the night. The room soon emptied and only James, Lily and Sirius were left behind.  
  
"I'm going to the kitchens, I may need a midnight snack." Laughed Sirius and with a wink left the room.  
  
Lily laughed as she snuggled against James on one of the couches in front of the roaring fire. The fire had been bewitched to light up but to not give off any heat.  
  
"Had a fun day?" She asked as she felt James' arms tighten about her.  
  
"The best." Lily felt James kiss the top of her head and smiled.  
  
"I'm glad you enjoyed it, I still have one more gift for you." She said sitting up and looking up to him. "Do you prefer to have it now, or do you want to wait for tomorrow?" She asked as she noticed James yawning.  
  
"Hmmm.maybe we should wait for tomorrow, it seems that I'm too tired for now."  
  
Lily nodded and kissed him softly on the lips before whispering. "Good night then." And soon James saw her ascending up the stairs toward the girls' dorms.  
  
James closed his eyes and was nearly asleep when he heard the portrait door opening and closing.  
  
"Hello James! Thought I'd come and wish you Happy Birthday." A husky voice whispered in his ear.  
  
James sensed the hairs at his nape tingle and promptly opened his eyes. When he saw who was there with him, his eyes widened with surprised and his jaw dropped.  
  
"What are you doing here?" He asked.  
  
"You are awake! And here I thought I would have the pleasure to wake you up." Jezebel said with a sly smile.  
  
"You haven't answered me, what are you doing here?" James asked once more.  
  
"Does it matter?" She asked with a pout and he felt her sit on his lap.  
  
"Of course it does, you are not supposed to be here. How did you get in anyways?" James asked in horror and swiftly stood up nearly sending her to the floor, but she was too quick for him and saved herself from being unceremoniously thrown.  
  
"I don't see why you should know. It really doesn't matter now, does it?" She said as she walked toward him.  
  
James tried to keep his distance from her and walked backward keeping his eyes on her. Unfortunately this didn't work as he had hoped as he walked right into the wall. He was trapped. He couldn't move to the side because a wall was at his right and a couch at his left. He couldn't escape her and prayed that this situation would somehow be salvaged.  
  
"Now really James, I'm not life threatening you know." She said in a cajoling tone. "I'm sure I can make you enjoy my company more than you do that girlfriend of yours."  
  
"I doubt it." He exclaimed in a cold tone.  
  
This didn't seem to make her lose interest however, it only made her advance more rapidly.  
  
"Let's see what you say tomorrow morning." She replied.  
  
James gulped, what did Jezebel have in mind?  
  
"You should learn to relax James, you seem so tense." She teased him.  
  
"I'm not tense." He croaked and tried to clear his throat.  
  
His mind was completely blank. He had to get her out of here, this would look bad for him if somebody walked in. How else would a Slytherin come into the Gryffindor common room unless a Gryffindor let her in?  
  
"Really?" She asked with a lift of her brows. She shrugged and swiftly closed the distance between them.  
  
"What do you want?" He asked with bravado in his voice. He was too confused to think how silly he would look to his friends if he saw him cowering on the wall because of a girl.  
  
"Can you really not imagine?" She whispered against his lips.  
  
He felt her hands resting against his chest. Sweat broke on his brow. Lily had been the only girl to make him feel comfortable as she touched him. The touch of another girls just felt so wrong.  
  
"Er.you better leave." He said trying to push her away from him but he was unsuccessful.  
  
"Now why would I do that?" She said before leaning against him and pressing her lips against his.  
  
James stood there totally surprised that he didn't hear the portrait opening once more.  
  
"James, what the hell do you think you are doing?" An angry voice said.  
  
James pushed Jezebel away from him and gaped at Sirius who was angrily staring at the pair.  
  
"Good night James, we'll talk later." She said and swiftly passed by Sirius and left the room. James stood still where he was as Sirius turned to glare at him.  
  
"What are you doing bringing her in here. Really James I thought better of you!"  
  
"It's not what you think!" James yelled back. How can his best friend think that he would get involved with a girl like Jezebel?  
  
"What else could it be? I come in and see you kissing with her. Honestly James! If you are going to cheat on Lily you could at least do so where nobody could walk in on you."  
  
"That's not what- What do you mean by that?" James was truly angry now. How could Sirius think that he would do that to Lily?  
  
"How could you do this to Lily?"  
  
"I didn't do a damn thing!"  
  
"Are you saying that Lily means nothing to you?"  
  
"It didn't mean a thing I tell you!"  
  
Sirius eyes opened with surprise and James heard a gasp from the stairs. He quickly turned and his jaw dropped when he saw Lily standing there. Her hand on her lips and tears starting to emerge from her startling green eyes. How long had she been standing there? James thought.  
  
"Lily!"  
  
"How could you James?" She exclaimed before turning back up the stairs.  
  
James heard her running up the steps sobbing, her sobs seemed to snap him out of the trance he had felt he was in and turned to run after her. He took the steps two, sometimes three, at a time trying to catch up to her.  
  
"Lily wait! It's not you saw, please hear me out!" He said as he caught up to her.  
  
"There is nothing more to say, you have said enough! How could you James, I really cared about you and you just turn to someone else as soon as I leave." She cried.  
  
"It's not like it seemed Lily, I don't care for her, I care for you." He exclaimed desperately, he had to get Lily to believe him. How would he live without her?  
  
"That's a lie and you know it. Let me go James, I don't want to see you again." She tried to pull from his grasp but the more she pulled the more tighter his hold on her arm became.  
  
"Please Lily, listen to me." He said urgently, if he didn't fix this situation now, he would lose her forever.  
  
"Let me go James, you are hurting me!" She said trying to pull away from him.  
  
James let go but Lily had stepped back too soon and she seemed to lose her balance. James tried to grab her but it was too late.  
  
Sirius was sitting in the common room thinking over the scene he had walked in. Maybe James wasn't lying, everybody knew how relentless Jezebel had been in her pursuit of James, and she was sneaky enough to have found a way to get into the common room and catch James by surprise. If that was what had happened, he hoped that James could bring Lily around and get her to listen to him. They were the perfect couple.  
  
He continued musing when he heard a commotion on the stairs. He looked startled toward the stairs as he heard a yell followed by a shriek from James.  
  
"LILY!"  
  
Sirius quickly ran to the foot of the stairs and stared in horror as he noticed a body lying on the floor. James was running down the stairs and kneeled by Lily.  
  
"Lily please, answer me damn you." James cried, tears running down his cheeks. He turned to look at the horrified Sirius standing still as if he was a statue.  
  
"Sirius, go to the infirmary, get Madam Pomfrey in here." James directed.  
  
"James, what happened?" Sirius whispered.  
  
James tried to move Lily's hair aside and was horrified when he found his fingers covered in blood. "Go Sirius, quickly, get her here." He yelled.  
  
Sirius didn't say anything more and ran out of the room. Above them people were stirring and voices could be heard as doors opened and steps could be heard walking down the stairs. 


	20. Chapter 16

A/N: Don't worry about Lily, you know she will be better soon. Poor James will have to suffer a bit though and you will find out how in this chapter.  
  
Disclaimer: You've read it before.  
  
Chapter 16 ~ Dark Times  
  
  
  
James didn't sleep at all that night. He spent the night walking in front of the infirmary door. Sirius and the others sat on the benches lined up by the wall, snuggled against each other with worried expressions. Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall had been woken up the minute James could send someone to wake them up.  
  
After Sirius had left the common room to get Madam Pomfrey; James had been soon joined by inmates of Gryffindor Tower who had been curious about the commotion they had heard. Needless to say, the Tower was soon filled with worry and shock.  
  
Lily had been taken to the infirmary among tears and gasps. Dumbledore charmed most of the students present in the common room with a strong sleeping spell in order to bring calm to the tower. Only the Marauders and the rest of the Sirens were allowed to accompany the Professors to the hospital wing.  
  
Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey were inside the infirmary with Lily at the moment. Her friends were expectantly waiting for news.  
  
"I cannot believe this is happening!" Exclaimed Emma as she silently sobbed against Remus' chest.  
  
"Don't worry, Lily is young and strong, she will get through this." Remus kissed Emma's head and tried to soothe her fears.  
  
"What is taking them so long? They should have been out by now!" Exclaimed James as he ran his fingers through his hair.  
  
"What do you care, it's all your fault she is in there anyways." Hissed Katie.  
  
"What do you mean by that? I care for her and if you don't know that then you're a bloody idiot."  
  
"Don't you dare talk to her like that." Sirius quickly stood up to stand right in front of James.  
  
"Will you please keep it down? We are in a hospital for Pete's sake." Exclaimed Peter.  
  
"I believe you better take Mr. Pettigrew's advice and do as he asks." A voice said from the door.  
  
The group turned to look at Professor Dumbledore as he stood on the threshold looking at the group with a sad expression.  
  
"It saddens me to see you like this, and it won't help Miss Evans to have her friends at each other's throats when she has the greatest need for them."  
  
"Sorry Professor." They replied.  
  
"Is Lily all right?" Emma asked.  
  
"I'm sorry I can't have any good news for you. Miss Evans is still unconscious at the moment, and until she regains her senses we won't be able to know how hurt she might be. Madam Pomfrey has taken care of her injuries and for the moment all we can do is wait."  
  
"Can we see her?" Asked James.  
  
"I'm sorry James, but it would be better to leave her on her own for now. You better return to your dormitories, we will let you know if her condition changes."  
  
"Very well." James said and the others nodded.  
  
The group silently made its way to the Gryffindor Tower but sleep never came to them.  
  
The next few days were very hard for the Gryffindors. Classes had started once more and the seventh years returned to being piled with loads of class work. But they really didn't care. They had lost one of their own and didn't know how long she would be away from them.  
  
The Quidditch Season was almost over and for once in a long time, Gryffindor wasn't expected to win. Their training sessions left something to be desired and the captain was often seen scanning the faces among the crowd than keeping an eye on the quaffle. Gryffindor House along with Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff understood their abstracted performance but Slytherin couldn't be any happier. For the first time in six years they had become serious contenders for the Quidditch Cup.  
  
Spring had now spread throughout the land, the flowers were blossoming and the weather had become warm and sunny.  
  
On this bright day when most students took advantage of a great spring day, six Gryffindors were sitting indoors by the door to the infirmary as they had done for the last five days.  
  
They were silent and downcast. No more fights had broken among them after that first day. They knew they needed to stay together and lean on each other to get through this rough time.  
  
"Do you think she will be better soon? It has been five days." Exclaimed Emma as she looked around the group with the sad expression that had become a fixture among them.  
  
"I hope so, I thought she would had regained consciousness by now." Said James with panic in his tone.  
  
"I'm sure we will have good news soon, James recovered quite nicely when he got sick, I'm sure Lily is just as strong." Said Remus in his soothing voice. He had become the one with the soothing remark and the rock on which the other leaned on during this dark times.  
  
The group stayed silent trying to hear what was going on in the adjacent room. As on the previous days, Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall had been closeted behind doors with Madam Pomfrey as they waited for Lily to recover from her accident.  
  
Professor Dumbledore had spoken to James about the events of that fateful day. He was saddened by the misconceptions that had lead to such a sad misfortune and hoped that Lily would soon recover without the bitterness and coldness that such an event could lead to. He felt really sorry for James. That young man had been through a lot and had finally found happiness with such a brilliant girl only to lose it in such a way.  
  
The room had been silent the whole day, which wasn't unusual as the room had been silent from the moment she had been brought in. But this time the silence was uncanny and a feeling of expectancy permeated the air. The young group didn't know why it felt so but they knew a momentous event would occur soon.  
  
That same night at dinner, the Gryffindor Table ate in silence as it had become accustomed to since the day Lily had left their ranks. But something happened at the end of dinner that was unusual.  
  
"Will Misters Potter, Black, Lupin and Pettigrew stay behind along with Misses Holmes and Bennett please?" Said Dumbledore as the students had started to file out of the Great Hall.  
  
The aforementioned group looked at each other in consternation and surprise. What had happened?  
  
The students started to file out of the Great Hall, some looking back at the group waiting in the Gryffindor Table. As the last student left the room, Dumbledore slowly stepped down from the Teacher's table and approached the six friends. Their expressions showed fear and consternation, and he smiled in understanding.  
  
"I have news for you. Miss Evans regained consciousness a few moments ago." He said and smiled when the group broke in cheer and laughter. They were hugging each other and the girls started to swipe tears from their eyes. "I was sure you would want to know. I will let you go now to the infirmary."  
  
The group quickly scrambled from their chairs and ran to the door. When they had reached it they heard Dumbledore's voice once more. "Mister Potter, please stay behind."  
  
The group stopped in their tracks, and turned to look back. James was surprised and mystified, what did Dumbledore have to say to him that the others couldn't hear? He nodded to the others and they slowly made their way out of the room.  
  
"I'm sorry James but I have to talk to you about Lily."  
  
"What is it Professor is something wrong?"  
  
"There was a complication."  
  
"Is she all right?"  
  
"Technically she is, but in her accident she damaged part of her spine, Madam Pomfrey cannot repair it. James, Lily will not be able to walk."  
  
"What?"  
  
"It might be only temporary, or it might be permanent, we are not sure. Magic is not working, but muggle technology is advancing and can do things that up to now could only be done with magic. We are sending word to her parents maybe there is something in muggle medicine that can help her. All we can do for now is wait."  
  
"I have to go and see her!"  
  
"There is one more thing James."  
  
James looked very impatient, what more could there be?  
  
"Lily was very emotional and confused when she woke up, we calmed her down but she became very agitated when your name was mentioned, I'm going to have to ask you to keep away from the infirmary while she stays there. We need her to stay calm, we don't want further damage to be done. I know this is hard for you to accept James, but we can't risk it. If she asks for you then you might see her, but not until then. Do I have your promise that you will not go to the infirmary while she recovers?"  
  
"Yes." James grudgingly replied. He couldn't believe this. The most important person in his life was in the hospital and he wouldn't be allowed to see her.  
  
James waited in the common room for the others. His spirits were low as he watched the glowing logs in the fireplace. He was stretched on one of the couches, his arms behind his head. He was now wearing his pajamas. He had gone to change the moment he came into the tower. He didn't want to be questioned by the other inhabitants of the tower who had been nosily waiting in the common room when he had first come in.  
  
Thoughts of his times together with Lily kept running constantly thought his mind. He missed her, and couldn't handle the knowledge that things would never be the same again.  
  
The sound of the portrait opening snapped him out of his thoughts. He saw his friends file in, and go straight to him the moments they saw him.  
  
"What happened James, why didn't you join us?" Said Remus with a look full of confusion.  
  
"Does Lily really mean that little to you? How could you not be there?" Said Katie angrily.  
  
"Do you think I didn't want to be there? I'm not allowed to get near her, how do you think that makes me feel." He screamed back.  
  
"What do you mean you are not allowed to see her?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"Dumbledore said that she had become agitated when my name was mentioned after she woke up. They want her to stay calm during her recovery especially in her condition, they don't want to risk further damage." James sarcastically replied.  
  
"Oh no." Said Emma giving him a hug.  
  
"I want to see her." He whispered in her ear.  
  
"I know you do."  
  
"I'm sorry James, I should've known that you would be there if you could." Said Katie with a commiserating smile.  
  
James smiled at her sadly.  
  
"Come Prongs old boy, you need to rest, you are going to make yourself sick." Said Sirius taking James by the arm and trying to lead him up the stairs.  
  
"No I want to stay here for a moment." James said shrugging Sirius off. "I want to be alone for a while."  
  
The others looked concerned but decided to give him some space. They nodded and slowly made their way to their respective rooms.  
  
James saw them go up the stairs and waited for a while to make sure that everything was quiet. When he thought everybody was in bed and asleep he quietly went to the couch where he had been resting. He lifted the pillows and unearthed a fluid looking cloak. He put the cloak around him. As his body disappeared from sight he walked to the portrait and opened it.  
  
"Who is there?" Asked a sleepy Fat Lady without bothering to open her eyes.  
  
James quietly made his way through the dark corridors and hidden passages of the castle. When he reached the wing that he wanted to go to, he walked straight to the last door of the corridor he was in.  
  
He opened the door and walked into a whitewashed room, beds lining the walls, and white curtains surrounding some of the beds. James walked to one of these beds and stood beside it.  
  
He sighed at the sight of the red headed girl lying on it.  
  
"I miss you. I'm sorry Lily, I really love you. What am I going to do without you?" He whispered. He sat on the bed and lay beside her. He gathered her in his arms and stayed there happy to have her near him once more. After some time he fell asleep.  
  
It was getting light when James opened his eyes. He looked around the room and saw that dawn was near and it would soon be time for breakfast. He scrambled from the bed and quickly covered himself with his cloak, just in time to see Madam Pomfrey enter the room carrying a tray of medicine. Lily slowly opened her eyes from the noise the nurse made while she put the medication in its cabinet.  
  
"Oh I see you are awake, do you want something to eat?" James heard madam Pomfrey say to Lily. James slowly walked toward the door, he had to wait until the right time to open the door and make his escape.  
  
"Yes please, I find myself feeling a little hungry." James saw Lily smile. He felt his stomach sink, how long would it be for him to see Lily smile at him like that?  
  
"Very well, I'll be back soon." Madam Pomfrey slowly walked to the door, James closely behind her. He took advantage of the fact that she left the door wide open and swiftly made his escape.  
  
He silently made his way up to Gryffindor Tower. When he opened the portrait and entered the common room, he wasn't very surprised that it was still empty. Gryffindors were well known to sleep late. He made his way up to the dorms. He noticed that the others were still asleep. He shoved his cloak into his trunk and started getting his things ready to change.  
  
"Whaz zat?" Asked a drowsy Sirius from his curtained bed.  
  
"I'm just getting ready." James responded.  
  
"What time is it?" Asked Remus as he peeked from the corner of his curtains.  
  
"Almost 6:30."  
  
"James, is still early!" Whined Peter.  
  
"Breakfast begins at 7:00 please hurry up."  
  
"Aaargh!" The group moaned.  
  
James was very quiet that morning, but his friends thought it was only natural for him to be subdued especially after what happened the day before. When he stayed silent for the rest of the day, they thought it was the shock of what had happened. But when after three days he continued to act in the same manner they started to get worried.  
  
They didn't know that James had been spending the night in the infirmary for the last three nights. Nor that these nightly visits were giving him a sense of peace and redemption.  
  
On the fourth day, breakfast was a quiet affair. A sense of dread filled the air. Students were eating and talking quietly when the hall was filled with the sound of fluttering wings. Hundreds of owls swooped from the open windows near the ceiling. Students held their breath and waited for their own owl to deliver their mail.  
  
James didn't pay any attention. He kept looking at his plate and eating quietly. He didn't even notice when his own owl Hermes stood in front of him with a letter tied to its leg. Hermes looked at James, hooted and waited to be noticed. It wasn't until Sirius tapped on his shoulder that James noticed Hermes waiting in front of him.  
  
"Oh, sorry Hermes." He stroked the feathers of its chest before taking the letter. He slowly opened the enveloped and opened to look the familiar scrawl of his mother.  
  
He started reading the letter, and his friends saw his face pale and his hands starting to shake. Before they got a chance to ask him what was wrong, Professor McGonagall was standing behind him.  
  
"James, come with me, Dumbledore wants to speak to you."  
  
James stood up in silence, the letter clutched in his hand.  
  
The others turned to look at each other in consternation.  
  
"What do you reckon happened?" Sirius asked. The others shrugged and watched James disappear into the room beside the teacher's table.  
  
James entered the room to find Professor Dumbledore waiting for him. Professor McGonagall closed the door behind her and joined the Headmaster who was sitting in a chair in the center of the room.  
  
"I see that you received a letter." Said Dumbledore looking at the young men in front of him with sadness and pity.  
  
James slowly nodded.  
  
"I'm sorry James. Your father was a great man."  
  
"Why him, why my sister, they didn't do anything to Voldemort." Yelled James.  
  
"I know James, but we don't know what Voldemort wants. Your father might have found something that could be used against him and Voldemort decided to take him out before he did any damage, your sister and her husband just happened to be there."  
  
"They didn't deserve to die."  
  
"No they didn't. But you have to be strong, you are the head of your family now and your mother will depend on you, not to mention your young nieces, you are their guardian now and they will look up to you. Professor McGonagall will take you to the Tower. Pack your things, we will take you to the station as soon as you are ready. Take your time, you will need it to put your father's estate in order. When you are ready let us know and we will bring you back. We will owl you all your assignments and the teachers will send you transcripts of their lessons. If necessary, one of us will visit you to give you your N.W.E.T.s."  
  
"Thank you."  
  
"Take care of yourself James."  
  
James nodded and followed Professor McGonagall out of the room. Dumbledore sighed and sorrow filled his countenance.  
  
"I had prayed that the signs were wrong Aliaster. But you gave James a great example, he will do fine, you will see, he will do fine." He whispered.  
  
James packed his trunk in silence. His invisibility robe, a gift from his father's when he got into Hogwarts. His signet ring his father had given him at Christmas. Family pictures, holidays, his sister's wedding, his nieces' birth. James was really going to miss them.  
  
"I should've been there." He whispered as he saw a picture of his family. His parents were waving as his sister sat beside her husband smiling at each other and then turning to smile at the others. James stood beside his sister with two bundles in his arms. Tiny fists peeking through the blankets.  
  
"Oh master James. This is a sad day Master James." Wailed Minnie as she helped with the packing.  
  
"I know Minnie." James returned the pictures into the trunk and waited for Minnie to finish with the rest of the packing.  
  
James waited in silence, watching Minnie running from one side of the room to another gathering all his things and getting them ready to pack.  
  
Half an hour later, Professor McGonagall knocked on the door.  
  
"Are you ready James?" She asked opening the door wide enough to slid her head in and look for James.  
  
"I'm ready." He said.  
  
"Very well. Let's go."  
  
James took Minnie's hand and slowly the trio made their way down the corridors of the castle. As they stepped out of the front door, James saw a horseless carriage waiting for him.  
  
The short ride to the train was silent.  
  
James' things were taken into the train. Professor McGonagall took a deep breath and looked into James' eyes.  
  
"Take care of yourself James. You are one of the best students I've had the pleasure to teach. Please don't forget what you have learned here." She hugged him tight. Tears slowly ran down her cheek.  
  
"Bye Professor, I will see you soon." James said.  
  
A lone figure stood in the platform watching Hogwarts Express as it slowly disappeared out of sight.  
  
  
  
A/N: I had forgotten how sad this chapter was, I couldn't help but cry a bit as I was rereading and editing this chapter. : ( 


	21. Chapter 17

A/ N: Here you are, one more chapter for your enjoyment. I hope your tears have dried from the previous chapter and are ready now to read this one. I think there are three of four more chapters and the Seventh Year is done, don't worry, the story doesn't end there, you will see these character for much longer, I expect this story to be quite long.  
  
Disclaimer: See previous pages, I don't want to write it anymore.  
  
Chapter 17 ~ Road to Recovery  
  
  
  
Lily sadly looked around the room. She was bored and lonely. She knew that her friends were in class and wouldn't come to see her until much later, but she didn't even have a book to keep herself entertained.  
  
She wondered what James was doing, why hadn't he come to see her? She asked herself. Maybe he really didn't care for her. She had hoped that she had been mistaken and that James was really telling the truth and cared for her. But she had been awake in the infirmary for three whole days and he still hadn't made his appearance.  
  
She didn't want to ask the others about him. She didn't want to look as if she was desperate for his presence. But she had noticed that the others didn't mention him either. Has he taken up with Jezebel? Are they a couple now? Is that why the others don't say anything about him?  
  
Lily hated being bedridden. Not being able to move around, go to class, take care of her duties. Know what was going on.  
  
She wanted to be among the midst of things. She what was happening around the school. See James.  
  
She eagerly looked toward the door when she heard it open. She felt disappointment when she saw Dumbledore enter the room. But smiled at the kindly Headmaster.  
  
"Hello Miss Evans, feeling better I hope." He said with a smile.  
  
"Much better thank you." She responded. "Good. Your parents have been informed. The train has been dispatched to London, an agent from the Ministry will meet them at King Cross Station and perform a temporary charm to allow them to cross the barrier. They should be here by the end of the day."  
  
"Thank you. Have you told them yet? That I can't walk." She hesitantly asked.  
  
"They know. But not the details of your accident, if you want to disclose it to them it is your choice."  
  
Lily quietly nodded.  
  
"You better rest, students will be out of class in an hour and your friends will soon be here."  
  
Lily smiled and watched as Dumbledore walked out of the room. Will James come this time?  
  
An hour later Lily smiled as she saw the group of five marching into the room.  
  
"How are you feeling?" Asked Emma as she sat on the bed next to Lily.  
  
"Much better. My parents are arriving this evening."  
  
"Oh jolly good, how are they getting here?" Peter wanted to know. He stood at the foot of the bed looking at the nice arrangement of lilies and ferns, it had a note attached to it with a 'Get well soon' but it didn't have a name.  
  
"Hogwarts Express." Replied Lily.  
  
"How are they getting through the barrier?" Asked Remus in confusion.  
  
"A Ministry agent will perform a charm to let them cross it."  
  
"Hmmm.I didn't know that could be done." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Neither could I but it seems that they can do so." Said Lily.  
  
"Well I got to tell James about this he might know, his father works in the Ministry after all." Said Sirius.  
  
An awkward silence followed this comment. The others turned to glare at him and Lily looked at him with surprise. Sirius cleared his throat and continued as if nothing had happened.  
  
"Do you know if Dumbledore will give them special rooms, I expect he will. Maybe they will move you to their quarters as well."  
  
"Where is he?" Lily silently asked.  
  
The group turned startled looks on each other. What could they tell her?  
  
"We don't know, Dumbledore spoke to him this morning and he hasn't turned up to class or lunch." Said Remus.  
  
"Why hasn't he been here?"  
  
"Don't you know?" Asked Sirius. Lily shook her head.  
  
"Lily, he was told not to come, that it would agitate you and they couldn't risk further damage." Said Katie.  
  
"He has an invisibility cloak, he could've sneaked in." Lily said.  
  
"Maybe he hasn't thought about it, he has been too quiet lately." Mused Emma.  
  
"Maybe he has done so, and we haven't noticed. He would be invisible after all." Said Sirius.  
  
Lily shrugged. "If he hasn't come yet and tried to talk to me then he obviously doesn't care. Let's talk about something else."  
  
The others looked at each other, a silent message passing among them. They will give James a good talking to this evening.  
  
They talked for a while until they noticed Lily falling asleep, they quickly said goodbye and left her get some rest.  
  
"We really need to talk to James, he needs to come and see her." Exclaimed Katie.  
  
"I wonder what happened this morning. It's not like him to miss a whole day of lessons." Said Remus in a worried tone.  
  
"We'll find out soon enough. Let's go to the Tower, see if he is there." Said Sirius.  
  
After two hours of looking all over the castle and not finding him they slowly marched into the Great Hall.  
  
"Where could he possibly be?" Asked Peter in exasperation.  
  
"He has to be here for dinner, there is no way he could keep going without food." Said Sirius.  
  
The Hall quickly filled with students looking for dinner. When everybody was sitting Dumbledore stood up and waited for the Hall to fall silent and turned to listen to him. The Gryffindors quickly noticed that James wasn't present.  
  
"Thank you." Dumbledore said as the Hall finally quieted. "As some of you have noticed one of our students is not among us this evening. James Potter received distressing news this morning. Last night his father attended a party with his daughter and her husband. There was an attack and everybody present was killed. James has gone home to settle his father's estate. Let's all pray for those who were lost and hope that his family gets through this dark times. If you want to write to him, you are encouraged to do so. Now, because of special circumstances, we find ourselves with no Head Students. New Head Students will be chosen and I will name them tomorrow morning. Now, bon appetite."  
  
Students sat in shock after the news that they just received. Especially a small group at the end of the Gryffindor Table.  
  
The Gryffindor Table was quite subdued the next morning. Now two of their members were gone and nobody knew if they would ever be back.  
  
Several owls were sent that morning to an estate in Sussex with letters and flowers. Owls also arrived with the Daily Prophet and students eagerly read the news of the tragic event.  
  
Terror at the Ministry of Italy  
  
Last Sunday was the annual Ministry Convention hosted this year by the Italian Ministry of Magic. 16,000 representatives of Ministries around the world were present along with our own representative Aliaster Potter, advisor to Britain's Minister of Magic, who was accompanied by his daughter Lady Elizabeth Perioni and her husband Count Giovanni Perioni. The gala started with a sumptuous dinner followed by a dance. It was during the second dance of the evening when the unexpected happen.  
  
A cloaked group of wizards apparated in the middle of the ball room wands in hand. It was too late for the enforcement unit, they were the first to be killed. It was a matter of minutes until all those present were killed.  
  
According to Ministry reports, all the exits of the building had been blocked by a spell. The guests were trapped with no way to turn.  
  
The Italian Ministry has been crippled, not only did it lost it's enforcement unit but 100 members, including the Minister himself. Ministries from all over the world have sent their own enforcement units to help in the investigation. Our own Mr. Bartamus Crouch, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, will travel to Italy early next Wednesday to lead his group of Aurors.  
  
It is believed that the attack was headed by the new menace, Lord Voldemort. The familiar mark signaling his attacks floated above the ruined building.  
  
The article was read by all the students. Including the closed knit group sitting at one end of the table.  
  
"Poor James. Do you think he will return?" Asked Katie with tears sliding down her face.  
  
"I don't know. He needs to take care of things at home, I imagine his mother will be devastated but maybe the presence of the twins she will feel better." Said Remus in a monotonous tone.  
  
"Do you think we should tell Lily." Asked Emma with a worried expression.  
  
"I don't know if it would be a good idea. She is depressed now, I don't think these news would do her any good." Said Peter.  
  
"But she would like to know." Urged Katie.  
  
"Maybe we should discuss it with Professor Dumbledore. Lily will leave Hogwarts soon as well to get treatment and she won't be exposed to news of the magical world." Replied Sirius.  
  
"But the muggles must have noticed. A building doesn't collapse on it's own." Exclaimed Emma.  
  
"Father wrote that the muggles were made to believe that an undetected leak in the gas was the culprit." Said Remus.  
  
"How can that create such devastation?" Asked Katie.  
  
"Don't ask me, I don't know anything about muggle gas." Remus retorted.  
  
"We are getting agitated, let's settle down and think of what we can do to help James and Lily. Both need us right now." Said Emma.  
  
"Sorry." The group replied.  
  
As students stumbled out of the Hall walking toward their respective classes, a small group met around a bed in the hospital wing.  
  
"Hello Daddy." Said Lily as she opened her eyes to find her father leaning over her.  
  
"Hello Princess." He said with a choked voice.  
  
"Where is mum?"  
  
"I'm here Hun. How are you feeling?" A voice said from the foot of the bed.  
  
Lily turned her head and smiled when she saw her mother standing by her father.  
  
"Much better."  
  
"That's good. You must rest now. We will be with Dumbledore. Yell if you need us." Said Mr. Evans after he kissed Lily's forehead.  
  
Lily nodded and turned to kiss her mother's cheek when she approached the bed.  
  
Lily was soon asleep and the Evans were led to a small office at one end of the infirmary.  
  
"Come in Mr. Evans, Mrs. Evans." Said a gray haired man with long beard from behind a large desk. Mr. Evans and Mrs. Evans reluctantly entered the room and took two seats in front of the old man. Who was he they asked themselves.  
  
"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts." The old man said with a kind smile.  
  
"It is a pleasure to finally meet you sir, our daughter speaks highly of you." Said Mr. Evans as he shook Dumbledore's hand.  
  
"I'm pleased to finally meet you as well, it has been a pleasure having your daughter here with us." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"She has enjoyed her time here." Mrs. Evans replied.  
  
"We are very sorry for what has happened to Lily. But her circumstances are quite special." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"What did happen?" Mr. Evans asked.  
  
"The details of the accident are unknown to us. We have not asked Lily for fear that it would agitate her and further damage is done."  
  
The Evans nodded their understanding. Dumbledore continued.  
  
"What we do know is that Lily fell from the stairs causing some damage to her spinal cord. Bruises and bleeding was quickly repaired but we are afraid that magic cannot help with the damaged caused. According to Madam Pomfrey, our school nurse, damage to the muscle caused some indentation to the bones surrounding the cord. The brain cannot receive the impulses her nervous system sends. We thought that muggle technology could be more helpful to her than magic can. Magic can only relieve some of the swelling but not all without causing further damage. We could try St. Mungos magical Hospital in London, their healing charms are more advanced than those available here and some are still in experimental basis but I thought that you should make that decision."  
  
"Would this magical hospital be able to help her?" Asked Mrs. Evans.  
  
"I'm not sure, they would need to do further exams and review with the board on the different ways to help her. You can try a muggle hospital if you feel more comfortable. As I said, it is your decision."  
  
"How long do we have to make this decision?" Mr. Evans queried.  
  
"You can take your time, but I think that Lily wouldn't like to stay in bed much longer." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"You are right, she wouldn't." Smiled Mr. Evans. "We will think on it, we shall give you our decision by tomorrow."  
  
Dumbledore nodded and watched as the couple returned to the infirmary to join their daughter.  
  
The Evans spent the whole day in the infirmary. They were joined later that evening by Sirius and the others.  
  
"How have you young people been?" Asked Mr. Evans after all the greetings were over.  
  
"Oh, we've been better." Said Katie with a sad smile.  
  
"Where is James? I haven't seen him since I got here." Said Mr. Evans with a wary look.  
  
The others turned to look nervously at each other. Lily quickly responded.  
  
"He has to take care of some things Daddy."  
  
"Hmph, fine thing to do. He should be here with you." He snorted.  
  
"Well, he isn't in the school Mr. Evans, he had to go home for a while." Said Peter cowering behind Sirius. Mr. Evans really scared him.  
  
"What has he done to be sent home?" Asked Mr. Evans with a lift of his eyebrows.  
  
"Especial circumstances." Said Sirius.  
  
"Oh really?"  
  
The young people nodded. They turned to look at Lily who was looking at them with worry and confusion. The girls quickly sat on the bed and started gossiping about everything that had happened in school that day while the boys quietly motioned the Evans to follow them out of the room.  
  
The Evans were intrigued, what had happened?  
  
The corridor was empty and silent. There were benches lined up against the wall. Remus motioned the Evans to sit, as soon as they had done so, the boys sat.  
  
"I'm sorry we couldn't give you any details, but Lily doesn't know you see, and we don't think it would do her any good to worry." Said Remus.  
  
"What is wrong? What is it that Lily doesn't know?" Asked Mrs. Evans.  
  
"James' dad and sister were killed two nights ago. He was sent home to take care of his father's estate." Said Sirius.  
  
"Oh no! Poor Susan." Gasped Mrs. Evans.  
  
Mr. Evans frowned. "Do you know how it happened?"  
  
The boys nodded. Sirius continued.  
  
"There was a Convention for the Ministry in Italy. Mr. Potter was sent as the representative for the Minister. Elizabeth and her husband live in Italy so they went along with him to the party. There was an attack and everybody was killed. James received the news from his mother yesterday morning. By the time we were done with classes he was already gone. We didn't find out until Dumbledore told us before dinner."  
  
"Oh dear! Do you think we should tell Lily?" Mrs. Evans asked turning to her husband.  
  
"The boys are right. We cannot tell her, she will get agitated and we cannot risk further damage. We are going to have to keep her in the dark. At least until we know for sure what will happen to her. There is nothing that she can do now. Susan will take care of her family, she is a strong woman." Replied Mr. Evans.  
  
"Oh and to think that we saw Aliaster just four days ago. He was so excited that he would see his daughter." Sighed Mrs. Evans. Silent tears started to fall from her eyes.  
  
"He was a great man." Said Mr. Evans putting his arms around his wife, trying to comfort her.  
  
Inside the room, Lily let her friends talk, but a thousand questions invaded her mind. What had happened? Why did James go home? Why did her friends trying to prevent her from knowing?  
  
Emma was in the midst of her tale about an explosion during Potions class in which several Slytherins ended up falling asleep when Lily decided that it was enough. She wanted to know what had happened to James.  
  
"Where is James?" She blurted out.  
  
Katie and Emma looked at her with surprise. Then a mask seemed to settle on their faces, closing their feelings to her.  
  
"Oh, you heard Peter, he had to go home for a while." Said Katie with a wave of the hand.  
  
"Why?" Lily asked.  
  
"Why?" The girls asked.  
  
"Yes, why? Did he do something to get himself sent home?"  
  
"Oh no, he has been quite saintly, quite boring really." Said Emma.  
  
"Then why?"  
  
The girls looked at each other, finally Emma shrugged and Katie responded.  
  
"Family trouble."  
  
"What kind of family trouble?"  
  
"Oh you know, the usual kind of trouble family gives you."  
  
"What happened?"  
  
"One of the member of his family fell sick and they fear for his life." Emma blurted out. It was the best excuse she could come out with that would satisfy Lily.  
  
"Which one?"  
  
"Which one what?"  
  
"Which family member got sick. Honestly you two don't seem to be paying attention." Lily snapped.  
  
"Well, we don't know. He received an owl during breakfast and Dumbledore wanted to see him and by the time we were out of class he was already gone." Said Emma.  
  
"Hmmm.are you sure you aren't trying to give him an excuse for not coming to see me?"  
  
"We swear. He is really gone home. We don't know if he will return at all. The Professors are sending him lessons and the assignments. He will have to finish the year doing home study." Said Katie.  
  
"Poor James. It must have been somebody very close to him to be sent home." Said Lily.  
  
"Yes, somebody very close." Replied Emma.  
  
Lily closed her eyes while Katie and Emma looked at each other with a sigh of relief. They had to make sure they told the boys what they had said so that Lily wouldn't get suspicious.  
  
Some minutes later they heard the door open. Lily had fallen asleep, the potion Madam Pomfrey was giving her to repair muscle damage made her sleepy.  
  
The girls quietly tiptoed to the group coming into the room and motioned them to keep silent. Among hurried whispers they told the others what had happened while they had been gone.  
  
Lily slept peacefully without knowing that she had been lied to. And without the knowledge that in a large estate in the country, a young man was looking across a lake thinking of her.  
  
The Evans had decided to give St. Mungos a try. If magic medicine could not help Lily, then they planned to look for the best specialist in the field among muggle London. Thus it was that one week after Hogwarts Express took James to London and brought back the Evans, it was now returning to London with Lily and her parents.  
  
Unlike the scene a week ago in which only Professor McGonagall had stood on the platform waving James goodbye, now a small group of students waved and waited until the train was out of sight.  
  
Lily settled back on the seat. Her legs were covered with warm blankets as she peered out the window looking at the scenery. The witch that always served the candy was attentively bringing refreshments for Lily and her parents.  
  
"This is a nice train. Seems a bit odd though." Said Mr. Evans.  
  
"How so?" Asked Mrs. Evans. Lily turned to listen to their conversation.  
  
"Well I expected something different. I don't know flying carpets maybe, the horseless carriages seem more like it."  
  
Lily laughed. "That would be scary wouldn't it daddy. Imagine looking out your window and watching hundreds of horseless carriages passing in front of the house."  
  
"Yes I can see what you mean." Said Mr. Evans with a smile. He had missed his Princess' smile. "What about those flying carpets then?"  
  
"They are against the law Daddy. Muggle objects cannot be tampered with magic. Just in case they fall into muggle hands you understand."  
  
"Yes, I see. Boy, magic is not as easy as I thought." Said Mr. Evans.  
  
"No it isn't."  
  
The train continued on its way. Lily fell asleep, soothed by the rhythmic movement of the train.  
  
The Evans kept guard on their daughter for the whole ride. Why did it have to be their Lily who had to go through this calamity? They were also planning to send a note to Susan Potter.  
  
"Poor Susan. How do you think she is doing?" Mrs. Evans asked as the train swiftly entered into London.  
  
"She is doing fine. She has her son with her now. They will get strength from each other." Replied her husband putting her arms around her.  
  
"When do you think we should tell Lily about it?"  
  
"As soon as she has gotten through this. She has enough to worry about, she doesn't need further worries. You will see, soon enough she will be running and dancing, just as she used to do."  
  
"Oh I hope so."  
  
"Don't worry, our daughter is strong."  
  
They watched the city pass by the window in each other's arms. They would get the best that money could buy for their daughter and she will walk again. It was a promise they meant to keep. 


	22. Chapter 18

A/N: Sorry it took too long, but circumstances haven't allowed me to get this done as often as I would like. Now the next three chapters are the last ones of Part I of my story. Seventh Year is over and a new part begins, I hope you have liked it so far and that you continue with the rest of the story. : )  
  
Chapter 18 ~ Seventh Year Memories  
  
James stood on his bedchamber looking out the windows. His mother had moved from the master's chamber into a smaller room. She said the room held too many memories she could not deal with at the moment. James was now master of all that had belonged to his father. Including his sleeping quarters.  
  
James felt a bit strange to move into his parent's room but his mother had insisted and he didn't want to be difficult with her. His small nieces had just arrived from Italy under the care of their nursemaid, whose care they had been under since the tragedy.  
  
At the moment Lotty, his father's personal elf now serving as his own, was putting the finishing touches to the room.  
  
"Lotty is done Master James, is there something else?" The elf asked as soon as he returned from the dressing room after putting all the clothes in order.  
  
"Nothing Lotty. I will take breakfast downstairs. Do you mind asking Minnie if Mother will join me?"  
  
"Of course Master James."  
  
James continued looking out the window. The panoramic scene covered half of his estate. Gryffindor Manor was a large house, stately and old. It had been build centuries ago and modernized very often according to the whims of the present master. It was hard for James to think of it as his. He had known that eventually he would inherit it, but he had hoped that he would do so later in life, not so soon.  
  
He heard a racket coming from the servants' stairs. A scolding voice and high pitch giggles. James smiled, the twins certainly had brought new life to the silent house.  
  
The door burst open and two small girls run into the room.  
  
"Uncle James."  
  
"Uncle James."  
  
"What is it Cassie, Francie, is there a ghoul after you?" He exclaimed in mock horror.  
  
The girls giggled. "No Uncle James." "You are silly." They said.  
  
"What is it then?" He asked kneeling in front of them.  
  
"Look."  
  
"We found it."  
  
"In the garden."  
  
"Near the pond."  
  
The girls usually finished each other sentences. Some people found it confusing, others thought of it as charming. But their family didn't even think about it.  
  
"Let's see what you have got there." James said looking at a tiny bundle held in Francie's hands.  
  
He peeled the cloth surrounding whatever creature they had found. The girls stood quiet, holding their breath so as not to scare it. When the cloth had been peeled a tiny furry creature was exposed.  
  
"What is it?"  
  
"Uncle James."  
  
"It's a baby rabbit. Was it alone?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"We looked for his friends."  
  
"We didn't find them."  
  
"Can we keep him?"  
  
"Please Uncle James."  
  
The girls looked at him with their blue eyes trustingly and wide open. James loved the girls and couldn't help but want to keep them happy. He knew he was going to spoil them.  
  
"Well, what does your nurse say about that?" He asked, he didn't want to seem too forthcoming. The little devils would take advantage of him.  
  
The girls turned to look at the small woman standing by the open door.  
  
"I'm sorry Master James, the girls escaped from me and I couldn't catch them."  
  
"Don't worry Mrs. Manning. I know how slippery these two can be. But what do you think, should they keep the rabbit?"  
  
"I don't know Master James, a pet is a big responsibility. It has to be fed and washed and taken care of. Do you think the girls could handle it?"  
  
The girls were looking in horror at the two adults.  
  
"Oh please Uncle James."  
  
"We will take care of him."  
  
"Please."  
  
"Pretty please."  
  
James looked at the small girls. A smile tugging at his lips. They were the exact replica of his sister. They had Elizabeth's black curls, her bright blue eyes and her bubbling personality. From their father they inherited his tanned skin color and his curiosity of all human life.  
  
"Very well, you can keep him. But you are in charge of it. I don't want to see nurse looking after it for you because you didn't bother t do so." He said shaking his finger at them.  
  
The girls brightened and hugged James by the legs.  
  
"Yay Uncle James."  
  
"We will take care of it."  
  
James laughed and hugged them back.  
  
"Well now you rapscallions. Let's go to breakfast, or have you eaten already?"  
  
"We had bread with Jam."  
  
"But we can keep you company."  
  
They looked up to him with their bright eyes and James felt his heart do a summersault in his chest. He really missed his sister. But she had left him the most precious gifts she could ever leave him and he would take care of them and make his sister proud. "Let's go then."  
  
The odd looking trio slowly made its way to the family dinning room. **** That same morning, Lily sat on a chair by the window. Her legs wrapped in blankets and an empty tray of food on a small table beside her.  
  
She hated having to look at life pass her by. Sitting on a chair and not being able to do all the things she liked.  
  
Hogwarts had been sending owls everyday with the lessons and assignments and she sent all her work back. She also received letters from her friends with the latest news of Hogwarts. She knew that because there had been no seventh year prefects Tobias Wood, Gryffindor Quidditch acting Captain and keeper, along with Evelyn O'Connel from Ravenclaw had been chosen Head Boy and Girl for the remainder of the year. She had received letters from both of them asking for her help and any input she might have for the plans that had been previously made for the upcoming events, especially the Seventh Year Ball. She knew that they had also contacted James on the subject and that he had kept in contact with them for the last couple of weeks. James. That's a name that she hadn't forgotten. It brought a wave of bittersweet memories and hopes. He hadn't written to her. But she held the hope that one day he would.  
  
She had the feeling that people knew more about his situation than what she had been told. What could've happened?  
  
The sound of her parents' car being brought forward snapped her out of her brooding. Her father would soon be coming for her. She was going to St. Mungos this morning, just as she had done several times for the last couple of weeks. Examinations, tests, she was bored of them but she knew she had to go through them. But at least today it would be different. She was going to start a new treatment today. Her bags were packed and she was ready to get rid off this chair that made her feel trapped and lifeless.  
  
"So the Little Princess is leaving home once more." A mocking voice said from the door.  
  
Lily turned to look at her sister's leering face. Petunia had not been very happy when she saw Lily back. Especially after she was informed of Lily's injury and especial treatment that she would require while she was home. In her point of view, Lily already received special treatment. Their parents had hired a personal maid for Lily, to help her with whatever needs she had. Petunia was not too happy about it.  
  
"I'm leaving for just a couple of days." Lily quietly said. She was hurt at Petunia's behavior. She had always felt dislike from Petunia but on the last years her dislike only seem to grow. Lily couldn't understand why.  
  
"Not enough." Petunia snapped. "At least you will not be here when Vernon brings her sister to visit. I don't want Marge to have a look at you."  
  
"I'm sure you will enjoy her visit."  
  
"Now that you will be gone, yes I will."  
  
Silence filled the room. Lily didn't want to talk to her sister anymore, she would leave the room if she could, but she had no choice but to stay put.  
  
"Ah, saying goodbye to Lily are you Petunia. Don't worry, she will be back enough and walking this time, I wager." Said Mr. Evans entering the room in high spirits.  
  
Lily smiled, glad that she didn't have to be alone with Petunia once more.  
  
"Ready Princess?" At Lily's nod, Mr. Evans gathered her in his arms and left the room behind. "How do you feel?"  
  
"I'm fine Daddy."  
  
Mrs. Evans was waiting for them at the bottom of the staircase.  
  
"Oh good, we need to leave soon if we want to make it on time. Isn't this exciting Lily? Who would've thought that there were specialists of muggle training in a magical hospital?"  
  
"He seems nice." Said Lily, she knew her parents liked the doctor who was treating her.  
  
"Oh he seems superb." Exclaimed Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Careful Mum, you are going to make Daddy jealous." Lily giggled.  
  
Her father laughed. "I'm in constant terror that your mother will leave me for this handsome young doctor." He teased winking at his wife.  
  
"Oh you." Mrs. Evans exclaimed with a laugh.  
  
It didn't take long to reach the hospital. Lily passed a fun trip listening to her parents tease each other. She was happy that they were in good spirits. From the moment they left Hogwarts the Evans had been worried and the atmosphere at home had been cheerless. Things were going back to normal, she thought, and if things went right, by this time next week she would be back home and ready to walk.  
  
Lily was very surprised when she met the doctor for the first time last week. When they had first arrived at St. Mungos, she had been tested and examined by a variety of doctors. They had almost given up hope and had started to make plans to look among muggle hospitals for a specialist in the field. On the day they had decided to tell the administration that they wouldn't be coming back, they had been introduced to a new doctor. He was in his mid thirties, blond hair, gray eyes, almost as tall as Mr. Evans who at his 6'5" towered over many men. Lily and Mrs. Evans had been enchanted by his manners and charming personality. Mr. Evans was very suspicious and wary of his skill. What kind of doctor would be that charming? But when they were told of his training they had been very impressed.  
  
Mr. Darcy was muggle born, after graduation from Hogwarts he had gone into training in magical medicine. After he completed his training he had decided to continue studying medicine, but he had nothing else to learn from the magical world. With the help of the Ministry of Magic, he was accepted in Oxford University where he completed his medical degree. At his return to the magical world he decided to put his knowledge into practice, as a result of his combined efforts he had developed treatment for maladies that had been too tricky to treat with magic and where only muggle medicine could help.  
  
During all the time Lily had been examined and tested, he had been studying her case and had finally found a way to help her. The Evans were excited, they hadn't been aware that Muggle knowledge could have been combined with magical skill. But they didn't care what way it was done as long as Lily would be able to walk once more.  
  
This morning, Dr. Darcy was waiting for them near the entrance to the hospital. Because the Evans were muggles a special charm had to be performed every time they neared the hospital in order for them to enter. They had become used to it, and Mr. Evans thought of it as an adventure that allowed him to learn more about the world his daughter belonged to.  
  
The car stopped in front of an old, broken down building. It looked near collapse and full of trash.  
  
"Ah, there is my favorite patient. How are you doing this morning Lily?" Said Dr. Darcy with a smile as he neared the car pushing a wheel chair.  
  
"I'm doing good." She answered with a smile. She definitely had gotten a soft spot for Dr. Darcy.  
  
"Excellent. What about you my dear Mrs. Evans, you are looking more beautiful than ever." He winked.  
  
Mrs. Evans giggled. "Really Doctor, if I was some years younger I would throw my hat your way."  
  
"If you were some years younger my dear, I would've let you go. You are making me jealous Doctor." Laughed Mr. Evans, he didn't seem to mind the flirtatious nature of the young medic.  
  
Doctor Darcy laughed and shook his head. The small group walked toward the door. White washed walls. Pristine floors. Nurses and doctors walking from one place to another. All this and more met their eyes. The Evans had become accustomed at the hectic pace the hospital seemed to run. They had become well known to the staff, and as they passed, they were greeted by all.  
  
"Good luck Lily." One nurse said.  
  
"Hello Lily." A medic called.  
  
"You are looking wonderful Lily."  
  
"You seemed to have acquired quite a following. I hope your boyfriend treats you kind otherwise someone will steal you away." Tease Dr. Darcy.  
  
Lily and her parents laughed, but she was still hurt to think that James had not written, not even to ask how she was doing. But she wasn't going to think about it, she wanted to be happy about finally being treated and be able to walk.  
  
Dr. Darcy led the Evans to a room reserved for Lily. Flowers adorned the tables around the white washed walls. The linen on the bed had been turned down and made ready for Lily.  
  
"As you can see, the room is all ready for you." Said Dr. Darcy once they had settled in the room.  
  
"Thank you doctor. When will she be prepared for the treatment?" Mr. Evans asked. Now that they were here he was getting nervous about this, so many thing could go wrong.  
  
"She will go into surgery tomorrow morning. So make sure you get enough sleep Lily, I don't want you worrying about anything." Said Dr. Darcy looking seriously at Lily.  
  
"I will. Don't worry doctor." Lily said with a smile. She was getting worried as well.  
  
"How does the procedure work Doctor?" Mrs. Evans asked what was in everyone's mind.  
  
"It's a fairly easy procedure. We will use a sleeping charm on Lily, also a numbing spell, that way she won't feel a thing. Once she is in the operating room she will be face down on the table, we have designed a special table for her to be comfortable. We will open up the affected area and work on the damaged bones and cartilage. Unlike muggle medicine, we won't use any equipment other than our wands. Old Ollivanders has made special wands for us for more dexterity and easily handling while operating."  
  
"Will it be safe?" Asked Mr. Evans.  
  
"More safer than the muggle version I wager, there is no need to worry about germs and such." Said Dr. Darcy with a smile.  
  
"That's good to know." Sighed Mrs. Evans in relief.  
  
"How long will it be doctor until we know if the procedure was a success?" Mr. Evans looked at his daughter. It saddened to see her like this, he couldn't handle the fact that his athletic daughter was now trapped in a wheel chair.  
  
"I'm not sure how long it will be, but the sooner we get some response the sooner we can begin a strict physical therapy program and get her muscles strong enough to handle her weight once more."  
  
"Oh this is so exciting!" Exclaimed Mrs. Evans hugging Lily.  
  
Dr. Darcy laughed. "Well get some sleep Lily, we will begin at 7 tomorrow morning." And he left the room.  
  
"I'm nervous." Said Lily in a shaky voice.  
  
"Don't worry Princess, everything will be fine." Said Mr. Evans kissing her cheek.  
  
"We will be here if you need us." Responded Mrs. Evans. Lily smiled and soon after she was sleeping soundly. **** In a sunny parlor room, Mrs. Susan Potter was reading an owl she had just received from a friend. She soon looked up when she heard the footsteps of her son followed by tiny running steps. She smiled. She was glad to have her remaining family with her.  
  
"Hello mother, how was your day?" James said as soon as he entered the room. He leaned to kiss her cheek before turning to get hold of the twins who had entered the room at great speed and were in danger of running into a piece of furniture and hurt themselves.  
  
Mrs. Potter smiled at the site of her son with her granddaughters. He had grown up so much since he returned from Hogwarts. Taking up after his father was hard for him, she knew that, but he had been doing so well. The tenants of the estate had readily accepted him and he had gained their respect in a really short time. He had begun calling her mother instead of mum, she knew it made him feel more grown up and she didn't begrudge him that. He could call her however he liked.  
  
He was so good with the twins as well. He had been their favorite uncle before, now they simply adored him. Elizabeth did good in naming him guardian of the girls, she thought. The only thing that saddened her was the lack of spirits he had shown. She knew that something had happened with Lily. She had seen James reading notes from everybody at Hogwarts, except Lily. What had happened?  
  
He had begun spending the afternoon taking long walks. She didn't know what he had been doing, but she readily remembered the talk she had with the Head Gardener the day before.  
  
"He has a garden Mistress." He had said.  
  
"A garden? Which garden?" She had asked.  
  
"The one that is surrounded, you remember, the one with the key."  
  
"What is he doing there?"  
  
"We don't know Madam. He asked for a blocking charm to be put around it so that nobody could apparate inside and asked for only one key to be made and that's the one he carries."  
  
"I wonder what he is up to."  
  
"Do you want us to keep an eye on him?"  
  
"No that's all right, perhaps all he needs is a little solitude."  
  
"Very well Madam. Do you need anything else?"  
  
"No Walton, that is all, you can return to your duties now."  
  
The gardener had bowed and left the room soon after.  
  
Looking now at her son she wondered once more about that garden. What is he doing in there? And why put a blocking charm around it? What was the big secret about that garden? She knew she would not ask him about it. If he wanted to keep it locked so be it.  
  
A servant had come in with a tray of tea and biscuits. The girls squealed. They knew that cook would place some cookies specially made for them. Mrs. Potter was afraid that the girls would become quite spoiled.  
  
"Cookies."  
  
"Cookies."  
  
They squealed.  
  
"Settle down Francesca, Cassandra, I will tell cook not to make any more cookies if you don't comport yourselves." Said James in a stern voice. But he ruined the effect as he smiled soon after.  
  
The girls listened to him, however, and sat in the couch next to their grandmother, waiting patiently to be served.  
  
Mrs. Potter smiled. Perhaps they wouldn't be spoiled after all.  
  
"How was your day James? It seems that you were kept busy with these two." She said.  
  
"We went for a ride. We had to take the horses, I wanted to check on the tenants at the south of the estate. I took them up with me. Mrs. Manning needed a break. These two can be a handful sometimes." James said with a smile.  
  
"Yes I can see that." She said smiling indulgently as she watched her granddaughters eating their cookies and sipping their milk. "How is school work?" She said turning back to him.  
  
"Coming along. I had another owl from Tobias today. It seemed that the seeker was injured on the last game and he wanted some advise on the candidates for the position."  
  
"Oh? And do you have some comments on them."  
  
"Assuredly. Most of them tried out for me before."  
  
"When are you planning to go back to Hogwarts?" She asked. Even though she wanted to keep him beside her, she knew that it would be best if he went back to school and be with his friends. He needed to get into the midst of things and get his mind off his troubles. He needed Quidditch. But most importantly, he needed Lily.  
  
James shrugged. "I don't know. I could finish by home study, there is still a lot of things to do here that I can't drop and let them wait for me to be done with school."  
  
"There are only five weeks left for school to be done. Things can wait for a while. Sanders could take care of things while you are away, he is a good manager, your father had great confidence in him. If something arises, he could owl you and let you know."  
  
"I don't know mother, let me think on it."  
  
Mrs. Potter dropped the subject, but she planned on writing some letters. Maybe his friends could have more success than she did. Maybe if she wrote to Lily? She hadn't been in contact with Rose for a while, maybe it was time for her to contact her again.  
  
Mrs. Potter sipped her tea, watching her son teasing the small girls. The room was filled with their laughter and high spirits. It was time for them to go on with their lives. Aliaster and Elizabeth would've wanted it that way. ****  
  
Next day was bright and sunny. Lily sat on the hospital bed looking at the sun set through her window. She had asked the nurse to give her a sleeping spell so she would be relaxed for the procedure. Her parents had yet to arrive but she knew that it won't be long until they came. The procedure was scheduled to begin in a couple of hours, and she had been awake for the last three. But she wasn't tired. She felt calm and optimistic. If by any chance the operation wasn't a success, she would continue with her life. She would finish her training via owl and become a qualified witch at the end of five weeks.  
  
She heard hurried steps coming toward her room. It seemed that her parents had just arrived.  
  
"Good morning Princess. You are up early." Said Mr. Evans the moment he saw her sitting up in bed.  
  
"Morning Daddy. I wanted to see the sun set." She said with a smile.  
  
"Ready Hun? Everything will be fine, you'll see." Said Mrs. Evans as she kissed her daughter's cheek.  
  
"I know mum."  
  
"Petunia won't be coming darling, she had to stay and take care of her guest." Said Mrs. Evans pursing her lips. She was still hurt that Petunia had chosen to stay behind instead of being here to give moral support to Lily.  
  
"That's all right mum." Lily said somewhat sadly.  
  
"Don't worry Princess. You will see her again soon." Said Mr. Evans misinterpreting the sadness he heard in her voice.  
  
"I know Daddy, don't let it bother you." She said trying to sound bright.  
  
"I see you got some owls since yesterday." Said Mrs. Evans as she looked around to see the cards and flowers that adorned every piece of furniture in the room.  
  
"Yes, I awoke to find them here." Lily said with a smile. She was happy that her friends had remembered her on this day. But was somewhat sad to see that James had not send anything at all.  
  
"Has the doctor been in here at all?" Asked Mr. Potter bringing a chair near the bed so he could be near his daughter.  
  
"Not yet. The nurse was in but only for a minute."  
  
"I hope he gets here soon." Said Mrs. Evans. She wanted this to be done soon.  
  
"Don't worry love, it's still early, he will arrive in a moment." Said Mr. Evans. Even though he wanted the procedure to start, he still wanted to spend some extra time with Lily.  
  
The Evans sat around the bed, keeping Lily entertained and letting their mind think of anything else that wasn't about the procedure. Soon it was time for Lily to get prepared.  
  
"Hello, hello! How is our favorite patient this morning? Oh, good morning Mr. Evans, Mrs. Evans, wasn't aware you were here already." Greeted Dr. Darcy as he came into the room.  
  
"Good morning doctor." They said.  
  
"I will commence to prepare Lily, you are welcome to stay if you wish, but once we take her into the OR you won't be able to follow." Dr. Darcy said taking his wand out.  
  
"That's all right doctor, we will be waiting." Said Mr. Evans.  
  
"You can stay here or you can go to the waiting room, it is your choice of course. We will be bringing her in here as soon as the sleeping spell wears off. You won't be seeing her until then."  
  
"Very well doctor, thank you." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
The couple watched closely as Dr. Darcy spoke to Lily, explaining the procedure once more. When Lily nodded her agreement, Dr. Darcy waved his wand as he said an incantation. Lily promptly fell asleep. Nurses came into the room soon after they levitated her into a cart and pulled it out of the room. Dr. Darcy stayed behind for a moment.  
  
"Do not worry, we will do all that we can. Your daughter will walk again." He said. His usual sunny smile and charming manner being replaced by an expression of confidence.  
  
"Thank you doctor. For everything you have done for her." Said Mr. Evans shaking the doctor's hand.  
  
"I enjoy what I do Mr. Evans. That is why I became a doctor. I will see you as soon as the procedure is over. Will you stay here or go to the waiting room?"  
  
"We will stay here doctor." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
Dr. Darcy nodded. "A nurse will bring a telly in here, we have permission to charm it for your use. Keep you entertained as you wait."  
  
"Thank you Doctor." Both said. And nervously watched the doctor leave the room.  
  
"Don't worry love. Everything will be fine." Said Mr. Evans as he put his arms around his wife.  
  
"I know, I know." And the sat on the bed ready to wait for the doctor to come to them. ****  
  
It was a day like any other at Hogwarts. Sirius was sitting on a couch in the common room waiting for the others to appear, ready to go down to breakfast.  
  
"There you are, why didn't you wait for us in the room?" Said Peter as soon as he and Remus stepped down from the dorms.  
  
"I'm waiting for you, just didn't want to do it in the room." Said Sirius. They heard the girls coming down the stairs and turned to watch them as they did so.  
  
"Good morning." Said Katie with a bright smile.  
  
"Morning to you too." Said Remus.  
  
"What are you smiling about?" Asked Sirius as he pecked her cheek with a kiss.  
  
"Oh, I was just telling Emma about the last note I sent Lily." She said returning his kiss.  
  
"Hmmm.I was just thinking of her. Today is her surgery isn't it?" He asked.  
  
"Well I hope it is today because I sent her a gift to the hospital and I don't want to think of that gift going around all over the city because I sent it to the wrong place." Exclaimed Peter.  
  
"Not to worry Peter, you got it right, it is today." Said Emma.  
  
"Do you think James will be there?" Asked Remus.  
  
"Well, you wrote to him about it so I suppose he will." Said Sirius.  
  
"I didn't write to him about it, I thought Peter was supposed to." Remus exclaimed.  
  
"Don't look at me, I told you I wouldn't say a think I never know how to say these things, I thought Sirius was." Responded Peter.  
  
"Oh lord, I didn't write anything about it." Said Sirius hitting his head with his hand.  
  
"We should've written Emma. But we were so sure you boys would do so." Snapped Katie.  
  
"We could still tell him. Send him an owl right now." Proposed Peter.  
  
"We are too late, he wouldn't get there on time. The point was for him to go early enough so she would see him there." Said Sirius in exasperation.  
  
"Well, what can we do now?" Said Emma.  
  
"I don't know." Said Remus running his hand on his hair.  
  
"You are a sorry lot, we asked you to do one thing, one thing only and you blow it. Honestly!" Snapped Katie and flounced out of the room. Emma close behind, shaking her head.  
  
"She is right we blew it." Said Sirius sitting with his face on his hands.  
  
"We have to think of something, let's go to breakfast then we'll start on it." Said Peter.  
  
"He is right Sirius, let's go." Said Remus pulling Sirius from the chair and leading him out of the room.  
  
The Great Hall was full as it always was. And at the usual time, owls flew into the Hall delivering the mail to their respective owners.  
  
The five friends opened their mail and read through the notes they had received.  
  
"I just received a note from Mrs. Potter." Said Sirius with surprise.  
  
"So did I." Said Remus.  
  
"Hmmm.she says that James doesn't want to come back to Hogwarts." Said Emma.  
  
"Well we got to get him to come back. I mean, the ball won't be the same without him." Exclaimed Peter.  
  
"Don't worry Peter, one way or another he will be back." Said Remus.  
  
The friends nodded and returned to their food. Their minds full of plans. ****  
  
The Evans waited patiently in the room, it had been three hours since Lily had been taken and no news had been brought to them.  
  
"What is taking them so long?" Exclaimed Mr. Evans as he started pacing around the room.  
  
"Relax Edward, you really don't expect them to do everything in a hurry did you?"  
  
"Well no, but they still could've brought some news to us by now."  
  
"Come here, sit on this chair and watch some telly."  
  
"I don't want to watch the telly."  
  
"Well, you are going to anyways. You are making me nervous."  
  
"Oh very well." Mr. Evans grumbled and sat on a chair in front of the television the nurses had brought in to the room.  
  
"Look at all these notes! Some of them are very sweet." Exclaimed Mrs. Evans who was sitting reading the cards and notes sent with the flowers.  
  
"Hmph, what I want to know is why James isn't here."  
  
"I wondered that as well, but I suppose that with his father's death things have been very difficult for him and Susan."  
  
"I suppose you are right. We haven't written to Susan with our respects."  
  
"I wrote her a small note the day we arrived at Hogwarts, but I haven't written back."  
  
"Maybe is time that we do so."  
  
"You are right, it is."  
  
The Evans were silent for a moment, each lost in their own thoughts. When they suddenly heard a tapping sound from the window.  
  
"What is that?" Asked Mr. Evans.  
  
"It's an owl, on the window. See it?"  
  
"I'll open the window."  
  
As soon as Mr. Evans opened the window the owl flew into the room coming to rest on the bed.  
  
"Who sent it?"  
  
"Open it, let's found out." Said Mr. Evans.  
  
Mrs. Evans quickly neared the owl and took the letter. As soon as the letter was taken, the owl flew out the window. Mrs. Evans opened the letter and exclaimed.  
  
"It's from Susan."  
  
"Susan? What does she say?"  
  
"She apologizes for not writing before, due to all the ups and downs of the last couple of days." Mrs. Evans said as she read the note.  
  
"Well yes, that is understandable."  
  
"She says that they are getting better, James has taken up the reins and doing very well."  
  
"Hmph! Well if he is doing better now he should be here."  
  
"Edward! That poor boy has gone through really rough times. But Susan says that he has fallen through some kind of depression. He doesn't want to return to Hogwarts."  
  
"Well? What does she want us to do about it?" Mr. Evans grumbled.  
  
"She asks if we could talk to Lily, it seems that she can't get hold of her. Do you think she doesn't know about what happened to Lily?" She asked with surprise to her husband.  
  
He sighed. "I suppose it is possible after all that had happened James might have thought that she didn't have to learn of it. We didn't tell Lily about what happened to Aliaster and his daughter."  
  
"You are right. Do you think we should tell her?"  
  
"We might as well."  
  
Mrs. Evans nodded and sat at a desk in one side of the room, where she found parchment, ink and quills and started to write a letter.  
  
Mr. Evans started to pace the room once more, walking from one side of the room to the other.  
  
"Edward please sit and watch the telly, you are making me nervous." Exclaimed his wife with exasperation.  
  
"Oh very well." Mr. Evans finally sat on a chair and turned on the television.  
  
"Good, now stay there."  
  
The Evans waited for hours after the letter to Susan Potter had been sent. Mrs. Evans finally fell asleep on one of the couches while Mr. Evans continued flipping through channels looking for something that would take his mind of his daughter as he waited.  
  
The sun was setting and the room was turning dark when the door finally opened. Mr. Evans jumped from his seat bumping into the couch his wife was sleeping as he did so.  
  
"What? What happened?" She asked groggily.  
  
"Sorry love. Someone is here." He whispered. They heard voices in the hall and the knob turning. Both waited expectantly to see who it was.  
  
As the door opened and the doctor came into the room, both expelled the breath they didn't know they were holding. Both quickly stood and approached him.  
  
"How did it go doctor? How is Lily?" Mrs. Evans asked wringing her hands.  
  
"She is doing fine. She is still under the spell and won't be coming to until a few hours from now, we will bring her in here as soon as the spell wears off."  
  
"How did the surgery go?" Mr. Evans asked once more. He was nervous of the fact that the doctor had chosen to answer the other question but not that one.  
  
"Perhaps you should sit, this will take a while to explain." He said.  
  
The Evans felt their stomach sink, did this mean that Lily wasn't going to walk? They sat and waited for the doctor to continue.  
  
"Now, the surgery went on without a hitch. We relieved the pressure caused by the bones and the damaged cartilage, it looks like everything should be fine now, but we must wait. As soon as Lily wakes up I will do a preliminary exam, don't worry if nothing happens, sometimes it takes a while for the brain to realize that it's receiving messages from impulses it hasn't sensed in a while. I will do another exam tomorrow, we will know then if the surgery was a success or not."  
  
"But, what are the odds that it went well?" Asked Mrs. Evans sitting at the edge of her seat.  
  
"I like the odds, I don't see why she shouldn't be able to walk. But we still need to make sure that she will do so. As soon as we confirm, I will schedule her to start on physical therapy."  
  
"How long will she need it?" Asked Mr. Evans.  
  
"As long as she needs it. If she lost a large amount of muscle on her legs then we will need to build that muscle up before we get her to try to walk again. But if the muscle loss is not great then we will start her on walking exercises right away. We must wait and see until she regains consciousness."  
  
"Very well doctor, thank you." Said Mrs. Evans. Dr. Darcy nodded and soon quit the room.  
  
The Evans turned to each other. They embraced. Drawing strength from each other. Their daughter had to walk again.  
  
They waited for two hours more. Dinner had been brought to them as nurses had come in to prepare the bed. The Evans were on pins and needles waiting for their daughter to be brought to the room. Soon enough, they saw the doctor enter once more, this time, he was followed by a couple of nurses levitating a stretcher with Lily sleeping on it.  
  
The Evans stayed silent as they saw the nurses levitate their daughter and settle her on to the bed. They tucked her in and walked out of the room, taking the empty stretcher with them.  
  
"Right. I will examine her now, you can stay here if you wish." The doctor said.  
  
The Evans sat on the couch, where they had perfect view of the doctor and Lily. The doctor turned the blankets down and started checking Lily with his wand. They saw him mutter an incantation and the next moment a three dimensional x-ray image appeared in front of him. The Evans gasped, they had never thought they would see the like.  
  
Dr. Darcy smiled and inquired. "Do you want to see it, I can explain what we did."  
  
The Evans eagerly neared the bed and watched in awe as the imaged revolved in front of them.  
  
"You see these bones right here?" Dr. Darcy asked. At the Evans' nod he continued. "There were causing pressure against this cartilage right here. See it? That was what was causing the nerve impulses from getting to the brain. Now what we did was this. We opened her from this point." At this moment another imaged appeared of Lily's back. "From here to here. We proceeded until we got to the bones right here." Dr. Darcy continued to explain, pointing to the images as he did so. The Evans listened to his explanation attentively.  
  
The explanation lasted only minutes but it gave the Evans an accurate idea of what their daughter had gone through. Now they felt confidant that the doctors had done everything that was humanly possible and they were sure that their daughter would recover soon.  
  
After the doctor made the images disappear, he continued proving Lily's legs. The Evans stood by the bed, watching every move that the doctor made. It wasn't that they didn't trust him, they just didn't want to miss anything.  
  
Then something happened that made Mrs. Evans gasp, Mr. Evans swear and Dr. Darcy chuckle. When Dr. Darcy pinched one of Lily's toes. Lily's foot twitched. When he proded with his wand. She kicked.  
  
"Excellent. I think it's safe to say that your daughter will walk very soon." Said Dr. Darcy with a bright smile.  
  
Mrs. Evans turned to her husband who gathered her in his arms as she sobbed with happiness. ****  
  
Next morning seemed sunnier and warmer to the Evans. Probably because of their high spirits and buoyant emotions. Lily was going to walk once more, and they just couldn't be any happier. Lily had only woken up for a moment the night before. She had still felt groggy and tired, and had fallen asleep right away.  
  
Now, Mr. and Mrs. Evans were waiting for Lily to wake up. They were sitting on chairs beside the bed. Mr. Evans sat reading a copy of the Daily Prophet, which he found on the table of the room, and Mrs. Evans was busy knitting.  
  
"Would you look at that? These pictures move. I wonder how they do that." Mr. Evans exclaimed.  
  
"Well dear, it is a magical newspaper, I imagine that all magical pictures move. You must ask Lily about it, she might know."  
  
"Hmmm.I'm quite envious of Lily. Hogwarts seemed like a fascinating place, I would've liked my school years better if I had gone to a place like that." Mr. Evans replied.  
  
"It did look interesting. I'm sorry we didn't have a chance to see more of it, not that we saw much, we were too busy keeping Lily company in the infirmary to pay attention to the rest of the castle."  
  
"I'm sure that we might see more of it for Lily's graduation. I'm sure that she will want to return to Hogwarts once she recuperates."  
  
"I'm sure you are right." Responded Mrs. Evans with a sigh.  
  
"Look at this, they even get our kind of news in here." Exclaimed Mr. Evans as he continued to read the paper.  
  
"Well I suppose there are some things that happen in our world that might influence theirs."  
  
"Perhaps. I wonder what this Dark Menace is all about. They mention it a lot in here."  
  
"Well what do the reports say, they must explain why they are reporting about it."  
  
"Well yes they do, but I don't understand all about this You-Know-Who business." He complained.  
  
"Well maybe you can ask Lily about it."  
  
"It seems that I have a lot to ask her about."  
  
Mrs. Evans laughed. Usually, her husband only got exasperated by what he read on the newspaper during election times.  
  
They heard Lily stirring on the bed. They put aside the newspaper and the knitting and turned to watch Lily closely. They saw Lily's eyes open slowly. And then she smiled when she caught sight of her parents.  
  
"Good morning."  
  
"Morning Princess." Replied Mr. Evans with a smile and kissed his daughter's brow.  
  
"Morning dear." Said Mrs. Evans as soon as her husband made room for her to greet Lily. "How are you feeling?"  
  
"Much better. But I am hungry."  
  
"Don't worry, somebody will be here soon with some food." Mrs. Evans said. She was glad to hear that Lily had gotten her appetite back. ****  
  
Mrs. Potter sat at the table sorting through her mail as she ate. She was alone at the moment but knew that her son would be joining her soon. One note gained her attention. It was written in St. Mungos's stationary. She didn't know of anybody who was in the hospital. Who could it be from? As she reached for it to open it, she heard footsteps coming toward her. She turned toward the door and smiled when James came into the room.  
  
"Good morning mother. Did you sleep well?" He asked as he leaned to kiss her cheek.  
  
"Oh yes, most comfortable. How about you dear, did you have a good night?"  
  
"Yes." He said as he sat at the other side of the table. Roberts stood at his side with a plate in one hand and a small silver tray on the other. After James took the plate and started to eat, Roberts presented the tray with a bow. James took it and saw his mail piled on it. "Thank you Roberts."  
  
Roberts bowed once more and turned to stand by the table awaiting for any orders. Mrs. Potter had seen this ritual through sad eyes. James reminded her so much of her husband. His appearance, his manners, even the way he laughed, he had inherited all from his father. How many times had they sat in the same manner and gone through the same ritual that had just been performed.  
  
She shook her head when she noticed that he had been calling to her.  
  
"Something wrong mother?" James asked looking at her with worry in his eyes.  
  
"No dear, just lost in thought." She said with a smile. "What are your plans for today?"  
  
"I have to go to the village and make sure that the materials are here in time for the summer estate feast. And I promised the twins I would take them to the shops, they want a ribbon or something, I'm not sure of what really."  
  
"You are going to spoil them."  
  
"Well they deserve to be"." He said with a smile.  
  
"Let's see if you will say the same when they are older." She said with a laugh.  
  
James smiled and turned to look at his mail. He noticed that he had more than he usually did. And it was all from Hogwarts! Intrigued he started opening the envelopes.  
  
Mrs. Potter watched him closely from beneath her eyelids. She hoped that her notes had made an impact on James' friends and that they would write to incite him into going back. She turned to her own mail and reached for the letter from St. Mungos that had attracted her attention before.  
  
She carefully opened the envelope and started to read the note. Her eyebrows lifted and her eyes widened in surprise.  
  
"James, why didn't you tell me?" She yelled.  
  
James startled dropped his fork and letter on to the table. "What? What did I do now?" He said.  
  
"Why didn't you tell me about Lily?"  
  
James was extremely surprised. Was she talking about their break up or about the accident? "What exactly about Lily?"  
  
"Well about her accident of course, what else is there?"  
  
"Nothing else, as far as I can say."  
  
"Well? Why didn't you tell me?"  
  
"Because right after it happened Dad died and it just flew out of my head."  
  
"Oh that's poppy cock and you know it. Really James, why didn't you tell me?"  
  
"Mother, I don't want to talk about it."  
  
"Hmph, that the right way to treat a girl, just ignore her when she most needs you."  
  
"Mother."  
  
"Especially now, when she is at St. Mungos."  
  
"What? What is she doing at St. Mungos?"  
  
"Well she is going through a surgery to help her walk again. In fact, Rose wrote this yesterday, so the surgery was done yesterday."  
  
"What? Why wasn't I told about this? I'm going to kill that lot, I told them to keep me informed of everything that happened and they don't tell me about the most important thing!" He fumed.  
  
"Well, at least I know that you care."  
  
"Of course I care for her. I'm not an insensitive idiot."  
  
"Why haven't you written to her? Rose says that they haven't received word from you."  
  
"Mother, I don't want to talk about it."  
  
"Well do you care for her or not, you certainly become a changeling when it comes to this subject."  
  
"Ok, fine, do you want to know why I don't write? She doesn't want to see me, she doesn't want to hear from me. I was told not to get in contact with her because I agitate her. It was my fault that she had this accident, and we are not a couple any more. Happy?" James threw his napkin on his plate and stormed off the room.  
  
"Oh dear. You always told me that I was pushy Aliaster. I blew it didn't I?" She said out loud.  
  
Mrs. Potter sadly sat at the table hearing the front door slam a few minutes later. The butler and the footmen assisting him stood by the wall, with expressionless faces but with minds twirling. ****  
  
"Well Lily, everything is as it should be. We will start you with physical therapy tomorrow, and we will have you walking soon." Said Dr. Darcy with a smile.  
  
"Where will she do the therapy?" Asked Mrs. Evans as she took hold of her daughter's hand. She was afraid that it would hurt Lily, but she knew that it was best for her.  
  
"She will need to return here everyday. I talked to the Ministry of Magic, because yours is a muggle household your house is not connected with the Floo Network, but because these are special circumstances they will make an exemption and connect you as long as Lily comes here for treatment. A nurse will Floo to your house every day at 10:00 in the morning to bring Lily here and she will return her home an hour or so later."  
  
"When can she go home?" Asked Mr. Evans.  
  
"She can leave today. Unlike muggle surgery there is no danger of sutures opening. She will need to rest and keep still for the rest of the day, but besides that there is nothing else to be done until tomorrow."  
  
"Thank you Doctor, we really appreciate all you have done for Lily."  
  
"Don't mention it, that's what I'm here for." He said with a bright smile.  
  
Lily smiled. She was happy that everything had gone all right. She was also happy to note all the gifts that her friends had sent her. But she missed word from a certain black, messy haired boy.  
  
"Well now, I'm going to give directions to the nurse and you can get ready to leave if you wish." The doctor said interrupting Lily's thoughts.  
  
"Thank you doctor." The Evans said.  
  
As soon as the doctor left the room the Evans turned to look at each other with huge smiles and soon the room was full of activity as they readied Lily to leave the hospital. ****  
  
James stood in silence in the locked garden. It was a barren sight. No plants, a pool full of dirty water, and small gnomes running around. His gardeners wondered what he wanted with a garden like that. He wondered what he was doing with the garden.  
  
He sighed deeply. He knew he should go back to the house and apologize to his mother. It wasn't every day that he lost his temper that way. But he wanted to be alone. He wasn't ready to see his mother yet.  
  
He spotted a bench underneath a big oak near the pool. He slowly made his way to the bench and cleaned it with his handkerchief and sat.  
  
What am I doing here? He thought, what I'm going to do? He missed Lily so much and wanted to see her so badly, but she didn't want to see him. She didn't want to know a thing about him. The others would've said something if she did. She went to London to undergo a treatment and he wasn't even told. What more proof did he need to know that she didn't want him around?  
  
He couldn't help but remember all those precious moments he had spent at her side. The House Party. The Halloween Festival. All those planning meetings. He had enjoyed those meetings most of all. But the one thing he would always keep engraved on his mind would be that time in the greenhouse, where they kissed for the first time.  
  
She had reached the tree and as she turned to look at James her robes got snagged by the tree. "Oh no! I can't get lose." She exclaimed as she tried to release her robes.  
  
"Here let me help you, you are going to rip your robes if you keep doing that." Laughed James as he saw her struggle against the tree.  
  
"I don't see the humor in it." Lily said with a glare toward James.  
  
"Of course you don't, but you would if you were in my shoes." Chuckled James, he reached for the snagging branch but his efforts were impeded by Lily's movement. "Would you keep still? I can't release you if you are moving." He said with an exasperated tone.  
  
"Sorry." She said and kept still while James tried to release her. Lily was very aware of James nearness. She could smell the scent of his soap mixed with the cologne that he used. She tried to keep her mind on something else, but her senses kept coming back to it.  
  
"There you go." James said with a sigh of relief. He looked down at Lily and what he saw made him hold his breath.  
  
Her eyes had turned smoky green and James felt like he was being pulled into the pools of her eyes. He breathed deeply and slowly lowered his head.  
  
Their lips met. He kissed her slowly and when he felt her sigh he deepened the kiss.  
  
He would remember that day for all the days of his life. ****  
  
Lily was so happy to be home. The only dark spot of the day was her sister.  
  
"So the Princess is back home is she?" Said Petunia with a leer the moment their parents had left Lily's room. "And it seems nothing was done to you. Now I'm going to have to bear with you until I leave."  
  
"Nice to see you too Petunia."  
  
"Hmph, well at least you cannot be seen as long as you stay here. Vernon is coming to dinner tonight and I don't want you to be there. Marge will be leaving tonight."  
  
"Don't worry Pet, I don't want to see that pig fiancé of yours."  
  
"How dare you!" And Petunia stalked off the room.  
  
"I dare to do what I want in my room!" Yelled Lily after Petunia's retreating steps.  
  
Well, at least I won't be bored. She thought with a smile.  
  
  
  
  
  
A/N: As I said there are two more chapters for seventh year to be over. I hope you have enjoyed my story so far. Don't forget to review! 


	23. Chapter 19

A/N: Here is Chapter 18, I hope you like it.  
  
Chapter 19 ~ Welcome Back  
  
  
  
The next week was painful and strenuous for Lily. Every morning she waited by the fireplace for the nurse to come and collect her to go to therapy. During the first couple of days it seem that no progress was made. She was sad and had started to think that it would take years until she was ready to walk once more. She had tired of the wheel chair she had been given. It was a muggle chair. The hospital thought it would be best if she used it instead of the magical one. It wouldn't do to scare the neighbors.  
  
By the time the seventh day of therapy arrived Lily felt too depressed to go.  
  
"Why should I go? Nothing seems to change." She muttered in a low voice. Her parents were too enthusiastic and optimistic, she really didn't want to disappoint them.  
  
"What was that dear?" Asked Mrs. Evans, who was waiting beside Lily.  
  
"Nothing mum. Just thinking out loud." Lily replied with a smile.  
  
"Oh. She should be here at any moment." Mrs. Evans looked at the grandfather clock standing on one corner of the room.  
  
"Hmmm."  
  
"I wonder where Petunia went. I haven't seen her during the mornings lately." Asked Mrs. Evans with a frown. She hadn't been too happy with her eldest daughter lately. She hadn't been all too helpful with Lily and Mrs. Evans had once found her taunting her sister. But Petunia was twenty now and it was too late to punish her. Perhaps it was for the best that she would soon be marrying and leaving the house.  
  
"Don't worry mum, she's probably with Marge Dursley. I heard her leave an hour ago." Said Lily with a shrug. She didn't mind not having her sister around.  
  
Before Mrs. Evans had time to respond, fire intensified in the grate and a bespectacled young nurse stepped out of it.  
  
"Good morning." She greeted with a sunny smile.  
  
"Hello Jane." Answered Lily. She really liked this young woman. They were close in age and they spent a lot of time talking about Hogwarts and boys. Lily had to stifle a giggle as she remembered one of their conversations.  
  
"Now make sure that you bring her on time Jane. And I wondered if you would have time to join us for luncheon today when you return." Said Mrs. Evans as the girls prepared to step into the fire.  
  
"Oh thank you Mrs. Evans I will see what I can do." Responded Jane. Soon after both girls disappeared from sight.  
  
Lily soon found herself in a room in which several people were found doing exercises.  
  
"Hello Lily, nice to have you back." Said a middle-aged witch.  
  
"Hi Mrs. Linley." Responded Lily.  
  
"Are you ready to start?" At Lily's nod she led toward a room where several apparatus lined the wall. "We'll begin with the stretches we have been doing lately and then we will begin with some new exercises." She said.  
  
Lily nodded and for the next two hours did stretches and exercises designed to build the muscle in her legs.  
  
"How long do you think it will take for me to start walking again?" Asked Lily as they worked on her legs.  
  
"Well, I cannot exactly tell you. Some people take longer while others do it soon. It all depends on the situation." Mrs. Linley replied. She knew that the young woman in front of her was finding all this tedious but she still worked hard. She was hired to help her walk, and she would do it.  
  
There was no more conversation after that. Lily fell on her chair very tired after her session. It seemed that they kept getting harder and harder.  
  
"Don't give up Lily, your legs are getting stronger and you will see some progress soon." Said Mrs. Linley as they waited for Jane to return for Lily.  
  
"Do you think so?" Lily looked up at Mrs. Linley with a hopeful expression.  
  
"Yes I do. It's never easy but you are doing just fine." She replied with a smile.  
  
Jane soon appeared and led Lily to the grate in a cozy room with couches and comfy chairs.  
  
"What is this room used for Jane?" Asked Lily as Jane reached for a small urn on top of the mantel.  
  
"It's a waiting room. Some of the patients who come for therapy come with family members and this is the room they wait on while the patients are inside." Said Jane extracting some Floo powder from the urn. She threw it into the fire. The flames grew and the light intensified. Lily and Jane soon disappeared into the grate.  
  
"Ah there you are." Said Mrs. Evans the moment the young girls appeared at the Evans' sitting room.  
  
"Aaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!" A scream filled the air. Lily put her hands on her ears as Mrs. Evans and Jane jumped startled.  
  
"Petunia really! There is no reason for you to go on like that." Exclaimed Lily as she pulled her arms from her ears.  
  
"What do you thing you are doing? Don't you care that there are some of us who care not for your abnormal ways." Screamed Petunia, who had been sitting on one of the couches when Lily returned.  
  
"Speak for yourself sister dear." Snapped Lily.  
  
"Petunia!" Exclaimed Mrs. Evans. She was shocked at the behavior of his oldest daughter. Where did I go wrong? She asked herself. "Apologize to Lily this instant."  
  
"Oh sure, take her side. You don't care that our name is going down the drain with a freak like her." Screamed Petunia as she stormed off the room.  
  
"PETUNIA NADINE EVANS COME HERE THIS INSTANT!" Mrs. Evans yelled. Lily and Jane turned to look at each other with expressions of horror.  
  
"I'm sorry you had to see that Jane. I hope you can stay with us for luncheon." Said Mrs. Evans with a distracted air.  
  
" Oh, hmmm.I'm sorry Mrs. Evans I have to return to the hospital." Jane said and quickly returned to the grate.  
  
"I don't blame her, the poor dear. Your father will hear of this, make no mistake. Petunia has gone far enough." Exclaimed Mrs. Evans in anger.  
  
"Oh boy, I'm sure glad I'm not Petunia right now." Muttered Lily.  
  
Needless to say, the Evans household was not a happy one that evening. Lily stayed in her room the whole evening. She could hear the yells and the arguing going on in the kitchen. She felt saddened that it had to happen, but, she thought, Petunia deserved it.  
  
After a couple of hours, the arguing stopped. She heard stomping on the hall and the slamming of a door. She imagined it was Petunia. She then heard other steps coming up the stairs. She was playing with the sheepskin pillow that she was hugging as she sat on her bed when the door opened.  
  
"How are you feeling Princess?" Mr. Evans greeted his daughter. He hadn't got a chance to come and talk to her before he argued with Petunia.  
  
"I'm fine Daddy." Said Lily with a sad smile.  
  
"What's wrong Princess? Is it because of Petunia?"  
  
"Why does she hate me so much?" She asked with tears sparkling in her eyes.  
  
Mr. Evans quickly approached the bed and sat beside her. "It's not you she hates, she just doesn't like things that aren't like her."  
  
"But why does she treat me so shabbily?"  
  
"Because she can't understand. She doesn't know how to react to it but with unkindness and anger. Don't let her get to you Lily, you are a special person with a special talent. Just because there are some people who don't understand it and don't like it doesn't mean that it's evil. Do you understand me Lily?"  
  
"Yes Daddy." Lily hugged her father tight. "Thanks. You know, James said something similar once. When I got the letter about Petunia's engagement party."  
  
"Humph. Susan wrote to us. They are doing fine."  
  
"Who they Daddy?"  
  
"Well James, the twins and herself or course. After Aliaster's death they had a really hard time."  
  
"What? Why wasn't I told that Mr. Potter had died? When did it happen? How did it happen?"  
  
"Oh sh--! I'm sorry Lily, you weren't supposed to know yet."  
  
"What do you mean, when was I going to be told?"  
  
"We hoped you would walk first before you were told." Mr. Evans looked sheepish, how could he have let it escape. He could kick himself for telling Lily.  
  
"Daddy!"  
  
"Princess, don't worry, he is doing just fine. Focus on your therapy and when you return to Hogwarts you can give him your condolences in person." Mr. Evans quickly left the room before Lily got anything more out of him.  
  
Lily stayed brooding. How could they not tell her? Why didn't her friends mentioned anything about it? *****  
  
"Mother, I made a decision." Said James one day over breakfast.  
  
"Oh? What is it?" Mrs. Potter asked with surprise. Their conversations had been somewhat strained after their argument the previous week.  
  
"I'm going back to Hogwarts, there are only four more weeks for the exams and two more for the end of the term, I suppose Sanders can keep an eye on the estate for me while I'm away, he can always owl me if there is something that needs to be taken care of."  
  
Mrs. Potter refrain from saying that it was the same thing she had said the previous week. She knew men liked to think that they were in charge and that the ideas came from them, not anyone else. Well, the Potter men did.  
  
"That is right dear. When are you going back?"  
  
"I'll stay to take care of a couple of things. I reckon that I'll be ready to return by the end of the next week." James said as he thought it over.  
  
"Well, if you feel you must."  
  
James didn't say anything else as in just that moment Francesca and Cassandra ran into the room.  
  
"Grandma."  
  
"Grandma."  
  
"Yes darlings."  
  
"Here."  
  
"We gathered them."  
  
"For you." The said as they presented Mrs. Potter with a handful of wildflowers. She smiled and kissed them.  
  
"Thank you dears. Go and say Good morning to your uncle."  
  
The girls ran to the other side of the table.  
  
"Uncle James."  
  
"Uncle James."  
  
"Well, what are you two little rapscallions up to?" He said and started to tickle them. The girls giggled even after he stopped. They turned to with a trusting look in their blue eyes.  
  
"Can we ride?"  
  
"With you."  
  
"Please."  
  
"Uncle James."  
  
"Hmmm.well, let's see what does Mrs. Manning says." He answered.  
  
Their sunny countenances fell. James heartstrings pulled. His mother was right, he was going to spoil them.  
  
"Oh very well. Run along and tell Mrs. Manning to get you ready." He grudgingly said.  
  
The girls squealed and ran out of the room.  
  
"James, really. You are going to spoil them."  
  
"I can't help it, every time they look at me and I see Elizabeth."  
  
"I know it's hard James. I see your father everywhere, I keep waiting for him to enter that door. But we have to let go, we have to keep living. Even if it's just for the girls."  
  
"You are right." He sighed. "I'm going to tell Roberts to prepare the car. I'll take them for a drive." He said and slowly left the room.  
  
"Perhaps I should follow what I preach. Right Aliaster?" She muttered as she stared at the flowers she clutched in one hand.  
  
  
  
The week went by and both James and Lily made progress. By the end of the week Lily was strong enough to stand on her own, and had started taking a few steps. But she tired too soon, her efforts took enough energy from her.  
  
James visited all his tenants, making sure that they didn't need anything. He made sure they knew they could call on Sanders if there was a need. He closeted himself on his office in the first floor of the house with Sanders to go over the estate management. Sanders had at first been skeptical about James abilities to run the estate, but he was soon relaxed after seeing James' handling matters after a couple of weeks. Now he couldn't imagine having a better employer, the previous Mr. Potter, rest his soul, he thought, didn't have much talent with the management of the estate, he far preferred to be in London and take care of things at the Ministry.  
  
"Now, you must remember to start the preparations for the Midsummer Feast, the tenants expect it from us, it has been an annual event for centuries and I don't think father would mind if we held it this year." James was saying.  
  
"Of course Master James, you will find everything in order by the time you return from Hogwarts." Said Mr. Sanders with a nod. "Mrs. Potter has started to talk to the ladies in town and they will come up to the house next week to start with the preparations."  
  
"Good. I think this would be good for mother, she needs something to take her mind off things. Although the twins have been doing a good job of it." James said with a smile as he remembered his little nieces.  
  
Sanders smiled as well. The girls had brought a fresh and merry atmosphere to a household that had every right to feel morose and saddened. Just the day before the girls had followed Mr. Sanders all over the stables asking questions about the horses, the cattle, the puppies in the kennel and about every single animal found in the estate. They had been carrying their pet rabbit and they had told him very seriously that they where giving him a tour and introducing him to new friends. "The girls are a treasure, Master James." He said.  
  
"They truly are. I will miss them but at least it will be for only a month. I will return soon enough." James said.  
  
They continued on with their plans in a happier mood.  
  
  
  
"You are doing it Lily, just one more step, one more, yay you made it." Mrs. Linley was urging Lily along. She was standing by some bars that helped her with her balance to help her stay standing as she tried walking.  
  
"Oh." Lily sighed as she sat on her chair. She was happy that she was finally doing big progress but she had never imagined that it would be so tiring.  
  
"Now, we will do some stretches and we will be done for the day. Remember to do them at home as well." Said Mrs. Linley as she gathered all the equipment they had used.  
  
"Of course Mrs. Linley. Thank you." Lily responded as she took some water from a bottle at her side.  
  
"I'm very happy with how things are going. We will have you walking in no time." Mrs. Linley said with a smile. They had done so much progress in the last week, she had been quite surprised at first, but her patient's determination had given her the strength to go on.  
  
"Do you truly think so? I cannot tell you how bored I am of this chair." Said Lily pointing to her chair.  
  
"Oh don't worry, you will be rid of it soon enough." Said Jane smiling as she sat beside Lily, waiting for her to be done.  
  
"Jane is right, you are doing great progress, you will see yourself walking soon enough. Just make sure you do your stretches and exercises at home." Said Mrs. Linley.  
  
Lily smiled and watched as Mrs. Linley and Jane put all the equipment away.  
  
"Very well." Mrs. Linley exclaimed when all was in order. "Jane will take you home now. I will see you tomorrow Lily." She said waving Lily goodbye as Jane pushed the chair toward the waiting room.  
  
"Bye Mrs. Linley, see you tomorrow." Lily waved back.  
  
Lily was smiling as she entered the grate and Flooed to her house. As usual, her mother was waiting for her in the parlor room.  
  
"How did it go dear?" She asked when she saw her daughter appear from the fireplace.  
  
"Oh, mum, you should've been there, I walked, I actually walked." Exclaimed Lily. "Well, I did have some help but I did walk." She added.  
  
"Oh my dear, that is great news, maybe we should have a celebration as soon as your father gets home." Mrs. Evans squealed and hugged her daughter.  
  
"I'll be going now Lily, Mrs. Evans, they are waiting for me at the hospital. I'll see you tomorrow." Said Jane as she stepped into the fire.  
  
"Bye Jane." Mrs. Evans and Lily said.  
  
"Well dear, what do you want to do? Want to go out to a nice restaurant or do you want to stay home tonight?" Asked Mrs. Evans as she took her daughter to the dinning room where lunch was waiting for them.  
  
"Stay at home, I don't want to go out yet." Said Lily. She hadn't left the house, only to go to the hospital, during all the time she had been home.  
  
"Very well dear, if that is what you want." Mrs. Evans was now serving and Petunia had come into the room.  
  
"You are back, are you? What does the princess want now?" Hissed Petunia in Lily's ear.  
  
"Don't worry Pet, we won't include you if you don't want to be here." Said Lily in a low voice so that their mother wouldn't listen.  
  
"Don't call me that." Snapped Petunia.  
  
Lily just stuck out her tongue. She knew it was childish but she couldn't help herself, Petunia was really a bore.  
  
"Now there you are dears." Mrs. Evans said after serving the plates.  
  
The three women ate in silence. As soon as dessert was served Mrs. Evans said.  
  
"What do you want for dinner then Lily, we must have your favorite dishes I think, after all it is a celebration in your honor."  
  
Petunia looked startled at first. "Celebration? Whatever for?"  
  
"For Lily of course, because she is doing great progress in therapy. She will be walking soon enough, mark my words." Said Mrs. Evans with a huge smile.  
  
Petunia looked daggers at Lily. Oh dear, Lily thought, now she will be angry again.  
  
"I see." Petunia finally said. "Well, I'll be going to Vernon's."  
  
"Oh but dear, wouldn't you like to celebrate with us? It is a big event." Said Mrs. Evans. Lily kept silent. If Petunia didn't want to be there it was fine with her.  
  
"I told Vernon that I was coming over, we have to start preparing for the wedding." Petunia said.  
  
"You still have time for that." Said Mrs. Evans. "I'm sure Vernon won't mind."  
  
"I promised mother, and I'm sure you don't want me to break my promises." Petunia said and got up from the chair. "I will see you later." And left the room.  
  
"Hmmm.that girl needs some lessons in family unity." Said Mrs. Evans as she saw Petunia leaving the room.  
  
"Don't worry about her mum, I don't." Said Lily as she finished her ice cream.  
  
"Well, I suppose, but your father is going to hear about this." Mrs. Evans said.  
  
Lily sighed. Great, she thought, something more for Petunia to hate me.  
  
"Do you want to go to your room Lily? Or do your want to go to the parlor and watch some telly?" Asked Mrs. Evans as she started to clear the table.  
  
"I'll go to the parlor, I'll get bored in my room." Said Lily.  
  
"Very well, just call if you want something."  
  
"Ok, mum." Lily wheeled her chair to the parlor and turned on the television. She didn't pay any attention to it. Her mind was too busy thinking of her sister and of her friends.  
  
  
  
"Are you sure dear that you have everything?" Asked Mrs. Potter at the end of the week as she and her son waited for the car to drive up to the front door.  
  
"Yes mother." Said James once more. He had lost count of the times his mother had asked that same question.  
  
"Does Dumbledore knows that you are coming?"  
  
"Yes, I wrote to him earlier this week to tell him. Hogwarts Express will be waiting for me in the station."  
  
"Where are the girls? I thought they would be here to see you off." Said Mrs. Potter as he looked around hoping to catch sight of her granddaughters.  
  
"I saw them earlier today. Mrs. Manning and I decided it was best if they didn't come with us. They cried enough when I was there."  
  
"Well, perhaps you are right. Where are they now?"  
  
"Mrs. Manning took them to play hide and seek."  
  
"That will keep them occupied." Said Mrs. Potter as she saw the car drive up to the door. "There you are Martin, help James with his luggage please."  
  
"Yes Madam." Said the driver as he lifted some of the luggage. James followed with the cage (in which Hermes was happily watching all the bustle) and with his book bag.  
  
Once everything was settled, James opened the door for his mother and then they soon were on the road.  
  
"How long will it take us to get to London?" Asked James.  
  
"I'm not sure dear. Martin? How long until we get to London?"  
  
"A couple of hours madam."  
  
"When will the train leave dear?"  
  
"Dumbledore said it would depart as soon as I was ready."  
  
"Oh good, we don't have to hurry then."  
  
"We have plenty of time."  
  
"I noticed your trunk is quite battered, there were wholes on the top." Said Mrs. Potter as they looked out the window watching the scenery pass by.  
  
"It has been there for a while mother, you just noticed it?" James laughed. "Besides, I will need it for only one more month, once I return I will have no need for it."  
  
"I suppose you are right. What did your friends say when you told them you were going back?"  
  
"They don't know. Thought to give them all a surprise, the only one who knows that I'm returning is Dumbledore."  
  
"Very well. Lotty will apparate at the castle once you get there."  
  
"I hope you are happy with Minnie mother."  
  
"Oh she will do nicely. Of course, I will have to give her up once your first son is born."  
  
"That will be a while mother."  
  
"Well, with the time you are taking, it will certainly take a while."  
  
"Mother don't start again, I seem to remember a similar conversation when I left for Hogwarts in September."  
  
"All right, I get it, you don't want to listen to it."  
  
James nodded.  
  
"I really liked Lily you know. I hope she is doing better. Rose said that her therapy is helping a lot. But she thinks that Lily might not return to Hogwarts. They don't know how long it will take her to start walking again."  
  
Mrs. Potter continued talking about her correspondence with the Evans. James didn't say anything to stop her. He just listened but a thought kept popping in his mind. Lily might not return to Hogwarts. He really missed her. He wanted her to be there with him. He wanted to see her. He wanted to hear her voice.  
  
A couple of hours later they got to the outskirts of the city.  
  
"We will be there soon Madam, Master James."  
  
"Thank you Martin." Said Mrs. Potter. "Now remember James to behave yourself, I don't know if your title of Head Boy will be given back to you or not, but I don't want to hear from Dumbledore, you are so near graduation. And remember to study for your exams. I know you did all the work while you were with us but I want to make sure that you are prepared. If you want help don't hesitate to ask, I'm sure Dumbledore and Minerva will be pleased to help you."  
  
"I know mum, don't worry." Mrs. Potter smiled. It was the first time James had called her mum since Aliaster's death, and she had missed her boy, he had become a man overnight and though she was glad and proud that he had stepped into his father's shoes without hesitation she still wanted her son back the way he was before.  
  
"We are here madam, Master James." Said Martin the driver as he parked the car in front of the station.  
  
"Well, let's get you to the train." Said Mrs. Potter as James opened the door and held it open for her. "Thank you dear. Help Martin with your luggage."  
  
James turned to help Martin to pile his luggage on to a cart. Soon James walked into the station closely followed by his mother.  
  
"We'll cross the barrier together, let's wait until that group of muggles pass." Said Mrs. Potter when he saw a group of muggles standing by the barrier.  
  
James nodded and started to look around. During all those times he had been here waiting to cross the barrier he had never truly looked around and paid attention to the place. It was not as busy today. The hour was late and only some groups were seen passing through the station. He noticed a board in which all the schedules of the trains were posted and saw that no trains were scheduled to arrive within the hour.  
  
"Now it's our turn James. Everything set? Let's go." Said Mrs. Potter attracting James wandering attention.  
  
They quickly crossed the barrier to see the familiar engine waiting for them.  
  
"Mrs. Potter, James." The engineer greeted them when he saw them appear from the barrier.  
  
"Hello there Mr. Donner. Everything in order I trust." Said Mrs. Potter as soon as the old engineer approached them.  
  
"Oh yes, everything is ready to take young Mr. Potter here back to Hogwarts." He said with a smile toward James.  
  
"I'll take this up then." Said James with a nod and pushed the cart up to the train to start loading his luggage.  
  
"How are you doing Mrs. Potter, I never got the chance to give you or young Potter my condolences." Said Mr. Donner.  
  
"We are doing fine, thank you. How are things at Hogwarts, it has been a while since I had news from Hogwarts."  
  
"Oh things couldn't be better, of course all the seventh years are in an up roar over the exams and the ball."  
  
"Oh I imagine they are, after all, we went through the same during our times in Hogwarts." Mrs. Potter said with a laugh.  
  
"I'm ready." Said James as he approached at the chatting couple.  
  
"Very well dear, try to have fun James. And write to me often." Mrs. Potter said as she kissed her son goodbye.  
  
"I'll owl you. Tell the twins goodbye for me." He said and quickly turned to get onto the train.  
  
"Well, goodbye Mrs. Potter." Said the old engineer and quickly made his way to the train. Mrs. Potter stood on the platform until she saw the train disappear from sight.  
  
  
  
Lily had just returned from her therapy and was resting in the parlor. She heard the front door ring and her mother opening it. Lily didn't pay any attention to it. She didn't expect it to be a visitor for her. She didn't have any acquaintances in town anyways, all her friends were in school.  
  
"Lily dear. There is somebody here to see you." Said Mrs. Evans opening the door to the parlor.  
  
Lily turned to the door in surprise.  
  
"Hello Lily dear, I hope you are feeling well enough to have a visitor." Said a voice from behind Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Hi Mrs. Potter. Come in." Lily said with a smile.  
  
Mrs. Potter smiled and sat in a chair near Lily.  
  
"I will bring some refreshments." Said Mrs. Evans leaving the door open and quickly going to the kitchen. This will do Lily some good, she thought.  
  
"Your mother tells me that you are doing much better. That therapy is doing you good." Said Mrs. Potter as soon as Mrs. Evans left the room.  
  
"Yes, the doctor says that there is nothing to worry about and my physical therapist believes that it won't be long until I'm up on my feet again."  
  
"Oh I'm so glad dear. We worried you see." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
Lily knew that this was the perfect time to ask for James. But she was afraid of what the answer would be. She didn't have enough courage.  
  
"I'm sorry about Mr. Potter. He was a nice man." She said instead.  
  
Mrs. Potter's expression fell. She still missed her husband especially now that James had gone back to school, she was afraid to feel alone.  
  
"Thank you dear." She said.  
  
"Here we are. I hope you enjoy some cold lemonade Susan, I thought it would be nice to cool down a bit." Said Mrs. Evans as she entered the room with a tray.  
  
"Oh that is all right Rose. It has been warm lately."  
  
"It has been, especially here in the city, it can be unbearable sometimes." Replied Mrs. Evans as she passed the glasses and placed a plate with cookies on the coffee table.  
  
"I can imagine. I'm glad that James decided to take us all to the country estate instead of staying here in the city. It has done wonders for him and the girls."  
  
"The girls?" Asked Lily. What is James doing with girls in his house, she thought in horror.  
  
"Yes dear, my granddaughters. James was named their guardian in my daughter's will." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
Lily sighed in relief. "How old are they?"  
  
"Oh they are both three, soon to be four. They dote on their uncle of course. And he dotes on them, I'm quite afraid that they will be spoiled."  
  
Lily laughed. She never imagined that James would be a doting uncle.  
  
"Are they twins. You said there were two." Asked Mrs. Evans happy to see Lily smile with sparkling eyes.  
  
"Yes, identical twins. You don't know the trouble they get into. But they certainly bring some joy into the house."  
  
"Oh I'm glad. They must be a handful." Said Lily, wondering how James handled his nieces.  
  
"Oh they are. They always escape their nurse to follow James around, and James just makes things worse by allowing them to do so. He usually just takes them up with him to visit the tenants and see things around the estate."  
  
"Sounds like they have him wrapped around their little fingers." Laughed Mrs. Evans.  
  
"He is. They were so sad when he told them he was leaving."  
  
"Leaving?" Asked Lily.  
  
"Oh yes dear, he went back to Hogwarts today."  
  
"Oh? Wonder why the others didn't mention it?" Of course, Lily thought, they kept the matter about James' dad secret as well.  
  
"They don't know dear, James didn't tell them. Only Dumbledore knows."  
  
"A surprise is it?" Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"That's what he planned." Mrs. Potter replied.  
  
Mrs. Potter stayed with Lily and Mrs. Evans for a couple of hours. Lily went to bed filled with thoughts of James and everything she had learned that day.  
  
He is back at Hogwarts, she thought, I wonder how the guys will take it. She smiled in the dark. She wished she was back in Hogwarts now, ready to welcome James back.  
  
  
  
Hogwarts stood out against the dark sky. James looked lovingly at the big castle as the horseless carriage made it's way down the driveway. He would soon be back in his dorm. To his curtained, four-poster bed. Back to enjoy the last Quidditch game of the season. Back in time to enjoy the last month of the school year with his friends. But he was going to miss someone very especial. He was going to miss Lily.  
  
He was soon standing in front of the castle. The doors being held open by a familiar figure.  
  
"Hello Hagrid." James smiled at the big man waiting for him.  
  
" 'ello there James. Glad to have ye back." Hagrid said with a smile. "Need help?"  
  
"No, I'm fine Hagrid. Where is everybody?"  
  
"Dinner. Barely started."  
  
James smiled. Perfect time to make his entrance. "I'll join them then, I'm famished."  
  
A small figure appeared next to Hagrid. "Master James sir. Lotty will take the luggage to Master James' room." The small elf said.  
  
"Thank you Lotty. Make sure you go to the kitchens and get something to eat as soon as you are done." Said James as the small elf skipped down the stairs to gather the luggage in the carriage.  
  
"Yes Master James." Lotty said.  
  
"Ready then?" Asked Hagrid.  
  
"Yes. Let's go to dinner, shall we?" James said with a smile.  
  
The pair slowly made their way down the main corridor to the Great Hall. They could hear the sound of laughter and chatter. It was a sound that James had missed during the time he was away.  
  
"Maybe you should go in before me Hagrid. Tell Dumbledore that I'm back." Said James stopping in front of the Hall doors. Hagrid nodded and entered the room.  
  
James took a deep breath and waited for a couple of minutes before pulling on the handles. The doors opened without a squeak. He gave another deep breath and stepped into the Hall.  
  
Nobody had noticed him standing by the door. Everybody was talking and eating. Nobody bothered to look around. Then Dumbledore's voice was heard. "Ah there you are." He exclaimed.  
  
The hall fell silent as they turned to look at Dumbledore. What was the headmaster talking about?  
  
James smiled and slowly started to walk up to the teachers' table. Whispers started to fill the hall as some people noticed the figure walking up to the professors.  
  
"Welcome back Mr. Potter." Dumbledore said. The Hall broke into applause and everybody turned their heads to get a better look as the professors welcomed their original Head Boy back into their midst.  
  
The Gryffindor Table was the most boisterous of all. Their Quidditch captain was back, much to the relief of Tobias Wood who preferred to be part of the team instead of their leader, as well as the acting Head Boy, he was really looking forward to giving back his duties to James.  
  
"Perhaps you better seat at your table Mr. Potter, your friends seem to be eager to welcome you back." Said Dumbledore with a smile as the last teacher shook James hand.  
  
James nodded and quickly joined his friends at their table.  
  
"Why didn't you tell us?" Was the first thing Sirius said as soon as James sat.  
  
James smiled and quickly piled food on to his plate. He was really feeling famished. "Thought you guys would like a surprise better." He said before he started eating.  
  
"Well, we were certainly surprised. But we could've given you a party you know." Said Remus.  
  
"We could still do it. We have experience, we know how to give a party at a last minute." Said Sirius.  
  
"But now you've told him. It won't be a surprise anymore." Said Katie hitting Sirius arm with her spoon.  
  
"Ouch." He glared at her.  
  
"You are acting as if I've been gone for too long, I was only gone for one month you know." Said James with a laugh.  
  
"Long enough. How is your mother?" Said Emma who was sitting on the opposite side of the table next to Peter and Remus.  
  
"Oh, fine. The twins have been keeping her entertained." He said.  
  
"Oh, I haven't met your nieces, how old are they?" Asked Katie.  
  
"Three, four this summer. Quite the little devils." He said with a laugh.  
  
"Take after their uncle do they?" Sirius teased.  
  
"That's what mother says." The group laughed at James' response.  
  
  
  
While James was enjoying dinner with his friends, Mrs. Potter had apparated back to the estate. What she found scared her.  
  
The servants were running from one place to the other.  
  
"What is wrong Roberts? What happened?" She asked the butler as soon as she entered the entrance hall.  
  
"It's the young misses Mistress. Mrs. Manning is quite agitated." Was all he could say before running off leading the servants.  
  
The twins? What had happened to the twins?  
  
  
  
James sat finishing his food. Students had pass by welcoming him back before they left for their respective rooms.  
  
"And then that git had the nerve of blaming us for it, like he needs help making a fool of himself." Said Remus with a laugh. The others join in his laughter. They had been trying to tell all the school news to James as the dinner progressed.  
  
Suddenly James felt a tug on his robes. He turned to look at was pulling on his robes and was quite surprised at seeing Lotty.  
  
"What is it Lotty?"  
  
"Please Master James, you have to come with Lotty. It's an emergency."  
  
James fell his heart sink. What had happened now?  
  
The group scrambled out of their seats in a hurry. What was wrong? In all the seven years James had been in Hogwarts his elf had never interrupted his meals nor classes, always staying in the kitchens until they were needed.  
  
Lotty led them to the Gryffindor Tower, surprising the inhabitants of the common room who had never seen an elf before.  
  
"Where are we going Lotty? What is wrong?" Asked James as they started to climb the stairs.  
  
"It's important Master James. Lotty doesn't know what to do about it, Master James."  
  
The group turned to look at each other with consternation. Each hoping that nothing tragic had happened, James had gone through enough.  
  
Lotty was very agitated. They had only once seen an elf looking that agitated, and that had been Minnie when James had been sick.  
  
  
  
  
  
Meanwhile, at Gryffindor Manor, Mrs. Potter was having trouble calming Mrs. Manning down. She hadn't been able to find out what was wrong with the girls yet. Mrs. Manning was sobbing and the servants looked worried as they ran from one place to the other.  
  
"Mrs. Manning, please, tell me what happened. What happened to the girls?" She said.  
  
"Oh Mistress, I did all I could. I swear I did. I sent you an owl but it must have missed you because it came back with the note." Mrs. Manning wailed.  
  
"What happened?" Said Mrs. Potter fighting the urge to shake the nurse and make her talk.  
  
"Oh Mistress, the poor darlings." Mrs. Manning said and started sobbing once more.  
  
Mrs. Potter screamed in exasperation. What happened? Why wasn't anybody saying anything?  
  
  
  
  
  
James and the others had arrived to the boys' dorms. Lotty stood by the door looking concerned and wringing his hands.  
  
"Oh well, let's see it then." Said James. And opened the door. He gasped at the sight that met his eyes. "Bloody hell!" He exclaimed.  
  
  
  
  
  
Mrs. Manning stopped sobbing long enough to tell Mrs. Potter. "Sorry Mistress. But the poor angels. We were playing and they were only out of my sight for five minutes, I swear it was that long. They disappeared Mistress, we can't find the twins anywhere." Mrs. Manning resumed her crying.  
  
Mrs. Potter stood there in shock. Oh no, she thought, where are the girls?  
  
  
  
  
  
"Uncle James."  
  
"Uncle James."  
  
The twins exclaimed as they ran to James the moment they saw him.  
  
"What are you doing here? Forget that, how did you get here?" He exclaimed.  
  
The girls started to cry. Emma and Katie glared at James and kneeled to gather the girls in their arms and console them.  
  
"I'm sorry girls, come here, I was just surprised to see you here." Said James kneeling by them and opening his arms.  
  
The twins turned to hug him.  
  
"We were scared."  
  
"It was dark."  
  
"It was an accident."  
  
"We were playing."  
  
"Did you girls hid in my trunk?" James asked.  
  
The girls nodded. James sighed and turned to look at the others.  
  
"Remus please get Professor McGonagall, I'm going to send an owl to mother, she will be worried. Could you girls keep an eye on them?"  
  
"Of course." They all said. Soon everybody had something to do.  
  
  
  
  
  
The house was in an uproar, where were the girls? They had searched everywhere and they hadn't been able to find the girls anywhere. An owl flew overhead and watched the humans running around the estate grounds. Then it spied the human it was looking for and flew down to her.  
  
"Oh Hermes, what are you doing here?" Said Mrs. Potter surprised to see James' owl. She noticed the letter tied to its leg and took it. Hermes flew off once she took it.  
  
Mrs. Potter read the note with apprehension. What had made James write to her the moment he arrived to Hogwarts. Once she read it she felt a load being lifted from her shoulders.  
  
"Roberts." She called the butler. "Tell everybody to go in to the house, I have news of the girls." Roberts nodded and went to get the rest of the crew.  
  
Once all the household was inside the parlor room Mrs. Potter spoke.  
  
"I just got a message from James. It seems that the girls hid in his trunk, they are at Hogwarts with him." Everybody just gave a sigh of relief.  
  
"What now Mistress?" Asked Mrs. Manning who had finally stopped crying.  
  
"He writes that he will consult Dumbledore, I will apparate at Hogsmeade and go to Hogwarts tomorrow, they will be fine for tonight." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
  
  
  
  
James was pulling his hair, what to do? He thought. He was in Dumbledore's office where he and the twins where told to go by Professor McGonagall. At that moment the girls were looking at Fawkes, Dumbledore's phoenix, who was looking back at them with piercing eyes.  
  
"Uncle James?"  
  
"What is he?"  
  
"Is he an owl?"  
  
"What kind?"  
  
"He isn't an owl, he is a phoenix." Said James making sure they didn't pull on Fawkes' tail feathers. He didn't want Dumbledore mad at him because Fawkes was hurt.  
  
"He is pretty."  
  
"Can we touch him?"  
  
"Ok, but be careful. Don't pull on his feathers." James warned.  
  
The girls carefully petted Fawkes, who seemed to enjoy the attention.  
  
"He always had a soft spot for pretty girls." Said a laughing voice from the door.  
  
James turned to look at the old Headmaster with a sigh of relief.  
  
"I'm sorry Professor to bother you this late, but I don't know what to do with them." Said James with exasperation in his voice. The girls stopped petting Fawkes and turned to look at the old man standing in the door talking to their uncle.  
  
"That's all right James, Professor McGonagall told me the circumstances." He said nodding toward the woman standing behind him.  
  
"Well yes, I sent a note to mother and she answered that she will be here tomorrow morning." Replied James.  
  
"Very well, so young girls thought to keep your uncle company did you?" Said Dumbledore kneeling in front of him.  
  
"Accident."  
  
"Was playing."  
  
The girls said. They seem to sense that they had somehow gotten in trouble.  
  
"Don't worry, it wasn't your fault. Although I cannot say that it happens often." Said Dumbledore with a chuckle. The girls smiled and one of them reached to touch his beard and pull. Dumbledore laughed. "Like my beard do you?"  
  
The girls giggled and continue to stroke his beard. James just shook his head and Professor McGonagall smiled, it had been a while since she had seen Dumbledore play with small children.  
  
"Well, what do you suggest Professor. Where can they stay for tonight?" Asked James.  
  
"We could give them temporary beds in the girls' dormitories." Said Professor McGonagall.  
  
"We want to stay."  
  
"With Uncle James." The girls pouted.  
  
"It would be best, in case they wake in the middle of the night." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"What about one of the personal quarters?" Asked James.  
  
"We have been using them to store the exams, we can't move them to anywhere else at the moment, tomorrow we could." Said Professor McGonagall.  
  
"They will have to stay with James, I'm sure the others wouldn't mind in sharing the room with the girls." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"If you think it best. But I don't have any clothing for them. Would it be all right if I transfigure some old cloaks Professor?" Asked James.  
  
"Of course, take what you need." Said Dumbledore as he stood up.  
  
The girls were watching sleepily at the others, both yawning and rubbing their eyes.  
  
"Very well, I'll return to the Tower then. Good night." James said and took the girls' hands.  
  
"Night." Two small voices piped.  
  
"Good night." Answered both professors.  
  
Dumbledore shook his head and chuckled. "Those two will keep James on his toes."  
  
"He certainly seems to be doing well with them." Said Professor McGonagall. "I can't wait to see what kind of a father he will become.  
  
"Oh I'm sure he will do just fine." Dumbledore smiled.  
  
  
  
"Uncle James."  
  
"Can we stay with you?"  
  
"Please?"  
  
"You are staying with me, didn't you hear, you are sleeping with the boys tonight." He said. He wasn't sure if he agreed with that. He didn't want the girls to see what the others could be up to. He certainly didn't think that in most cases he took part in the adventures they had.  
  
"No, Uncle James."  
  
"We mean to stay."  
  
"Until you go home."  
  
"Can we?'  
  
"Er.I don't think that would be a good idea. Mother will come tomorrow for you and take you back. You like grandma don't you?'  
  
"We love grandma." Francesca energetically replied.  
  
"But we'll miss you." Cassandra said.  
  
"And I will miss you too. But don't worry, I will be here for only a month. I will return home soon." James said as the trio walked down the corridor leading up to the Gryffindor Tower.  
  
The girls stayed silent for a moment, until they heard a commotion coming from one of the classrooms.  
  
"Uncle James?"  
  
"What was that?"  
  
"That is the Hogwarts' Poltergeist. His name is Peeves." Said James walking faster past the room. He didn't need Peeves bothering them now. The girls would never fall asleep if he did.  
  
"What is that?"  
  
"Is he like Lotty and Minnie?"  
  
"No, Lotty and Minnie are elves, a poltergeist is a mean ghost." He said.  
  
"Why is he mean?"  
  
"Is he sad?"  
  
"Is he bored?"  
  
"Well, he certainly could be all of those things. He just likes to bother people in the castle it's all, he thinks it's funny." Said James.  
  
"Like you do?"  
  
"When you play."  
  
"With your friends."  
  
"Why do you say that?" Asked James bewildered.  
  
"You and your friends."  
  
"Like to trick others."  
  
"For fun."  
  
Oh lord, he thought, how did they come up with this? But he chuckled, now that he thought about it, their pranks and adventures could be considered mean like Peeves' by their victims.  
  
"Well, we are here." He quickly said as soon as he spied the portrait of the Fat Lady.  
  
The girls were looking around with eyes wide full of fascination and awe. When they stopped they turned to look at the picture that stood before them.  
  
"Who are you?"  
  
"What do you do?" They asked before James got the chance to say the password.  
  
"Girls, that is rude." Said James and saw the curious expressions fall to look to their feet.  
  
"Sorry." Both said.  
  
The Fat Lady smiled. "Oh don't worry James, they are young and curious, I'm sure you were the same when you were younger."  
  
The girls turned to look up at the portrait with bright smiles.  
  
"So you want to know who I am and what I do?" The girls nodded. "Well, I'm the guardian of the Gryffindor Tower, nobody can pass through without giving me the correct password." She said.  
  
"What happens?"  
  
"If they know it?"  
  
"If they know it then I let it pass."  
  
"But what if it's a meanie."  
  
"And doesn't belong in there?"  
  
"Oh well, it that case they get into trouble."  
  
"Uncle James?"  
  
"Will we be in trouble?"  
  
"We don't know."  
  
"The password."  
  
The Fat Lady and James laughed.  
  
"Don't worry, I know it and you are given especial permission to go in." James said with a smile. The worry in the girls' faces disappeared as they smiled once more. "Shall we go in then?" The girls nodded.  
  
"Spring Showers." Said James and the portrait opened.  
  
"Why did it take you so long?" Said a voice as soon as they entered.  
  
The whole group was waiting in the common room for them. Katie and Sirius sharing an armchair, while Remus and Emma sat together on one of the couches. Peter had fallen asleep on the floor.  
  
"I didn't take that long." Said James as Emma and Katie took one of the girls and sat in a couch talking softly to them.  
  
"Well? What did Dumbledore say?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"They are staying with us until mother comes tomorrow." James sighed.  
  
"What do you mean us? Which us?" Said Remus hoping that it wasn't what he thought it was.  
  
"I mean that they will stay in our room for tonight." Said James hoping that they wouldn't explode in front of the girls.  
  
"Is that a good idea?" Asked Emma.  
  
"No offense but you boys are not the right idea for role models. Not for someone so young as they are." Said Katie shaking her head.  
  
"What do you mean? We are good role models." Said Sirius.  
  
"Are trying to say that they should stay with you instead? Well I'm sorry but they know us they barely met you." Said Remus.  
  
"Besides, they want to stay with me." Snapped James. Not good role models, he thought, who has been taking care for them this whole month.  
  
"But it wouldn't be right, for girls that young to stay in the same room with boys." Said Emma.  
  
"You have no modesty, they might see something that will scar them for life." Said Katie.  
  
"We are modest. We wouldn't do anything to hurt them." Said Remus.  
  
"Humph!" Snorted Katie.  
  
"Give them here I have to get them ready for bed." Said James. I'll show them, he muttered.  
  
Remus and Sirius quickly stood to take one of the girls and helped James go up the stairs to their dorm.  
  
"Poor girls." Said Katie.  
  
  
  
"Will you lot do that in the restroom, we have the girls here remember." Said James when he noticed Sirius getting ready to change. The girls were sitting on James bed their eyes wide capturing everything around them.  
  
"Blast! I had forgotten. Sorry." Exclaimed Sirius and quickly ran to the restroom.  
  
"Maybe we should have left them with the girls James. What happens if they wake up wanting to go to the restroom? I don't know about you but I'm not taking care of that." Said Remus trying to keep the girls occupied with a pack of exploding snaps.  
  
"You are right. But they want to stay with me. What am I going to do?" Said James running his hands in his hair. "And they are my responsibility until mother comes tomorrow."  
  
"Well, I agree with Remus. You know that Sirius sometimes speaks in his sleep. What if he says something that they shouldn't hear?" Said Peter who had closed the curtains around his bed and was getting changed inside.  
  
"There is that. Do you think the girls are still up?" Asked James as he heard the twins giggle at Remus antics.  
  
"I'm sure they are." Remus said.  
  
"Will you look after them while I go and get them?" James asked as he turned to leave the room.  
  
"Sure." Peter and Remus responded.  
  
James walked silently down the corridors searching for the one where the girls' dorm was. I hope they are still awake, he thought, oh boy! What did I get myself into?  
  
The corridors were dark, the only light on his path came from the window. Lanterns were out and he had left his wand behind. He swore as he hit one of the beams on the corridor, but he finally found the corridor he was searching for.  
  
He heard voices and giggles coming from inside the room. He knocked. The room turned silent and he heard footsteps coming toward him. A pair of startled eyes met his when the door opened.  
  
"James? What is wrong?" Said Emma opening the door wider.  
  
"Er, sorry if I disturbed but I though about it and I think you are right, the twins should stay here with you." Quickly said James.  
  
Emma gave him a told-you-so look and turned into the room to speak with somebody James thought was Katie.  
  
"Very well, they can sleep in Lily's bed. We'll go with you to get them." Said Emma and walked into the room. James waited patiently for them and gave a sigh of relief when he saw them coming out with cloaks around them.  
  
They quickly walked down the corridors. The girls were smart enough to remember their wands so they got to the boys' room faster than it had taken James to go to theirs.  
  
The twins were giggling when they entered the room. Sirius was jumping around the room making faces trying to keep them entertained. He stopped when he heard the laughter coming from the door.  
  
"There you are, what took you?" He asked with an impish smile.  
  
"I forgot to take my wand." Said James approaching the young girls sitting on his bed. "Francie, Cassie. You are going to sleep with my friends all right? They are going to take care of you so you have nothing to worry about." He said sitting on the bed beside them.  
  
The twins' happy expression fell and tears started to appear in their eyes. James groaned. He couldn't stand seeing them cry. "Oh don't worry, it will be only at night, I will be here in the morning. Think of them as your nurse. You don't sleep with me at home do you? Then this is no different." He was happy to see that their eyes dry once more.  
  
Emma neared the bed and sat by James. "Don't worry, we are much better than sleeping with boys, they snore." She said in a tone that made the twins smile up at her.  
  
"Hey!" Four male voices exclaimed.  
  
"Oh you know it's true. They would have much more fun with us than you, we know what it's like to be girls." Said Katie. "Come dears, you can play with our stuffed animals." She said going to the bed to pick up one of the little girls.  
  
Emma reached for the remaining twin and turned to James. "Do you have any clothing for them?"  
  
James shook his head. "Their visit wasn't planned." He said with a sarcastic tone. "If I knew they were coming I would've prepared something." Emma glared at him. "Professor Dumbledore said that I could transfigure something for them. Lotty went in search of some clothing to do so." James said.  
  
"Well tell him not to bother, we might be able to shrink something of ours." Said Katie. "See you all in the morning." And the girls quickly left the room.  
  
"It's for the best you know." Said Remus when he saw James worried expression.  
  
"I know." James said with a sigh.  
  
"You are lucky that tomorrow is Saturday." Said Sirius. "Can you imagine, going to class with two three year olds tagging along." He shuddered at the thought.  
  
The other three looked at him in horror. "Oh lord." James finally exclaimed.  
  
"That would've been a disaster." Said Peter.  
  
The boys had an uneventful night and the twins enjoyed spending the night with the big girls. Early the next morning giggles woke James up.  
  
"Shhhh." He groaned putting his pillow over his head. Then he felt some weight falling on to his stomach taking his breath away. "Umph."  
  
"Uncle James."  
  
"Uncle James."  
  
Oh, I should've known. He thought. He pushed the pillow above his head and opened his eyes to see two pairs of blue eyes looking down at him.  
  
"What are you doing here?" He asked.  
  
"Wake up."  
  
"It's day now."  
  
"All right, all right, I'll get up." He sighed. The girls quickly climbed down from him and stayed on the bed watching him as he looked around for his things. "Where are Emma and Katie? You are supposed to be with them."  
  
"They're busy."  
  
"In the bathroom."  
  
"Why didn't you stay to wait for them?" Quietly said James, he had remembered that the others were still sleeping.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Do we have to?"  
  
James sighed once more. I'm not having daughters, he thought, they're too difficult to understand. "Ok, stay here and keep quiet the others are still sleeping." James went into the restroom, sure that the girls would stay still until he was ready.  
  
The girls stayed on James' bed for five minutes until they started to get bored. They turned around and with wide eyes studied every single thing in plain view. They suddenly heard movement from one of the curtained beds. They turned to look at each other with wide smiles and slowly climbed down from the bed. They tiptoed to the closest bed and shimmied behind the curtains. They saw a dark haired boy in bed. He was snoring softly and the blankets that were supposed to be covering his body had twisted around his bed. The girls giggled, trying to be silent. The sleeping boy groaned and turned. One of the girls noticed something sticking from below the mattress. A feather. They giggled again when she reached for it.  
  
Sirius felt something tickling his leg. He reached to scratch in his sleep. He could've sworn that he heard giggles. He felt it once more and tried getting away from whatever it was by moving to the other side of the bed. He felt again. He moved further. Again. He moved, right out of the bed.  
  
Remus and Peter were woken by a thud followed a loud exclamation coming from Sirius.  
  
"What? What happened?" Asked Remus opening the curtains to look at his friend looking stunned on the floor.  
  
"Did you have a nightmare Sirius?" Said Peter peering from between the curtains on his own bed.  
  
"No I don't kn-" He never finished what he was saying. Giggles interrupted him. Giggles coming from his curtained bed. Sirius stood and snapped open the curtains to find two small bumps underneath his blankets.  
  
Sirius rolled his eyes. Peter and Remus chuckled. They knew what they would find underneath the blankets.  
  
"Hmmm.I wonder what made me fall." Said Sirius in mock surprise.  
  
"Maybe a pair of pixies decided that you were too lazy." Said Remus leaving his own bed to stand beside him.  
  
"Or maybe your snoring bothered them." Said Peter also approaching the bed.  
  
"I don't snore." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
Giggles were heard coming from beneath the blankets.  
  
"Shh.you hear that." The giggling stopped. "I think I hear the fairies." Sirius said. He took one corner of the blanket and pulled. "There are the fairies!"  
  
"We are not fairies."  
  
"You are silly."  
  
The girls said at the sight of the three boys looking down on them.  
  
"I stand corrected." Said Sirius. "Do you mind telling me why you got me out of bed." He said with a smile.  
  
"It's day."  
  
"You should be up."  
  
Was all the girls said. The bathroom door opened and James stepped out.  
  
"I see you lot are up." He said. Looking at the group near Sirius bed.  
  
"We had no choice." Said Peter walking back to his bed. He thought he might as well get dressed, there was no way he was going to be able to go back to sleep.  
  
"Your nieces threw me out of my bed." Said Sirius as he tickled the girls. The girls rolled in laughter on his bed.  
  
"What did they do?" Asked James with a sigh. "I'm sorry, I told them to stay put."  
  
"Oh don't worry, it was time for us to be up anyways." Said Remus with a wave of his hand.  
  
They heard running steps coming toward their room and the door opened with a slam.  
  
"James, the girls, they are gone." Katie was saying even before she stepped into the room.  
  
"We told them to wait while we got ready and then they weren't there." Emma said as she came into the room.  
  
"Don't worry, they are here." Said James motioning toward Sirius bed where the girls were seen sitting playing with Sirius.  
  
"Oh thank god!" Sighed Emma with relief.  
  
"We'll take them to the common room while you lot finish dressing." Said Katie and quickly approached the girls.  
  
"We'll be down there soon." Said James as the girls left the room. "Ok, you lot, get ready." He said to the others.  
  
The boys groaned but bounced out of bed and started to get ready.  
  
  
  
Half an hour later, the Marauders came into the common room to find most of the female population in the Tower in one side of the room.  
  
"What is going on?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"I don't know but I don't see the girls." Said James trying to look round be group.  
  
"I think they are in the middle of that group." Said Remus motioning toward the large congregation.  
  
The boys groaned.  
  
"I'm not fighting my way through that lot. I'll never come out alive." Said Peter shuddering at the thought of having to fight his way in to the middle where they guessed they twins were.  
  
They didn't need to worry as a couple of squeals where heard and shouts of "Uncle James. Uncle James," were heard and the group of girls parted to let the little girls run to their uncle.  
  
"Are you ready to go down to eat?" James said as he hugged the young girls.  
  
"Yes." The twins said.  
  
"Come on then." He said and took both of their hands and turned toward the picture hole.  
  
The little girls chattered as they walked down the corridors. James noticed that all the girls were following them. Sirius and Remus chuckled while Peter kept turning worriedly at the girls behind them. Emma and Katie giggled ahead of them.  
  
  
  
  
  
The Gryffindor table was very lively that morning. Almost everybody tried to outdo each other trying to make the twins laugh. It started with those in Gryffindor but soon students from other houses came and tried to make the twins laugh as well, except Slytherin of course.  
  
"I can't wait to see what those little girls will do when it's time for them to join us Minerva." Said Dumbledore with a smile and a twinkle in his eyes.  
  
"Humph, I'm sure I will be holding my breath." She answered with disapproval. "But we must do something, they are interrupting our meal."  
  
"Oh Minerva, it's Saturday, let them be. Those girls are pure magic." Said Dumbledore but Professor's McGonagall's expression showed that she didn't agree with him.  
  
  
  
  
  
James and his friends were sitting on a blanket at the edge of the lake as the twins ran and played near the shore. The tentacles of the giant squid that dwelled in the lake peeked above the water making the little girls giggle at the sight.  
  
"They seem to be having fun." Said Sirius as he popped a grape into his mouth. Remus and Peter had sneaked into the kitchens to steal some food to take with them to the lake.  
  
"They are young. They see fun in everything they do." Said Katie.  
  
The silence was suddenly broken by a shout. James and the others turned to look behind them toward the castle entrance to see Mrs. Potter running toward them.  
  
"Thank the gods she is here. I don't think I could stand having them here for another day." Said James with relief.  
  
"That is mean of you. They are precious little girls." Emma chided as the twins ran toward their grandmother.  
  
"Gran."  
  
"Gran." They shouted.  
  
"It's not that I don't love them. I love having them around, but let's face it, I don't know anything about little girls." James said.  
  
"That's true. Those little munchkins would be lost with just James in charge." Laughed Sirius.  
  
The others laughed. "I'm not that clueless." Exclaimed James among the laughter.  
  
"I see that you are having fun today." Said Mrs. Potter approaching the group. The twins were running alongside her.  
  
"Hello mother, hope you had a good trip." Greeted James as he stood to kiss his mother's cheek.  
  
"Yes dear. You don't know how glad I was to receive your owl. The household was in chaos until then." She said.  
  
James gave her his hand to help her down to the blanket as the others slid to make room for her.  
  
"I thought you would be worried. I was in quite a taking when I saw them among my things let me tell you." Said James as he served her a glass of butterbeer.  
  
"Thank you dear." She said sipping from her glass.  
  
The twins continued running around the group and were soon joined by Sirius and Remus. Giggles and laughter filled the air as an impromptu game of tag got underway. Soon only James and Mrs. Potter stayed on the blanket watching the game.  
  
"You see to have done well with them." Said Mrs. Potter with pride.  
  
"I suppose, but I had to rely on my friends. I don't know anything about little girls mother." He exclaimed. "I'm not having daughters, they are a handful."  
  
Mrs. Potter laughed. "Oh don't worry James by the time you have children there will be a woman by your side. I'm sure your wife would know something about girls." She said.  
  
"When are you leaving?"  
  
"We'll leave tonight. I want them to be in their own bed tonight." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
James nodded and turned to look at the lively game.  
  
The morning passed, by the time luncheon was served in the Great Hall, Mrs. Potter and the twins were ridding down the carriage to meet the Hogwarts Express in Hogsmead. James had stood at the steps in the entrance of the castle waving them goodbye.  
  
"Don't worry James, you will see them again in four weeks." Said Sirius standing beside him.  
  
"I know, but I will still miss them." James said.  
  
  
  
  
  
A/N: One more chapter and seventh year is done. I hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. Don't forget to review! : D 


	24. Chapter 20 Saying Goodbye

A/N: This is it! This is the last chapter of Seventh Year. Hope you all like it.  
  
  
  
Chapter 20 ~ Saying Goodbye  
  
  
  
  
  
The school year was rapidly coming to a close. Students could be seen studying in all parts of the school. The Quidditch Season was now over, the Cup being won by everybody's favorite team, Gryffindor, and arrangements for the Seventh Year Ball were all set.  
  
Lily had felt lonely during the weeks she spent at home. Her therapy was doing her a lot of good. She was now able to walk with the help of crouches and soon she would be able to use just a cane. But she missed her friends. She missed her classes. She missed her teachers. She missed the happy atmosphere that was felt throughout the castle but above else, she missed James.  
  
She knew that he was back at Hogwarts. She had received word of it from Emma and Katie. They had told her all about the twins and the chaos they created for poor James by hiding in his trunk. She had laughed as she read the letter, imagining the expression on his face the moment he noticed his nieces' presence in his trunk. She wished she had been there. She wished she had the opportunity to meet the young girls. And she wished things could be different and that they had stayed the way there were at the beginning of the year.  
  
On this sunny morning she was sitting in the parlor waiting for her mother to be get ready, they were on their way to do some shopping.  
  
"Lily dear, are you all set?" Asked Mrs. Evans from the entrance hall.  
  
"Yes mum." Said Lily slowly coming to her feet. Although she was now able to walk for short periods of time before getting tired, she still needed a little bit of help to get up.  
  
"Do you need help dear?" Asked Mrs. Evans as she opened the door to see what was holding her daughter up.  
  
"No mum, I'm fine. Have you seen my purse? I thought I had it here with me." Said Lily looking around.  
  
"Oh, is here in the hall dear." Said Mrs. Evans from the hall.  
  
Lily soon joined her mother in the entrance hall waiting for the car to be brought to the front.  
  
"We need to get you some new clothes and some new accessories dear. Do you need anything from Diagon Alley?" Mrs. Evans was chattering as they waited.  
  
"No. Professor McGonagall is sending somebody to give me the exams. We will only need to wait for one more week until the end of the school year." Said Lily.  
  
"Are you sure dear that you don't want to go to school now? I'm sure that you could do fine now, and the professors would be glad to help you." Urged Mrs. Evans, she was eager to see her daughter go on with her life and forget about all the trouble she has gone through the last months.  
  
"I don't know mum, let me think on it." Said Lily with a sigh. Even though she missed her friends and missed her school she wasn't sure she wanted to go back. So many things had changed, she was sure, and she didn't want to feel that she had been left behind.  
  
They passed a marvelous time shopping. It had been a while since they had gone to do something together and Mrs. Evans was taking advantage of this unique opportunity. Her daughters would soon be leaving and she would feel so alone when they did.  
  
"Have you decided Lily what are you going to do?" Asked Mrs. Evans when they were driving back to their home.  
  
"Do?" Asked Lily, what was her mother getting at?  
  
"Yes, after school dear. Are you going to look for a job in the magical world or are you going to stay here with us." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Well, Professor Dumbledore offered me a position in Hogwarts. Not as a teacher but as an apprentice. I would be an apprentice for a few years before I'm given a full position as a professor."  
  
"Do you want to do that dear?"  
  
"Oh yes, I think I would enjoy it. Hogwarts is a very prestigious school, there is no better place to work. Even if I had an offer from the Ministry I would still consider working for Hogwarts instead."  
  
"Well dear, as long as you are happy."  
  
"I will love it mum."  
  
"If you say so dear."  
  
"Why did you bring it up? You are not dying are you?"  
  
"Oh no dear. I was just wondering, we haven't really discussed it."  
  
"I know. But don't worry mum, whatever I decided to do, you will be the first to know."  
  
"Thank you dear."  
  
  
  
The next couple of days were very important for the seventh years. The time for them to take the N.E.W.T.s had arrived. Most of the seventh years were seen studying at all times on the days previous to the test. Most younger students had to tiptoe around them or keep quiet, they had learned to do so after several students were frightened by stressed seventh years telling them to be quiet.  
  
"Argh, I really hate this, I don't see why we need to be tested on all of this we are not going to use it once we go out to the real world." Exclaimed Katie slamming her book shut.  
  
"I agree. I see why we need muggle studies, but really, why do we need to know about the goblin rebellion. When are we going to need that information?" Said Sirius as he banged his head on the table.  
  
"Stop that Sirius. You are shaking the table." Snapped Emma.  
  
"Just try to do you best. We will be fine." Said Remus also closing his book. His eyes were too tired from reading too much.  
  
"I think we need a break. Perhaps we should go outdoors for a while. Clear our minds for a while." Said James coming to his feet. He really needed to stretch his legs a bit.  
  
"You are right let's get out of here." Said Katie pulling Sirius with her.  
  
The group was soon seen leaving the common room and walking around the school grounds.  
  
The evening was warm and there was a slight breeze. It was perfect weather to clear their minds.  
  
The days were getting longer and the nights shorter, but the group didn't mind. They liked the fact that they were together. There was only one piece of the group that was missing and the felt it keenly.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Mum, dad, I've come to a decision." Said Lily as she entered the kitchen that evening.  
  
"Yes dear, what have you decided?" Asked Mrs. Evans as she turned to look at her daughter. She was so happy to see Lily on her feet once more. The previous weeks had been grueling and very taxing for the family. Especially for Lily. But during the last week all the hard work had paid off when Lily had started to walk unaided once more. Now Lily could walk, run and do most of what she had been able to do before her accident. It seem miraculous to the Evans, even if Lily still needed to do further exercise to fully recuperate.  
  
"I'm going back to school. I want to spend the last week with my friends." Lily said.  
  
"Are you sure Princess? You really don't need to go back, you are taking the exams tomorrow with the teacher Dumbledore is sending." Said Mr. Evans.  
  
"Oh I know that I really don't need to go but I want to see them before we all go our separate ways." Said Lily thoughtfully. "I know that we will keep in touch and see each other occasionally, but we really don't know what will really happen and I really do miss them. I will be back on time for Petunia's wedding." She quickly added but in a low voice muttered "not that she would really miss me."  
  
"If you are sure dear that you want to go back, then of course we will let you. But, how are you going back?" Asked Mrs. Evans.  
  
"I'll owl Professor Dumbledore." Said Lily and skipped out of the room.  
  
"It will be only for a while Rose, she will be right back." Said Mr. Evans at seeing his wife's concerned expression.  
  
"I know, but I can't help being concerned. She still needs more therapy to go through for her to be completely recovered."  
  
"She will be back and will continue with her therapy, she won't be going off until she is sure she is completely healthy. We have a smart daughter Rose, she knows what is best for her."  
  
"You are right."  
  
  
  
  
  
The next two days were very stressing for all students. The fifth years were taking their O.W.L.s , the seventh years their N.E.W.T.s, and the rest of the school their class exams.  
  
By the end of the week everybody was exhausted but happy that it was all over and that they had only one week left of school until their marks came out.  
  
The seventh years now had something else in mind. The Graduation and the Ball. They were all looking forward to dressing up and spend an evening of fun dancing and partying. They were also looking forward to be presented to the wizard community as fully trained witches and wizards that were now ready to join the real world.  
  
The day before the ball we find our favorite group sitting around the fireplace of the Gryffindor common room, making plans for the next day.  
  
"What are you wearing Katie? You haven't told me about it." Urged Sirius as he sat beside her watching the light that was reflected from her hair. She liked sight of the light as it hit her hair.  
  
"I'm not going to tell you. It's a surprise." She whispered in his ear.  
  
Sirius eyebrow lifted. A mischievous look entering his eyes. "Really? I'm going to have fun tomorrow night then."  
  
"We shall see." She said with a flirtatious smile.  
  
"Will you two stop it, you are making us sick. Go to the Astronomy Tower if you want to be all lovey-dovey." Said Peter making faces behind their backs.  
  
The others laughed. Katie and Sirius didn't usually flirt with each other when they were all together, but it was a fun sight nonetheless.  
  
"Well, I think it is time for us to go to our dorm. We want to have enough rest for tomorrow. We have a long day ahead." Said Emma pulling Katie to her feet.  
  
"Oh yes, we need our beauty sleep." Joked Katie. They waved the boys goodnight and started to climb the stairs.  
  
"What do you reckon? Should we go up to bed?" Said Sirius with a yawn.  
  
"It seems that you are ready to do so." Laughed James. "We might as well. There is nothing else for us to do until tomorrow."  
  
"Do you have everything we need Sirius?" Asked Remus as the group started to make their way to their dorm.  
  
"Yes. Everything settled. We are having fun tomorrow." He smiled. The others smiled back. They certainly planned to make the most of the party.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Do you know who James is going to the ball tomorrow?" Asked Emma to Katie as they prepared for bed.  
  
"No, he didn't answered when I asked. Why, what have you heard?" Whispered Katie as she settled in Emma's bed ready to share gossip with her friend.  
  
"Well, you know that James has always been a theme of gossip around here but I've heard that he is going with Jezebel to the Ball." Emma whispered back.  
  
"He wouldn't!" Exclaimed Katie in a scandalized tone. "Not after what happened."  
  
Emma shrugged. "I don't really know. He hasn't told anybody whom he is going with. I asked Remus and he doesn't know either."  
  
"I asked Sirius as well and I got the same answer. I don't reckon he would tell Peter do you?"  
  
"Oh no. Sirius is his best friend. If he would tell somebody it would be him."  
  
"Hmmm.I really don't know why he is keeping it quiet. Nobody would say anything against him if he went with any girl. They are all crazy for him. Even when he was going out with Lily they were still crazy for him."  
  
"Well, I suppose we have to wait until tomorrow to find out."  
  
"What do you want to find out?" Said a voice from behind them.  
  
Both girls turned quickly to see who it was and gasped in surprise.  
  
"Lily!" Both girls screamed and run to hug their friend.  
  
Lily laughed as they threw themselves to her. She was glad that she had no need of crutches or cane anymore otherwise she would have lost her balance and they would be tangled on the floor right now.  
  
"What are you doing here?"  
  
"Why didn't you tell us?"  
  
"When did you arrive?"  
  
"Are you going to the Ball?"  
  
"Oh this is going to be great!"  
  
Lily laughed at being deluged with questions from her friends. "Will you stop?" She laughed. "I need to unpack you know."  
  
"Oh yes, we are sorry Lily." Said Emma quickly reaching for Lily's trunk and pulling it toward the bed that belonged to her.  
  
"Emma, I can do that." Lily said she didn't want to get special treatment especially from her friends. But they didn't seem to be paying attention, while Emma pulled the trunk, Katie was pushing Lily toward the bed.  
  
"Come Lily, don't stay there." Said Katie. "We have lots to talk about."  
  
The girls stayed awake late into the night chatting of everything that had happened during the last couple of months. Light was started to get light when the three friends finally fell asleep.  
  
  
  
  
  
The boys woke up earlier than usual the next morning. They promptly got ready and went to the Great Hall for breakfast. They weren't expecting to see the girls at all that morning. They thought the girls would prefer to do whatever girls did when they were getting ready for a party.  
  
"Are you going to stay in here James?" Asked Remus when they were ready to leave the Hall.  
  
"Yes, I have to talk to the prefects. Sirius remember to get here before lunch. We have to check everything before the Ball." Said James as he remained sitting on the table. Sirius nodded and they left leaving James behind.  
  
"Do you know who he is going with? Emma asked me the other day but I don't know." Asked Remus as they walked down the corridor toward the Tower.  
  
"Now that you mention it Katie asked me the same. I don't know either, he has never said anything about it." Said Sirius with a thoughtful expression.  
  
"You don't think that he will skip it do you? I mean this is the most important social event of the school year." Exclaimed Peter.  
  
"Peter, this is the only social event of the year." Scoffed Sirius.  
  
"What is the gossip about him?" Asked Remus.  
  
"What do I care for gossip it's all lies." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"But sometimes it's based on truth." Said Remus. "We might be able to find out through it."  
  
"The only thing I heard was that he was going with Jezebel Robinson." Said Peter.  
  
"There you are, all lies. I mean, James wouldn't go with her. Not after what happened with Lily." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"What is he hiding then?" Remus asked.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Lily will you stop? You are making me nervous." Complained Katie.  
  
"Well, I don't know if I should put up my hair or not." Snapped Lily.  
  
"Will you two calm down? We still have time to get ready." Emma tried to soothe her friends.  
  
The girls had decided to stay in their room for the day getting ready. The elves had brought them breakfast and were now partaking of a light luncheon as they started to get ready.  
  
"I'm going to take a bath, maybe that will relax me." Said Lily taking her towel and toiletries from her trunk.  
  
"Are you going to the Head Student's bathroom?" Asked Katie. She knew that Lily had decided to stay in the room until it was time for the ball because she was trying to avoid meeting James.  
  
"No, I'm using our bathroom. There is no need to go anywhere else." Said Lily with a shake of her head.  
  
"Oh. I thought maybe you would like to go to the biggest bathroom." Said Katie with a sigh. She had thought that maybe she could get James to meet Lily when she had gone.  
  
"It will only take a moment, I don't need to lose time going out of the Tower." Said Lily and quickly locked the restroom door behind her.  
  
"How long do you think she will stay away from him?" Asked Emma.  
  
"I don't know, but I don't think they can avoid each other during the Ball."  
  
"Hopefully. Let us hope that they don't quarrel in the middle of it."  
  
"Oh no, I don't think they will. They are both very aware of their social standing to make a scene."  
  
"Who do you think James will be going with? It's a shame that Lily returned until last night. She didn't have time to find a date."  
  
"Maybe we can find someone at the Ball. But I don't think she will lack partners. Everybody will be so surprise to see her that they will all want to spend time with her."  
  
"You're probable right." Responded Emma and turned back to the mirror to work on her hairstyle.  
  
  
  
  
  
Two more hours left for the Ball to commence and members of the planning committee were standing in the middle of the room gazing at the decorations with awe.  
  
"Oh it's better that what I had in mind." Exclaimed Katie as she saw the bewitched sparkling confetti falling from the ceiling of the Great Hall.  
  
The confetti disappeared as it touched the floor that way dancers would have a clear dance floor. Fairies danced among the plants lining the walls. Round tables were placed on one side of the room each sitting up to eight people. They were covered with white lacy covers and the shields of each house were embroidered on them. Lighted candles floated in the middle of each table. The glass doors on one side of the Hall had been opened leading into the gardens and fairies were seen skipping from flower to flower. There were more tables placed just outside the doors, also with floating candles. But these were much smaller than the ones indoors, sitting only two. These were especially placed in a darkened area of the garden to give some privacy to those couples that wished it.  
  
"I cannot believe that Dumbledore agreed to the tables outside. I thought somebody would be against it." Said a Hufflepuff girl as she giggled.  
  
"Oh he thought it a great idea, it was Professor McGonagall that complained." Said James with a smile as he turned to look at the stage placed where the Teacher's table was usually placed. The band would stand there and the teacher's had agreed to sit at one of the round tables along with the students.  
  
"Well of course she would complain." Said Sirius. "But old Dumbledore wouldn't let us down."  
  
"Well, I think we are all set. The band just arrived. They are waiting in the room next to the Hall. I think it's time for us to go to our rooms and finish getting ready." Said James.  
  
The group didn't need to be told twice as they excitedly left the Hall, chattering as they went.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Hurry up, we told the boys we would meet in the common room at seven." Exclaimed Katie urging her friends to hurry.  
  
"We are almost done. Hold on to you pants." Said Emma. "They will wait for us, they can't go into the ball without us."  
  
Lily giggled. She was sitting on her mattress watching her friends as they got ready. "Don't worry, you all look fine."  
  
Emma looked at Lily with worry in her eyes. "Are you sure Lily that you want to go? What if you get tired?"  
  
"I will sit. I'm fine, really. But I will stay in my seat if you prefer." Lily said touched by her friends' concern in her welfare.  
  
"Oh no, you have to dance at least once." Said Katie, "then you can sit as long as you want."  
  
"Well, I won't be dancing if you lot take too long. The Ball will be over by the time you are done." Said Lily with a laugh.  
  
"Oh dear, look at the time. We have to go." Exclaimed Emma as she looked at the clock.  
  
"That's what I've been saying!" Screamed Katie in exasperation.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Will you lot hurry? I promised Katie I would wait for her in the common room." Said Sirius as he shifted his weight from one foot to another as the rest were running from one side of the room to another making sure they weren't forgetting anything.  
  
"Did you get her a corsage?" Asked Remus, he had just thought of it and was thinking that Emma would feel overlooked it Sirius got one for Katie when he didn't.  
  
"Were we supposed to?" Whispered Sirius with terror. "I didn't got her one. Oh lord! Do you think they will be mad?"  
  
"Damn, what are we supposed to do now, where can we get one at this time?" Said Remus pulling his hair messing his tidy style.  
  
"Uh, I think that you are forgetting something." Said James trying to stifle his laugh. Remus and Sirius turned to look at him with hopeful expressions. He couldn't hold it any longer. He laughed.  
  
"Will you stop laughing and tell us what we are forgetting?" Snapped Sirius.  
  
James tried to control his merriment and coughed for a moment before speaking once more. "You are wizards, you can use a spell to get a couple of corsages." He said very slowly.  
  
Remus groaned and hit his forehead with his hand. "I forgot."  
  
James burst up laughing once more. "How could you forget that you are wizards?"  
  
"Oh shut it!" Exclaimed Sirius as he got his wand and carefully created a small carnation corsage. "Do you think she will like it?" He asked as he presented it to his friends.  
  
"Oh she will adore it." Said James with a laugh.  
  
"You are in a good mood." Warily said Remus, he would've thought that James would be feeling a bit sad at this time with thoughts of what could've been.  
  
"Of course I am. If you lot are ready I think it's time for us to go and wait for the girls in the common room." Said James and walked toward the door.  
  
"Oh, all right." Said Sirius as he looked in the mirror one last time.  
  
"Come on Peter!" Called Remus as they started to leave the room.  
  
"Coming." Said Peter. He had been too quiet during the whole time they had been preparing for the ball.  
  
The boys soon arrived to the common room. The girls had not arrived yet and they settled by the stairs to wait for them. Most of the Gryffindor common room was empty. Most of the seventh years had long gone down to the Great Hall and the younger members of the house were in their own rooms gossiping about their older housemates.  
  
The boys soon heard footsteps and giggles coming from up the stairs. Peter had left a couple of minutes before to meet his date. Sirius and Remus lined up next to the stairs and James sat in a couch facing the stairs. Soon three figures appeared on the landing and the three boys gaped at the site.  
  
Emma and Katie were up front blocking the person behind them. The boys thought she was probably a friend who would be going with a boy from another house so they didn't pay too much attention. Their eyes were locked on the two girls before them.  
  
"You look beautiful." Breathed Remus in awe.  
  
"You truly do." Agreed Sirius.  
  
Both boys stood rooted on the spot and made no sign that they would stepping forward. The girls stood at the last step, the third girls stifling her giggles behind them.  
  
"I think you're friend is eager to be on her way. Why don't you step aside so she can meet her date?" Said James with a bored drawl.  
  
The girls burst out giggling at this. James frowned, what was so funny, he thought. Sirius and Remus looked at each other puzzled.  
  
"Oh we have a surprise for you." Said Katie with a huge smile.  
  
"Oh?" Asked James with a lift of his brow.  
  
"Is it a nice surprise?" Asked Sirius with a mischievous smile.  
  
"Oh I think you will like it." Said Emma.  
  
The girls stepped aside and the boys' jaws dropped. "Lily?" The three boys said in surprise.  
  
Lily smiled.  
  
Remus and Sirius run to hug her.  
  
"Why didn't you say anything?"  
  
"Look at you, you look gorgeous."  
  
"Are you feeling all right?"  
  
"Are you tired?"  
  
"Do you need to sit?"  
  
Lily laughed. "I'm fine. You two look handsome." She said before turning to look at the silent figure standing behind the joyful group.  
  
"Hello James." She said.  
  
"Hi Lily." He answered.  
  
They didn't say anything else. They stood looking at each other without saying a word.  
  
Katie sighed and turned on James. "Who are you taking James?"  
  
James blinked trying to capture the question that he was just asked. "What?"  
  
"Who are you taking?" Katie repeated.  
  
"Oh, I didn't ask anybody." He said.  
  
Emma and Katie looked at each other with a smile.  
  
"This is perfect then, you can take Lily." Exclaimed Emma.  
  
"Come Lily, take his arm, we have to go to the Hall." Urged Katie.  
  
Emma and Katie turned to Sirius and Remus who were smiling at the girls' obvious machinations.  
  
James and Lily stood looking at each other, not knowing what to do.  
  
"Come on. We have to go." Said Sirius as the portrait opened.  
  
James silently offered his arm and Lily took it. The group slowly made it's way out of the room and turned toward the Great Hall.  
  
  
  
  
  
The Great Hall was crowded by the time the group arrived. They stood by the door looking around as their classmates walked around greeting each other and mingling.  
  
"Oh dear!" Sighed Lily.  
  
"What is it Lily? Are you all right?" Asked Emma with some concern as the whole group turned to look at Lily with worry.  
  
"Oh I'm fine. I'm just nervous." Said Lily with a small smile.  
  
"Don't worry Lily, you look wonderful. Everybody will be so happy to see you." Said Sirius with an encouraging smile.  
  
Lily smiled back and took a deep breath. "All right, I'm ready." She said with determination.  
  
The group walked into the Hall. They soon attracted the attention of those present and whispers soon spread.  
  
"You are a hit Lily!" Squealed Katie with excitement.  
  
Lily merely smiled. She hated being the center of attention. And James' silence unnerved her. Didn't he have anything to say to her?  
  
The group walked toward one of the tables in which the staff was sitting keeping an eye on the boisterous crowd.  
  
"Hello Professor Dumbledore. Professor McGonagall." Greeted Remus to the nearest teachers.  
  
"Ah Mr. Lupin. I see you are now ready to join in the fun." Said Dumbledore then he turned to greet the others. "Mr. Black, Mr. Potter. I hope you all behave tonight. Miss Holmes, Miss Bennet, you look wonderful as always. Ah and Miss Evans, our prodigal daughter has returned. You look gorgeous of course. I'm glad you are better and could join us tonight."  
  
"Hello Professor. I'm fine really." Lily smiled to the kind Headmaster who peered at her with intensity as if he was trying to determine if Lily was telling the truth.  
  
"Well dear perhaps it's better if you sit for a while there is no need to get tired, I'm sure you will soon be surrounded by people trying to greet you." Said Professor McGonagall motioning to an empty table beside theirs.  
  
Their conversation was now attracting the attention of the other teachers in the table who broke into smiles as they noticed the group that had been keeping the Headmaster occupied.  
  
"Lily my dear, so glad to see you with us again." Squealed tiny Professor Flitwick as he spied his favorite student.  
  
"Hello Professor." Said Lily with a bright smile. She had always liked the Charms professor who had become a mentor to her during her years in Hogwarts.  
  
Soon, she was surrounded by friends and classmates welcoming her back. They laughed and talked as they waited for the Ball to start.  
  
Professor Dumbledore stood up and waited for the students to fall silent.  
  
"Welcome to all seventh years. We have come to the end of the most important year of your life. Tomorrow you will be presented to the magic community as the new fully trained wizards. But for tonight. Have fun, eat and dance, but above all else, be with your friends. Please join me in a round of applause as we acknowledge the hard work of the planning committee." He said.  
  
The Hall broke into applause as silver plates with golden shields of each house appeared before them. Menus appeared before the plates and soon people were asking for what they wished and the food promptly appeared on the plates. Jugs full of pumpkin juice and butterbeer appeared on each table. Conversations resumed as soft music started to play on the background.  
  
"Oh this looks wonderful!" Exclaimed Emma as she looked around the room noticing all the adornments.  
  
"You all did a great job." Said Lily with a nod. She was picking her food. The presence of the young man beside her unnerved her and the fact that he hadn't said a word made her more nervous.  
  
"I'm glad it's over though, I didn't like the meetings too much." Said Sirius relishing his food.  
  
"They were too long for him. He gets bored too easily." Said Katie.  
  
"Everything bores Sirius." Said James. Lily looked at him beneath her lashes, but James didn't turned to look her way.  
  
The table was one of the most boisterous. They attracted the attention of all of those present. Soon, dinner was over and Dumbledore signaled for silence.  
  
"Now that we are all fed and full, can I please have your attention?" He said as the Hall eventually fell silent.  
  
"Now, it is customary for the Head Boy and Girl to open the dance. This year, because of especial circumstances, we had two sets of Head Students. But we have all decided that the original Head Students should have the privilege of opening the dance. Mr. Potter, Miss Evans if you please."  
  
James and Lily turned to look at each other. James stood and offered his hand to Lily. Lily sat for a moment looking at that hand before finally reaching up for it. Together they walked to the middle of the floor. The lights dimmed, only the candles above the tables gave off light to the room a small band stood on the stage and they started to play a slow song.  
  
They started to dance.  
  
"Are you all right? You'll tell me when you tire, won't you?" James quietly said after they had been dancing for a while. They weren't alone on the floor anymore, and were now surrounded by others.  
  
"Yeah." Answered Lily. They fell silent once more, they were both too conscious of each other to think of anything to say.  
  
"I'm sorry about your dad." Lily said.  
  
"Thank you." James responded.  
  
Remus and Emma were dancing nearby keeping an eye on their friends.  
  
"We have to do something, I can't believe they are not speaking much." Exclaimed Emma.  
  
"It wouldn't be right to butt in Emma. They have to learn to deal with things on their own if their relationship is going to work. You and I will not always be there to make things right for them." Said Remus.  
  
"I guess you are right. But I hate seeing them like this."  
  
"We all do. But they have to deal with it, it's their problem."  
  
"I know."  
  
Sirius and Katie were having a similar discussion nearby.  
  
"But we can help." Katie was saying.  
  
"I know we can, but they wouldn't appreciate it. Let them be Katie, there isn't much we can do if they don't go along with any plans we might make." Sirius said.  
  
"Oh but-"  
  
"No buts Katie. Besides, the year is almost over, we don't know what plans they have after school, if they are going to have a relationship at all, they will figure things out by themselves."  
  
"When did you become so mature? I don't like it." Said Katie with a pout.  
  
Sirius laughed. "I'm sure you are exaggerating."  
  
The dance was soon underway. The dance floor was soon replete of moving bodies and couples were seen going out and in from the glass doors.  
  
"Are you sure Albus that it is wise to have the gardens open? We cannot keep an eye on students if they are out there." Said Professor McGonagall.  
  
"I'm sure Minerva. It's time to for them to feel that we trust them to behave as adults." Said Professor Dumbledore with a smile.  
  
"Well, if you say so. But I disagree." She said.  
  
"I know you do Minerva. Don't worry, I won't take it against you." He smiled. They continue looking at the dancing students. Dumbledore was tapping his feet with the rhythm of the music.  
  
The night looked magical. They couldn't have better weather. The night was warm and a slight breeze flew through the trees. Fairies skipped and danced among the bushes and flowers.  
  
"I like the way it all turned out." Said Lily as she tried to open a conversation with James once more.  
  
"Yes, it all came out better than I expected." He said.  
  
"It seems like a lot of work." Lily smiled.  
  
"No more than the Festival. I think it was about the same." He smiled.  
  
"Oh no! Thank the gods there were more volunteers for the planning committee than there were prefects."  
  
"Yes, we were lucky."  
  
"I see Sirius got his way and fairies were bought."  
  
"Well they could be a good investment."  
  
Lily smiled.  
  
"Do you want to rest? Perhaps a walk around the garden?"  
  
"That would be lovely."  
  
They didn't notice the many pairs of eyes that followed them out the room.  
  
  
  
Bewitched lanterns lighted the paths in the garden, the fairies were busy playing and dancing among the plants, and the lake sparkled with the light from the moon.  
  
The young couple walked among the paths in silence, meeting others along the way. Finally they reached the lake, which was now completely silent and nobody was around.  
  
"I wanted to go see you when you were in the hospital." James suddenly said.  
  
"Why didn't you?" Lily silently asked.  
  
"I didn't know you were there. Sirius and Remus didn't write to me about it. All I knew was that you were back in London and that you were going to undergo a treatment. By the time I found out, you were already gone back to your house."  
  
"You could've visited."  
  
"I couldn't get away from the estate. St. Mungos' is connected by the Floo Network, and it would have been easy for me to visit. Your house wasn't."  
  
"We had it temporarily connected while I went to therapy."  
  
"I didn't know."  
  
"Why didn't you write?"  
  
"I didn't think you would have opened my letters. I was told to stay away from you while you recovered."  
  
Lily turned to look with surprise. "Why? Who?"  
  
"Professor Dumbledore. He said that I would agitate you and that wasn't something that they wanted. You needed rest."  
  
"I kept wishing that you were there."  
  
"I wanted to be there. But I was also afraid."  
  
"Of what?"  
  
"That you didn't want to see me."  
  
"I was afraid as well."  
  
"Were you?"  
  
"Yes, that what I saw was that night in the common room was real and you didn't love me anymore." She whispered.  
  
"Oh no Lily, I was never unfaithful to you. You are the best thing that ever happened to me there was no way I was going to jeopardize what we had." He exclaimed.  
  
"We lost so much time away from each other."  
  
"Is it too late for us to start anew?"  
  
"I think it is. We only have one more day together and then we go our separate ways."  
  
"Does it have to be that way?"  
  
"I don't see how else it could be."  
  
"Marry me?"  
  
Lily sighed. "Oh James, I wish I could, but we are not ready for marriage. You have a estate to run and two little girls who look up to you and I still have therapy to complete. We are not ready."  
  
"You are right we are not, but I don't want to let you go, I don't want to lose you once more."  
  
"If we are meant to be together, we will meet again. And maybe by that time we will be ready to have a deeper relationship."  
  
"I will keep my fingers crossed." James smiled.  
  
James put his arms around her. Lily leaned her head on his chest, James leaned his head above hers. Together they watched the lake ripple and sparkle into the night.  
  
  
  
What is keeping them so long? Emma thought as she looked toward the glass doors leading to the gardens. She had just come out of the dance floor and was now waiting at their table for Remus who had gone to look for refreshments. Katie and Sirius were still on the floor.  
  
"Here you are. I brought a pitcher of butterbeer and pumpkin juice, I wasn't sure which you would prefer." Said Remus as he approached their table.  
  
"Thank you." She said with a smile and turned to look at the dance floor.  
  
The dance floor was filled to capacity. The dancers didn't seemed to mind that there wasn't enough room for everybody. The band had been playing for more than two hours now and soon would be taking some break time.  
  
"How long do you think they will take?" Asked Emma as she sipped her glass of butterbeer.  
  
"Who?" Asked Remus.  
  
"Lily and James of course." She said frowning at him.  
  
"Oh them. I don't know, as long as it takes them to get things right between them I guess."  
  
"Do you think they will get together again?"  
  
"I don't know. I don't think this would be the best time though. "No listen to me." He quickly added when he saw Emma ready to contradict him. "Think of all the things that they have gone through. Lily still needs to go to therapy to completely recover from her accident and James has to put his estate in order. There as so many things that they have to do, there won't be time for each other and their relationship would suffer."  
  
"I suppose you are right." Emma sighed. "But I do wish things would be better for them."  
  
"We all wish so. But if they are meant to be together they eventually will be."  
  
"I hope so."  
  
"Come let's dance some more before the band goes on break." Urged Remus as he pulled her to her feet and led her laughingly into the dance floor.  
  
  
  
Lily and James slowly made their way through the dim-lit garden. They met with other couples who had also decided for some privacy and were taking their time touring the grounds.  
  
"Maybe we should go back, it seems that it's getting crowded out here." Said James with a laugh.  
  
Lily smiled. "Yes, let's return. I'm sure the others are wondering what happened to us."  
  
"I'm surprised they are not out here spying on us."  
  
"I think Katie prefers to dance the night away than to be out here and miss all the fun." Lily giggled.  
  
"Well, thank god for that then. They can be in the way sometimes." Exclaimed James making Lily laugh.  
  
They soon reached the Great Hall. The dance floor was still full of people and the band was playing the last set.  
  
"Do you want to dance?" Asked James.  
  
"I would love to." She responded.  
  
The couple joined the others on the floor and spent a good half hour having fun.  
  
  
  
"Oh wow. That was something!" Exclaimed Sirius as he slumped on his chair.  
  
"Oh don't tell me you are tired." Teased Katie.  
  
"I'm getting old." He said.  
  
"Well old man, you did very well at your great age." Laughed Katie.  
  
Remus and Emma soon joined them and they could see Lily and James not too far behind.  
  
"How long were you two inside? We didn't see you come in." Exclaimed Katie as soon as Lily and James sat.  
  
"Oh, we've been on the dance floor for quite a while." Smiled Lily.  
  
"Come Lily, let's refresh ourselves at the girls' room." Urged Emma with a sly look toward Katie.  
  
"Oh yes, let's. The band is on break now so we won't be missing much." Said Katie quickly coming to her feet.  
  
Lily went along with the girls, there was no point in arguing with them. The boys just looked at each other and let them go without a word.  
  
"What do you reckon they will say to each other?" Said Remus as he watched to group walking away.  
  
"Oh gossip most like." Said Sirius with a shrug as he reached for the butterbeer that was still on the table as Remus and Emma had left it before.  
  
"I think they are planning to interview Lily." James said as he waited for Sirius to be done with the pitcher.  
  
"An interview, about what?" Asked Remus watching the couples returning to their tables or walking through the glass doors to the garden.  
  
"About what happened out there of course." Said James.  
  
"Oh."  
  
"So, what did happen out there?" Asked Sirius.  
  
Remus turned to look at James, waiting for his answer.  
  
"Nothing happened."  
  
"What? Are you telling me that you were alone for more than thirty minutes and you didn't even bother to patch things up?"  
  
"Oh we talked, and we got along just fine. We even came to an understanding. But nothing more." Said James as he continued to sip his butterbeer.  
  
"What, no kiss?" Sirius urged.  
  
"No kiss, just a hug."  
  
"Well!"  
  
"I did ask her to marry me." James suddenly said.  
  
Two glasses fell to the table and butterbeer spread through the cover unnoticed.  
  
"What?" Said Remus and Sirius.  
  
"She said no, it wasn't time. We are not ready for it."  
  
"What did you said?" Asked Remus.  
  
"She was right, we are not ready. Maybe in the future we will."  
  
"Oh sure, I have no doubt." Said Sirius with a wave of his hand. He had been scared for a minute there. Marriage! Perish the thought.  
  
  
  
After half an hour the girls were back and the band was again ready to play. Professor Dumbledore sat with Professor McGonagall watching the young people as they had fun.  
  
"Is everything ready for tomorrow?" He asked.  
  
"Yes, all is set for the ceremony. The apparition point has been assigned and I have owled the maps."  
  
"Good, what about the muggles?"  
  
"Hogwarts Express should arrive first thing tomorrow morning. It left London an hour ago."  
  
"Does the Three Broomsticks think that they can handle all the arrivals?"  
  
"Yes, Rosmetta believes they are ready. The fireplace has been cleaned and ready to receive visitors."  
  
"Very well. Let's give these young people one more hour, then let's send them off to bed. Tomorrow will be a busy day for them."  
  
"I agree. They need some rest."  
  
"My dear Professor, we need the rest. They could go on all night if they wanted." Laughed Dumbledore. Professor McGonagall smiled. She agreed with him. She knew that these youngsters had too much energy for their own good, especially the Gryffindors.  
  
Soon it was time for the Hall to be emptied. The students slowly made their way to their respective quarters. The Professors went off to the grounds making sure that everybody was inside. They asked for the fairies' help to do so, thus, the fairies were seen skipping from bush to bush looking for students.  
  
An hour later, the lanterns were blown out. The candles were doused off and the Great Hall was swallowed by darkness. Only Peeves was heard awake in the castle, everything was silent and peaceful.  
  
  
  
Everybody woke up with a feeling of expectation and wonder. It was the last day of school. The seventh years were running from one side of their room to another making sure that they were ready for the ceremony, which was taking place in one more hour. The younger students were staying late in bed until it was time for them to meet in the Great Hall at luncheon and find out how they did on their tests.  
  
"Have you seen my hat? I can't find my hat!" Exclaimed Katie looking around her bed and trunk for her witch's hat.  
  
"It's right over your pillow." Said Emma as she tried to style her hair.  
  
"Oh thanks." Sighed Katie.  
  
Lily was sitting on her bed all dressed up waiting for her friends to be over. She was trying to read a book but could read no more than a few lines before being distracted by her friends.  
  
"Lily, aren't you going to get ready?" Katie suddenly asked.  
  
"I'm all set, just waiting for you."  
  
"You cannot be ready, come Lily let me do something to your hair." Urged Katie.  
  
"Just leave it Katie, there is no time we have to be down in a few minutes, the ceremony is going to start soon." Said Emma.  
  
Lily sighed with relief, she didn't feel like letting Katie mess with her hair.  
  
The girls soon joined the other seventh years on their trip to the Great Hall.  
  
The students were wearing their black school robes, but instead of wearing the shield of their house embroidered on them they had the Hogwarts' shield instead.  
  
They were led into a room beside the Great Hall, they could hear conversations and chatter through the doors. It seemed that parents and family members had arrived.  
  
"Oh I'm so nervous." Said Katie.  
  
"I don't know why, you are not the one who has to give a speech." Snapped James. He was holding a parchment in his hands and his hair was starting to get messy. He had been running his hand through his hair constantly.  
  
"Oh don't worry James, I'm sure you will do fine." Said Lily as she run her fingers through his hair trying to undo the damage that he had done.  
  
"How come you are not giving a speech?" Asked Sirius to Lily.  
  
"I arrived too late for them to ask me." Said Lily with a smile.  
  
James groaned. "Lucky."  
  
Professor McGonagall appeared on the doorway, the students fell silent and look at her.  
  
"If you are ready, follow me please." She said.  
  
Some of the students smiled. They remembered her saying the same thing when they arrived as first years.  
  
The tables of the Great Hall had disappeared and in their place hundreds of chairs filled the hall. Four rows stood empty at the front. A wide path was cleared in the middle. Behind the four empty rows sat hundreds of wizards and witches waiting for the ceremony to begin. The hall was decorated with banners bearing the Hogwarts shield, a lion, a badger, an eagle and a snake around a large H. Where the staff table usually stood, now only chairs stood in a row. A podium in front of them.  
  
Professor McGonagall led the students to the four empty rows of chairs.  
  
"Please sit, silently. Now don't push. Mr. Potter I need you up there on the stage. Come now, in orderly fashion." Professor McGonagall said as she directed the students to their seats.  
  
James went up to the front row and waited for the teachers to join him.  
  
As soon as the students had appeared, flashes from cameras filled the hall. Students waved as they saw their families and some parents had stood up yelling their kid's name to attract their attention.  
  
Soon all the students were sitting and the teachers were walking into the room. The crowd fell silent.  
  
Dumbledore stayed standing while the rest of the teachers sat.  
  
"Welcome." He said in a magnified voice. "I'm glad you could join us in this important facet of these young people's lives. When they first came to Hogwarts it was clear that this class would be a special one. I expect greatness from them and I expect to hear a lot of them.  
  
"It has been our privilege to have these young people with us. They have worked hard to get to this moment. They have gone through tribulations and happy moments and I'm sure that these moments have made them into the young men and women we have today.  
  
"They will now go on to the real world as fully trained wizards and witches. To a world that is constantly changing and full of danger. They will have to make choices, and I truly believe that they are ready to face these choices and do the right thing."  
  
The crowd applauded as Dumbledore stopped speaking. As soon as the applause stopped he continued.  
  
"I would like now to introduce you to one of these brave young men. He is the perfect example of the great things that this class of students are capable of. Mr. James Potter."  
  
The audience cheered and applauded. James felt like fairies were doing summersaults in his stomach and thought that he would get sick. But then he saw his mother in the crowd. The twins were with her, both standing on the chairs to have a better look. Tears were running down Mrs. Potters cheek as she watched proudly at her son.  
  
"Thank you Professor." He began. "Welcome parents, students and professors to one of the most important days of our lives. When we first came to Hogwarts we were innocent and full of awe." Several students sniggered and scoffed when he said innocent. James smiled. "Well, some more innocent than others." He corrected and the audience laughed. "But among the pranks and the detentions we learned as much as we could. We will miss Hogwarts. We will miss meeting Hogwarts Express every September 1st. We will miss the Halloween Feasts. But I'm sure that we will not miss the exams." More laughter was heard from the crowd. "Hogwarts has become a huge part of our lives, we became who we are because of what we learned within these walls. We have formed lifelong friendships and I'm sure that a few of us have met that special person we would like to spend the rest of our lives with. We don't know what we are capable of yet. Some of us are not sure what the future holds for us. Even if you took Divination, if sure you don't know your future. We have come to our crossroads in our path, and no matter what road we take I'm sure that what we have learned here will help us along the way. Thank you Professors for sharing your wisdom with us. Thank you for being the ones to mold us into the beings we are today."  
  
Applause filled the Hall as he stepped from the podium and turned to sit back on his chair. Professor McGonagall stood with a large book in her arms. Dumbledore also stood.  
  
"Thank you Mr. Potter." He said. "Now the Heads of each House will call out the names of the students under their charge. Each student will come up and signed the magical registry and be presented with their Diploma. As you all know, the magical registry is usually found in the Ministry of Magic offices and one time each year is brought to Hogwarts for the names of the graduating class to be added to its pages. When your name is called, please come up."  
  
Professor McGonagall placed the book on the podium a golden quill appeared before it and a bottle of golden ink appeared at the base of the book. Professor McGonagall stood beside the podium next to Professor Dumbledore.  
  
"We will start with Gryffindor House." Dumbledore announced.  
  
The Gryffindors stood and started to walk toward the stage.  
  
"James Potter." James stood up from his chair and came forward. He took the quill signed the book and shook McGonagall's hand. He then turned to Dumbledore who was smiling down at him a rolled parchment appeared in his hand and gave it to James. James took it and hugged Dumbledore. "Thank you for everything Professor." He whispered.  
  
"It was nothing James, your father was a great friend and I hope that you will be mine as well."  
  
"There is no doubt." James smiled, he then returned to his seat and watched as his housemates were called up in alphabetical order.  
  
"Alicia Bale."  
  
"Katherine Bennett."  
  
Students passed one by one.  
  
"Sirius Black."  
  
They waited until their name was called before they stepped up to the book.  
  
"Hugh Devon."  
  
"Lily Evans."  
  
James shook hands with his friends as they passed in front of him.  
  
"Emma Holmes."  
  
Students smiled and waved to the audience as they stepped up.  
  
"Remus Lupin."  
  
Mrs. Luping was crying softly into a handkerchief. She had never thought to see the day her son graduated from Hogwarts not after his accident.  
  
"Peter Pettigrew."  
  
The line was smaller now.  
  
"Tobias Wood."  
  
As soon as all the Gryffindors had passed through Professor McGonagall returned to her seat and Professor Sprout stepped forward. Hufflepuff House was next.  
  
Students waited for the rest of their classmates' names to be called. Cheers and applause filled the Hall as each name was called. Finally it was time for the Slyderin House to be called.  
  
"Martin Avery."  
  
"Maureen Avery."  
  
The sky was shining bright through the clear ceiling.  
  
"Lucius Malfoy."  
  
James was sorry that he was sitting among the teachers, he had a strong urge to stretch his leg and trip Malfoy as he passed by.  
  
"Narcissa Mulliens."  
  
Students played with the rolls of parchment that had been given to them as they waited for all the names to be called.  
  
"Jezebel Robinson."  
  
Three girls in the Gryffindor section watched Jezebel through wary eyes as she passed in front of James. James turned his head trying to ignore her. Needless to say, she didn't like that. She leaned toward him and whispered.  
  
"We will meet again James. I promise you." And kissed his cheek.  
  
James scowled. Lily gasped. Emma and Katie cursed.  
  
"Severus Snape."  
  
Soon the last name was called. The book was closed. And the special quill and ink bottle disappeared.  
  
"Ladies and Gentlemen." Said Dumbledore in a loud voice. "I give you the graduating class on 1975."  
  
The Hall broke into applause and cheers as the students threw their hats into the air.  
  
The ceremony was now over and the students turned to look for their families.  
  
"Uncle James."  
  
"Uncle James."  
  
Two bundles of energy run into James' legs.  
  
"There you are." He laughed as he kneeled to hug them.  
  
They hugged him back and kissed him. Mrs. Potter laughed and waited for her son to be done with her granddaughters before hugging him.  
  
"Your father would be so proud." She whispered.  
  
James smiled. He had been thinking of his father lately. He was sorry that he had to miss so much. But life had to go on, and his father was a great man and he would do the best he could in his honor.  
  
On another side of the room Lily was hugging her father and mother.  
  
"Oh I didn't know you would be here." She squealed.  
  
"As if I would miss my Princess' especial day." Mr. Evans said in mock horror.  
  
"I'm so glad you could make it." Lily said with bright tears shining in her eyes.  
  
"Oh we wouldn't have miss it for the world." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"What happens next?" Asked Mr. Evans as he looked around the Hall.  
  
"Oh, there is a special luncheon set out on the lawn. The younger students will come in here soon and get their final reports." Said Lily.  
  
"That sounds lovely. Should we be going then?" Asked Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Perhaps we should." Said Lily as she noticed several families starting to walk out of the Hall through the glass doors leading to the gardens.  
  
A tent had been erected on the lawn near the lake. Round tables were put underneath.  
  
Three large tables stood at one side laden with food and drinks.  
  
Soon, the tent was filled to capacity and a line had formed as people started to serve themselves.  
  
"Oh Rose I'm so glad to see you again." Said Mrs. Potter as she spotted Mrs. Evans sitting in a table nearby.  
  
"Susan! How are you? Haven't seen you in ages." Mrs. Evans exclaimed.  
  
"It feels that way doesn't it? So many things happen when we least expect it." Mrs. Potter smiled sadly.  
  
"Oh yes, but let's hope things get better." Mrs. Evans sighed.  
  
"How is Lily? I haven't seen her yet."  
  
"Oh she is doing beautifully, she has done great improvement. There is still some therapy that she has to complete but I'm sure it won't be long until she is completely recovered."  
  
"Oh I am so glad."  
  
The two women stayed chatting for a moment, then they joined by Mrs. Black and Mrs. Lupin. The twins had returned with James bearing plates of food for the ladies. As soon as the ladies were served, James quickly withdrew and joined his friends at another table. They had decided that they didn't want to join their parents but wanted to spend some more time together.  
  
"They are too busy gossiping to miss us." Reported James as soon as he joined the group.  
  
"Well that should take them a while." Said Sirius as he pulled his plate toward him.  
  
"Well, the train is leaving in a couple of hours so they must finish by then." Said Remus.  
  
"Are you lot staying or leaving?"  
  
"I'm staying." Said Katie.  
  
"So am I." Said Lily.  
  
"Me too." Said James.  
  
"We are all staying Moony." Said Sirius.  
  
"I wouldn't miss the End of the Year Feast. Gryffindor won the House Cup." Exclaimed Emma.  
  
The group talked and laughed as the seventh year luncheon continued.  
  
The younger students were at that moment meeting in the Great Hall, where the House Tables had once more brought in place. It looked as if nothing special had happened there that morning.  
  
  
  
The sun was setting, there was a warm breeze blowing, and the food was over as the seventh years and their families returned to the castle. Kisses and hugs were given on the entrance hall as the families said their goodbyes to those seventh years who were staying behind to stay during the Feast.  
  
"Now James, remember to check that you haven't forgotten anything." Mrs. Potter was saying as she hugged her son. The twins were quietly standing beside her.  
  
"I know mum." He exclaimed in an exasperated tone. He then kneeled in front of the twins. "You two will behave yourselves now won't you?" The girls looked at him and nodded. Francesca had her finger in her mouth while Cassandra stood with her eyes dropping with sleep. James chuckled. "You better take them mother, they are ready to fall asleep where they stand."  
  
"It has been a long day for them. We had to be up very early this morning. I thought that they would take a nap as we rode the train but they were too excited to do so." Said Mrs. Potter with a smile.  
  
"Bye, mum. I will see you tomorrow."  
  
"Bye dear."  
  
Mrs. Potter took the girls' hands and led them to the horseless carriages that awaited them to take them to Hogsmeade.  
  
  
  
Most students were napping or resting in their respective common room. Except for a group of four, who were at the moment wandering among the corridors of the castle.  
  
"Are you sure we are going the right way?" Asked Peter as he cautiously looked around.  
  
"Yes. You forget we have the Marauder's Map. We wouldn't get lost." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Will you lot be quiet? We are not supposed to be here remember." Whispered Remus.  
  
"I still say we should have brought the Cloak." Said James.  
  
"But it won't cover us anymore." Said Sirius.  
  
"I hadn't noticed how much we had grown in the last year. Who would've thought that the Invisibility Cloak wouldn't cover us anymore." Said James with disgust.  
  
"Shhh!" Exclaimed Remus. "I hear something."  
  
The four fell silent. They couldn't hear anything.  
  
"Check the map, is there anyone nearby?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"Doesn't look like it. I don't see anybody in this area." Said James.  
  
"Are you sure we should be doing this?" Said Peter behind the group.  
  
"Of course Peter, is not like we could get detention now could we. We already graduated." Said Sirius.  
  
"Come on, keep walking." Urged James. He put cleared the map and led the group forward.  
  
"Ouch. Peter, you stepped on me." Exclaimed Remus.  
  
"S-s-sorry." Peter stuttered.  
  
"Will you lot shut up?!" Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Honestly, I don't know how we got away with things with you lot making so much noise." Said James as he turned toward the group.  
  
"Neither do I." Said a voice in front of them.  
  
The four boys turned to see the new caretaker, Argus Filch.  
  
"What are you doing here?" He asked.  
  
"Er, nothing. Just taking a tour around the castle before we leave." Said James with a smile.  
  
"So you say. What is that in your hand?" Filch asked as his eyes fell in the parchment in James' hands.  
  
"Oh nothing, just a piece of parchment. See?" James said as he showed him the blank piece of parchment.  
  
"Give it here." He commanded as he extended his hand to take the parchment.  
  
The boys turned to look at each other with consternation.  
  
"Well?" Filch Exclaimed.  
  
James put the parchment on Filch's hand.  
  
Filch brought the parchment close to his eyes examining it with care.  
  
"Why do you have it?" He asked.  
  
"Oh, we thought we could make some drawings. Something to remember you know?" Said Remus.  
  
"Well, in that case, you won't mind if I keep it, do you?" Asked Filch.  
  
Four expressions of horror appeared on the boys' faces.  
  
"Why?" Said James.  
  
"You can't." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"It's ours." Said Peter.  
  
"Oh no." Moaned Remus.  
  
Filch just smiled and walked away. With the map in his hand.  
  
"See what you've done." Exclaimed James.  
  
"Don't blame it on us. You should have put it in your pocket." Snapped Sirius.  
  
"We might as well return to the common room." Said Peter.  
  
"Yeah, let's go." Said James.  
  
"But what about-"  
  
James interrupted Remus. "We'll think of something else." The group walked slowly back to the Tower.  
  
  
  
The Great Hall was noisy as always. Students laughed and chatted as they waited for the teachers to join them and the Feast to begin.  
  
The Hall was decorated with the Gryffindor colors. Red and Gold Ribbon fell from the ceiling and red banners with a golden lion decorated the walls. Gryffindor was in high spirits and it took them a while to notice that the teachers had arrived and Dumbledore was standing up waiting for the Hall to get silent.  
  
"We have come to the end of another year. You are leaving with your mind full of information, and I'm sure that you will return in September eager to learn more. We hope the seventh years will leave us with a sense of accomplishment and full of knowledge. And don't forget, that the doors will always be open to you. These are Dark times in our world. Be careful. Be vigilant. And choose the right path. There is something more that I would like to say to you, enjoy." Food promptly appeared in the golden plates in front of the students. Chatter filled the air once more.  
  
Soon, the plates were emptied and the students started to leave their tables. Students were starting to pass through the doors when an uproar was heard from the Slytherin table. Everybody turned to see what had happened.  
  
Every Slytherin male was wearing nothing but their underclothes. Pieces of their robes were falling to the floor.  
  
The Hall broke into laughter. Four boys near the Gryffindor table smilingly congratulated each other.  
  
"You lot never grow up." Said Katie.  
  
"Now why would we want to do that?" Asked Sirius with an expression full of innocence.  
  
The girls giggled and led the boys to the Gryffindor Tower.  
  
  
  
The day of their departure was sunny and warm. The seventh years were all packed and saying good bye to their teachers as they waited for the carriages to take them to their last ride in Hogwarts Express.  
  
"Well Hagrid. I hope you owl me. Don't become a stranger." Said James as he hugged the kind man.  
  
"Oh no worry there." Said Hagrid.  
  
"Take care Hagrid. There is nobody better than you to take care of Hogwarts." Smiled Lily.  
  
Hagrid flushed at the praise of his young friends.  
  
"We hope to hear all the news of Hogwarts, Hagrid." Said Katie as she kissed Hagrid. He blushed even more.  
  
Emma laughed. "Bye Hagrid owl us."  
  
And the group waved as they started to climb into the carriages.  
  
  
  
Lily sighed as she settled into one of the empty compartments. She got separated from the group when they left the carriages behind. She had looked all over but she didn't find the others and decided to get a compartment hoping that they would soon join her.  
  
"There you are, we've been looking all over for you." Exclaimed Katie as she stepped into the compartment.  
  
"I looked for you as well." Lily said as the others started to file into the compartment.  
  
"Are you sure we will all fit in?" Said Emma with a doubtful expression.  
  
"I think so. If not, my lap is free." Said Sirius with a sly smile.  
  
"Sirius, honestly." Exclaimed Katie with a mock expression of shock.  
  
The group settled into the compartment, which surprisingly enough, was big enough for the whole group.  
  
"What are we going to do now?" Said Katie with a sad smile as she leaned her head on Sirius shoulder.  
  
"What do you mean?" Asked Emma.  
  
"Well, we are not going to see each other very often any more. What if we lose contact with each other?" Katie responded.  
  
"Oh that would never happen. We all have owls, we will owl each other often. And if one of us doesn't then we all inundate him or her with lots of owls and won't stop until we get a response." Said Sirius.  
  
"That would work. Specially if we send howlers." Laughed James.  
  
The group smiled.  
  
"Let's make a deal. In ten years let's all get together and see what we have done with ourselves." Said Remus.  
  
They all nodded. They were sure that in ten years they would have a lot to talk about. None of them thought that they wouldn't be able to do so.  
  
The train traveled down the countryside. The students visited each other in their respective compartments. They ate the snacks and enjoyed their last time together. Soon they were speeding through the city in London and pulling up to the platform. Parents and friends were waiting for the students to spill out of the train.  
  
It was chaos as soon as students filed out of the scarlet locomotive. Owls screeched. Cats hissed and toads croaked as the students started to pile their luggage.  
  
James took Lily aside for a moment.  
  
"I don't want to lose contact with you. Promise me you will reply to my owls." He said.  
  
"I will try. I don't know how much time I will have available." She said.  
  
"That's enough for me. Take care Lily." He said and leaned to give her a swift kiss.  
  
"You too James." Lily sighed as James turned to walk toward his family. She kept watching him until she heard someone calling her name.  
  
"Lily! Lily!" Emma was calling.  
  
Lily smiled and pushed her luggage toward her friend.  
  
"Your parents are waiting." Emma said.  
  
"Thanks Emma. Take care." Lily hugged her friend.  
  
"Bye Lily. Owl me." Emma said.  
  
Lily crossed the barrier and soon spied her parents waiting for her.  
  
"Everything all right Princess? A good trip?" Said Mr. Evans.  
  
"Yes Daddy. A great trip." Said Lily with a smile.  
  
"Are you ready dear?" Said Mrs. Evans. Lily nodded.  
  
The Evans didn't notice the young man who watched them leave.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
A/N: That's it, seventh year is over and now they start a new way of life, I hope all of you stay and share it with them. 


	25. Part II Chapter 1 Three Years Later

A/N: Here is the first chapter of the second part of my story. I'm glad that many of you liked the last three chapters, even though they were a bit sad (there are more sad parts to follow, so I think it's safe to warn you, although not in this chapter), I hope that you like this part as much as you liked the first.  
  
Disclaimer: (I forgot to put it in the last three chapters) I own nothing besides the plot.  
  
  
  
~Legacy of Two Generations~ Part II ~ New Beginnings  
  
  
  
  
  
Chapter 1 ~ Three Years Later  
  
  
  
  
  
"Are you sure dear that you have everything?" Asked Mrs. Evans as she helped her daughter with her packing.  
  
"Yes mum, all is here." Said Lily with a smile. For the past three years she had been living with her parents as she continued with her therapy after an accident left her unable to walk for a month during her last year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.  
  
She was now leaving her home for good. Her old Headmaster, Professor Dumbledore, had offered her a position as an apprentice at Hogwarts. She was now packing to start a new life away from home. Her parents were not too happy about it.  
  
"You know dear that you don't need to work. Your father is quite wealthy. You can stay here with us." Said Mrs. Evans in a last try to get her daughter to stay. She was sorry to see her go. For three years, Lily had been a companion and a joy to her.  
  
Her older daughter, Petunia, had married a man named Vernon Dursley the summer Lily returned from her last year at Hogwarts. Mr. and Mrs. Evans had made it clear that they wanted their younger daughter to attend the wedding otherwise they would not pay for any expense. Petunia wasn't very fond of her sister, but she had no choice. If she wanted to have the large wedding she was planning, she had to wait for Lily for the wedding to take place. This made her dislike Lily more than before.  
  
"I know mum, but I want to work. You know I'm not one of those debutantes that can only go to parties every night and sleep late until noon. That's not me." Said Lily.  
  
"You could work for your father. He needs an assistant."  
  
"You are his personal assistant mum. Besides, I want to work in the magical world, there is so much that I can do."  
  
"I'm going to miss you Lily." Exclaimed Mrs. Evans. "But perhaps you are right. You are too talented a witch to stay behind. But you will write often, won't you?"  
  
"Yes mum, I'll owl you everyday."  
  
Mrs. Evans nodded in satisfaction. "How are you going to get to Hogwarts? Is the train going to pick you up?"  
  
"Oh no mum. I'm going to apparate. Professor Dumbledore sent me the coordinates of the apparating point in Hogsmeade. There will be a carriage waiting for me."  
  
"I'm not sure I like that form of transportation Lily, it sounds very dangerous to me." Frowned Mrs. Evans.  
  
"That's why a license is needed from the Ministry. If it's not done right anything could go wrong. But I've had my license for more than two years mum, there is nothing to worry about."  
  
"Humph!" Snorted Mrs. Evans, she obviously didn't agree with her daughter.  
  
"Where is daddy?"  
  
"He is in his bookroom, he had to make a call to his office."  
  
"Well, I'm all set." Said Lily with a sigh of relief. It had taken her quite a while to decide what to take with her but she was finally done.  
  
"I'll go get your father. Where are you going to leave from? Do you need to go to a special place to do so?"  
  
"No mum, I can do it from anywhere. I can go with you to daddy and I'll dissapparate from the bookroom." Said Lily as she started to collect her things.  
  
Mother and daughter started to descend the stairs toward Mr. Evans' bookroom, it was his special place where he could go to be alone away from the women of the house. It smelled of tobacco and musk. A scent that Lily would always connect to her father.  
  
"Edward get away from that phone, our daughter is ready to leave." Exclaimed Mrs. Evans as soon as she opened the door.  
  
"I'll talk to you later McCoy, my Princess is leaving now. Yes, thank you, I'll tell her." Mr. Evans hung up the phone.  
  
"Really daddy, there is no need to tell everybody." Said Lily smiling at her father.  
  
"Sorry Princess, I can't help it. McCoy wishes you luck by the way." He said approaching the two women as they stood in the middle of the room with Jocasta's cage. Lily had shrunk her trunk and had put it away in her cloak.  
  
"It has been a while since I've seen you wear witches' robes." Said Mr. Evans as he looked over her daughter. He thought the emerald cloak, which covered her burgundy robes looked quite fetching on her. But in his opinion, his daughter looked fetching no matter what she wore.  
  
Lily laughed. "I know. I had to go to Diagon Alley and replenish my wardrobe. Emma, Katie and I had a great time."  
  
"Yes I imagine you did." Said Mr. Evans with a smile. "Do you need us to take you somewhere, we really didn't discuss how you plan to get to Hogwarts." Mr. Evans frowned. At least, he didn't remember if they had discussed it.  
  
"I'll be apparating daddy, I can do it from here." Said Lily with a smile. "I'll miss you both." She said as she hugged her mother and her father.  
  
"We will miss you too Princess. We will be looking for Jocasta everyday." Mr. Evans said as he hugged his daughter. Mrs. Evans was sobbing quietly in a handkerchief.  
  
"Bye." She said as she took the cage from the floor.  
  
"Bye dear."  
  
"See you Princess."  
  
Lily disapparated with a pop.  
  
"Do you think she will be alright?" Asked Mrs. Evans as her husband took her in his arms to comfort her.  
  
"I'm sure. We have an intelligent daughter, love, she knows how to take care of herself.  
  
  
  
"Mother, I will not tolerate any more house parties, I have way too many things to take care of to be bothered with guests at the moment. Maybe later we can have a house party or something, but not now." Said an exasperated James to his mother one morning.  
  
"Oh James please don't be like that, you know it's the season to have parties, besides how are you going to find a suitable young lady to marry if you stay here all the time. If you don't want me to organize too many house parties here in the estate then you need to go to the city more often and socialize, I don't want people to think that you have become a hermit." Mrs. Potter had become very interested in her son's single status. The first year after James return from Hogwarts had been a quiet time, a time of mourning for Mr. Potter and Elizabeth, the Potters' daughter and James' older sister. Mr. Potter and Elizabeth along with her husband had been killed in an attack previously that year. James had been left as guardian of his twin nieces. But for the last year, Mrs. Potter had resumed in her search of a mate for her son. She had given it up while he was still in his seventh year because she liked the young woman her son had a relationship with, Lily Evans. But that relationship was broken and to Mrs. Potter's dismay, James had not been interested in any other girl since.  
  
"Mother, I socialize, I was in the city just last week and it wasn't on business."  
  
"You were with Sirius, and don't think that I don't know what you and your friends do when you get together, and it's not socializing. Going to bars and clubs, you can't meet suitable ladies that way."  
  
"We meet women, and that's enough for us. Mother, I know you want what is best for the family and the estate, but don't worry, when it's time for me to marry I will, I know I have a duty to do so. But I'm 21 I still have a lot of time to think about it, let's concentrate in Elizabeth's children now and do what is best for them."  
  
"They need a mother's touch, I cannot give them that James. I'm a grandmother. They need somebody younger that will lead them and train them for their time at Hogwarts."  
  
"Mother I don't want to discuss this! Now, I've thought of building a school for the estate children, Cassie and Francie can attend the school along with the other kids, after all, they will all study together when they get to Hogwarts, they might as well learn to work together."  
  
"You're right, the children should get to know each other, that way there are no surprises when they leave and go to Hogwarts. Do you suppose we can find somebody who would agree to teach a group of children?"  
  
"I don't know, Remus would agree but I don't know where he is at the moment. I suppose I could owl him and hope he receives my letter, if he agrees to do so we're set, otherwise we can owl Dumbledore, there are always graduates who stay at Hogwarts to train as teachers, any of them would be perfect for our purposes."  
  
"That is an excellent idea! Now dear, I must get ready, I'm expecting someone today."  
  
"This friend of yours doesn't happen to have a daughter does she?"  
  
"Oh no, she's single!"  
  
"Mother!" But Mrs. Potter had already left the room, leaving behind a resigned James.  
  
  
  
"Come in my dear, I've been waiting for you." Said Professor Dumbledore when he heard a knock on his door.  
  
The door opened and Lily walked into the room.  
  
"How did you know it was me professor? Or do you call everybody dear?" Asked Lily with a mischievous smile.  
  
Dumbledore laughed. He liked people who had a good sense on humor and the girl standing before him certainly did. Especially after surviving seven years with the most notorious pranksters the school had ever had. He hoped that it would be some time until Hogwarts house another set like them.  
  
"Now my dear, ready to join us." Asked Dumbledore as soon as his laughter receded.  
  
"Oh yes Professor." Said Lily eagerly. She was looking forward to join the staff in the castle.  
  
"I asked you to come weeks before the students did because I want you to work with the teachers as they plan their lessons. Think of it as a type of orientation."  
  
"I understand Professor." Said Lily with a nod.  
  
"Now Lily, you don't have to call me Professor anymore. Dumbledore will do." He said with a smile.  
  
"Sorry Pro- I mean Dumbledore. It will take me a while to become accustomed."  
  
"Oh don't worry. We'll go down to luncheon now. I'm sure you are eager to reacquaint yourself with the others." Said Dumbledore as he stood. Lily followed him out of his office toward the staff room.  
  
  
  
Later that week.  
  
"What are you doing out here?" Said a voice. James turned to look behind him and smiled at his friend.  
  
"Trying to avoid my mother." He said.  
  
Sirius laughed as he joined James and watched as the grooms exercised the horses.  
  
"Perhaps you should get on one of those horses and go for a ride. When I went up to the house your mother seemed very disappointed that you weren't there to meet her friend." Said Sirius with a chuckle.  
  
"I bet she was. You would not believe the number of visitors she has had during the last months. Thank god fall is soon here and all the socialites will be leaving the country to return to the city and start on their usual rounds of parties and balls."  
  
"Oh, is Mr. Potter not joining in the usual rounds this season?"  
  
"No. I told her I wasn't going. She is miffed at me. In any case, I want to stay here and take care of some business. I'm building the school and I still haven't been able to hire a teacher."  
  
What about Remus, did you talk to him?"  
  
"I sent him an owl, he says he is in Africa right now. He is working for a medicine man and they are trying to find something to help him with his illness. He doesn't know when he will be back. I just sent an owl to Dumbledore asking if one of his trainees would accept the position."  
  
"He would have been perfect." Sighed Remus.  
  
"I thought so too. But you know how self-conscious he is about his illness. He says he doesn't want to put anybody in danger. That's why he broke it off with Emma just last summer."  
  
"Big mistake, that." Sirius shook his head. "Katie wrote me a scathing letter telling me to do something about it. But what can a man do? I'm not getting involved. It's not my business."  
  
"Lily wrote me as well. She was angry. But it's not my fault. And I'm not going to get involved either. I made the mistake of telling my mother. She took Emma's side of course."  
  
"No wonder you are hiding from her." Laughed Sirius. "How is Lily doing? I haven't spoke to her lately."  
  
"She just took a job, but she didn't tell me where."  
  
"Oh, she would be a good person to hire as a teacher."  
  
James shrugged. He wasn't sure if he agreed. Lily would be a good teacher. But they have a history between them and he still had feelings for her. He wasn't sure if he wanted her nearby and be treated as just a friend by her.  
  
  
  
The last three years had been generous to our favorite group. Lily had continued her therapy and been able to recover fully. She still had some trouble with her back, but she found that a cup of tea would soothe her. James had been working tirelessly around his estate. The twins had kept him on his toes but he had great fun keeping an eye on them. He dreaded the time when they would be ready to join Hogwarts. They were two bundles of energy and he dreaded the owls he would receive from Professor Dumbledore about their behavior. Sirius was a carefree young man who delighted in being thought a frivolous young man. He took part of the social rounds taking place in the magical society. The fact that Katie was always seen on his arm drew speculations from the society gossips but he had given no clue if he meant it to be a permanent relationship, no matter that they had been seen together for four years now. Katie enjoyed taking part of the social rounds with Sirius, but she was soon tiring of it. It angered her that Sirius sometimes took her and their relationship for granted and if he didn't change their status quo soon, she would be giving him a piece of her mind. Remus had been going from one job to another. The year before he had decided to leave the country and travel around the world looking for a cure to his problem, his parents were well off and had decided to fund his research. As a result of his travels, he had become acquainted with creatures and magic theories that he had never been exposed to before. When he returned during the summer he had made a decision. He had decided that in order to keep those whom he cared about safe, he needed to keep them away from him. His monthly transformations had become more aggressive and dangerous and didn't think that his friends would be able to help him. He had broken up with Emma for that reason. Emma had been considerably hurt by his decision. She had understood why he thought he needed to do so, but she had been his partner for so long that it was hard for her to let go. Emma had become a researcher for the Ministry of Magic. She was working with the Committee of the Preservation of Magical Creatures and she enjoyed it. But even her love for her work didn't help her to keep her mind of her troubles with Remus. Her friends had stepped in and helped her to get through it. Peter had been busy taking care of his mother who had fallen ill soon after he graduated from Hogwarts. As a result he had been cut off from society and didn't see his friends too often. It was something that all parties would eventually come to regret.  
  
  
  
"Professor, did you ask for me?" Asked Lily as she entered Dumbledore's office.  
  
"Yes Lily, please sit down, I have something important to tell you. I have just received an owl from a very prominent family in our world; they're looking for a tutor who would be available to tutor two little girls. You have done outstanding work here as an assistant and I thought you would like to take this job. If you don't want to that's all right, I'm sure I can find someone else."  
  
"I would like to take it Professor, it will be a great opportunity for me. What can you tell me about the family?"  
  
"You would be going to a small household; as I said before it is a very respected and wealthy family. You would be working with two little girls, seven year-old twins; they're in the custody of their Uncle, a very young man about the same age as yourself, and of their grandmother. They would be the only ones you will meet around the house, except for the servants of course. I'm sure you will be happy here, I've met the family on several occasions and I've always known them to be very social."  
  
"When would I be needed to Apparate to them?"  
  
"As soon as you can be ready. Why don't you pack your belongings and get some rest; tomorrow will be good enough."  
  
"Very well Professor. Have a good night, and thank you."  
  
"You have no need to thank me Lily, you've been an exemplary employee as you were a student, and it is time for you to create your own future. Remember that you can always come to Hogwarts whenever you need help, I will never close the doors to those who need me."  
  
"I know Professor. Good night." Lily kissed Dumbledore's cheek and walked toward the door.  
  
"Good night my dear, sleep well." Said Dumbledore watching her with a twinkle in his eyes.  
  
  
  
Oh dear! I overslept; I hope I don't forget anything. Thought Lily as she checked all the corners of her room. I wonder what kind of family they are; I forgot to ask the Professor the name of this family. If he says the guardian of the little girls are about my age, then he might've been here in Hogwarts at about the same time I was. Oh dear, I'm so nervous!   
  
Lily was walking along the corridor toward the Great Hall for breakfast. It was still very early in the morning but most of the teachers were already seating at their table eating. Lily walked up to the table and sat besides young Professor Vector, the Arithmacy teacher. Lily chose something to eat and looked toward the students, who had arrived just last night, and where now getting their class schedules. Lily had missed the Sorting Ceremony and the Banquet last night, she had spent her time packing for her new job.  
  
"Good morning Lily, I've heard about your new job, I must congratulate you not many young witches would be considered for this position."  
  
"Thank you Professor, I'm really looking forward to this. I really hope I know enough to make my employers happy."  
  
"I can't think of anyone more qualified for this position than you. Don't you worry, we are very proud of you, you were the best student we have had in many years and I don't think we'll have another for quite some time."  
  
"Thank you Professor, I really enjoyed my time here in Hogwarts, as a student and as an assistant to all of you."  
  
"Lily dear," said a smiling Professor McGonagall, "if you follow me I'll give you directions to your new job."  
  
Lily left the table following Professor McGonagall. They finally entered the latter's office, where Lily noticed her belongings waiting for her.  
  
"Here Lily, these are maps of the area, and here is the name of the exact location you will need to apparate. We're really proud of you dear!" Said Professor McGonagall with a few tears in her eyes.  
  
"Thank you Professor, I promise I won't let you down!" Said Lily as she hugged her mentor. "Good Bye!" And with that she disappeared down the main hall toward the carriage waiting for her at the entrance.  
  
  
  
"James please be ready to greet our new teacher this afternoon." Said Mrs. Potter at breakfast.  
  
James looked up in surprise. "Teacher?" He asked. "What teacher?"  
  
"For our school silly. Don't you remember that we have been looking for a teacher for the estate children?"  
  
"But mother, the school is not built yet and Dumbledore hasn't responded to my owl."  
  
"Oh he did, I opened it for you. I sent him an owl saying that we could receive the teacher he is sending today." She said as buttered a piece of bread.  
  
James looked at his mother with a mixture of anger and uncertainty. "Mother, you were supposed to talk to me about it. The school is not built yet, where do you expect this person to teach if there is no place to do so." He exclaimed with anger.  
  
"She can teach the twins while you build the school. There is no reason for you to become concerned." She said with a shrug. "Besides, you and our tenants are wizards. You can build the place in no time."  
  
"Mother, have you forgotten that our neighbors are muggles. They will see it as a miracle if we build a school from one day to the other. You know that we must do things the muggle way around here. True that we use magic with subtlety but we make sure nothing seems out of place. Really mother, you seem to forget things sometimes." Exasperation filled his voice.  
  
"James Potter don't you speak to your mother in that tone! You will apologize and be ready to greet the teacher this afternoon. I raised you to be a gentleman." Mrs. Potter exclaimed. James flushed and muttered "sorry" before she stomped out of the room.  
  
Roberts, the butler, had been standing by the door the whole time James and his mother were eating. He now hurried forward to clear Mrs. Potter's emptied place.  
  
"Roberts. What do you know about this teacher that is coming today?" James asked. He knew that in big households, as his, the servants tended to know everything before the masters did. Gossip always seemed to travel faster than owl post.  
  
"I'm sorry Sir. Nothing has been mentioned about her. I just know that it is a young woman and that Professor Dumbledore had recommended her highly." Roberts said as he took out his wand to clear the used plates and dispose of the remains.  
  
James nodded. He was soon lost in contemplation and didn't notice as the table was cleared by Roberts and one of his footmen. By the time he noticed that he was still sitting at the table, the dinning room was empty and Roberts had returned to his post by the front door. James shook his head and started to leave the room as he heard a pair of small voices giggling and whispering just outside the door.  
  
He smiled. "What are you two up to?" He said looking down at the two girls kneeling beside the dining room door.  
  
"Hello Uncle James."  
  
"Good Morning Uncle James."  
  
"Humph, you two want something." He said with suspicion.  
  
The two little girls turned to look at each other and started to giggle once more.  
  
"Ok, out with it, what do you two want?" He said.  
  
"Can we go with you?"  
  
"To the fields."  
  
"Please."  
  
"Pretty please."  
  
James looked warily at the pair. He would take them with him as he was only planning to visit a tenant of his who had fallen as he was repairing his roof and had broken his leg the previous day, but he didn't want to be in his mother's black books for much longer.  
  
"What did your grandmother said?" He asked.  
  
"Hmmm."  
  
"Er."  
  
The girls turned to each other. "All right, let's go and look for her and see what she has to say." He sighed and took the two little hands that had reached out to him.  
  
He was happy to have the two little girls with him. After his father's and sister's death he had been devastated. He had a very close relationship with his family and to have half of it gone at the same time was hard to comprehend. At first, he had been scared when he was told that he had become the guardian of his two three year old nieces, but now he didn't want it any other way. The little girls had brought laughter and joy to a house that had been dressed in black and full of depression. James and his mother had pulled themselves out of their sorrow and grief in order to give these little girls the love and attention that they needed. The last three years had been generous to them. Both girls were now seven years old and were as rambunctious as they had been at three. James was always teased by his mother and the servants whenever he had to deal with a mischief the girls had done. "It's your reward for giving your father and me too many white hairs so early in life." His mother always said, and he had come to believe that perhaps it was so. He dreaded to think what his own children would be like.  
  
The trio walked quietly toward the front parlor, where James hoped to find his mother. The sun was shining brightly through the wall-length windows. The walls were richly decorated with expensive works of art. There were several small tables placed strategically throughout the room on which little figurines and flowers were placed. The furniture pieces were made in the Regency Era style. Even though they seemed rigid and conservative they were surprisingly comfortable and sturdy; only those with advanced magic training would have noticed the Cushioning Charm and the Strengthening Charm that had been used for the furniture.  
  
Mrs. Potter was sitting in front of the large windows with her yarn and needles busy making warm woolen scarves and gloves for the children on the estate, which she always gave away at the beginning of every winter.  
  
Mrs. Potter looked up as he heard the door open. She smiled when she saw her son enter leading her two little granddaughters.  
  
"Good morning dears. How was your breakfast with nurse?" She asked as the two little girls ran to kiss her cheek.  
  
"It was good Nana."  
  
"We had strawberries today."  
  
"With porridge."  
  
"And cream."  
  
"And milk."  
  
The little girls exclaimed.  
  
Mrs. Potter laughed, it was good to see them full of excitement, even if it was about breakfast.  
  
"And what are you going to do now?" She asked as she put away her material so she could speak with her granddaughters.  
  
"We want to go with Uncle James."  
  
"Please, Nana."  
  
"And where is Uncle James going today?" She asked. The two little girls turned to look at James with curious expressions. Mrs. Potter smiled and turned to look at her son.  
  
James was leaning against the mantle on the other side of the room, smiling at the sight in front of him.  
  
"I'm going to see the Morrisons mother. John had an accident yesterday and I want to check on him." He said.  
  
"Oh dear, that's right you told me about it at dinner. Would you take a basket with you? Some preserves and cakes perhaps."  
  
"Of course mother."  
  
"I will tell Roberts to tell Otty to prepare one right away." Mrs. Potter quickly stood up and was about to leave the room when she was stopped.  
  
"Nana!!!" The twins screamed.  
  
Mrs. Potter turned to look at them. "Yes dears."  
  
"We want to go."  
  
"With Uncle James."  
  
Mrs. Potter turned to James.  
  
"Are you taking Sultan James?"  
  
"Yes. It's easier to get to them by horse than by carriage of car. Although, I can take the motorcycle as well."  
  
"I will not let you take the girls on that contraption. I don't know what Sirius was thinking when he gave you that thing for your birthday." Mrs. Potter exclaimed. She didn't like to think of her son on top of that particular motorcycle and the thought of her small granddaughters on it made her hair stand on end.  
  
"Horse it is then. I'm sure Sultan will like a nice trot." He said.  
  
"Well, make sure that the girls are in their riding clothes before you go. I'm sure Sultan will not mind a little more weight, he is a huge beast and strong if he can handle you."  
  
James nodded and watched his mother leave the room to prepare a basket for his tenant.  
  
"Well? What are you two waiting for? Go and get dressed, or I will leave without you." He said.  
  
The girls squealed and ran out of the room.  
  
James laughed.  
  
Half an hour later, the nursery maid took the two excited little girls to the stables. James was waiting by the door as the horse was readied for him.  
  
"There you are. I will have them back safe Nurse, don't worry."  
  
"You better Master James." The old nurse shook his finger at him. "I know you since you were in shorts, and I know in how much trouble you can get yourself into."  
  
James laughed. "Don't worry Nurse, we will return soon."  
  
  
  
Lily apparated in a middle of a dense forest. It was a sunny day and she could hear cars passing nearby. She went behind some bushes and quickly changed into muggle clothes. She had to cross a muggle town and it wouldn't do to stay in her witch's robes. She shrunk her trunk and hid it safely into her sweater's pocket. She made sure Jocasta's cage was completely covered. She picked up her belongings and started walking toward the road. She had memorized the map that Professor McGonagall had given her of the area, she only had three miles to walk until she got to town from there she could hire a taxi or any kind of transportation to go to the estate. She looked around as she walked.  
  
The sun was bright, there was a soft breeze that made the tendrils of hair escape from the bun at the nape of her neck. She passed some fields. She saw sheep, horses and cattle all over the place. The flowers grew wild everywhere she looked.  
  
"Oh this is going to be a great place to live." She exclaimed as she saw a couple of rabbits hopping by the road.  
  
It wasn't long until she arrived at the small bustling town. Small stores lined the square of what seemed to be the center of town. It reminded her of that small town where her family and friends spent Christmas with James' family. Godric's Hollow. How she missed those simpler times.  
  
She walked toward the largest building in the square. She saw the large sign in front of the main door. The Golden Brook. She entered the inn. The large room she found herself in was relatively empty. It looked like a bar room. A large counter was in front of the door where a man stood cleaning the glasses. Bottles of what she assumed was alcoholic drinks were behind him. A color TV was on showing the local news. Two old men sat in a booth beside the counter, both drinking from large tankards as they watched the news closely.  
  
"And for the southern region it looks like a perfect weather awaits us. Perfect for harvest. So to all farmers out there, it is time to take out your baskets and start gathering your produce. Now let's go back to John." The weatherman was saying when Lily walked up to the counter.  
  
"Excuse me." Lily said to the man behind the counter.  
  
The man turned to look at Lily with surprise. "Yes Miss. What can I do for you?"  
  
"Hi, I'm supposed to go up to the manor but I'm not sure if there is a mode of transportation to get there." Lily said with a smile.  
  
"Are you the teacher they hired for the young misses?" Asked the bartender.  
  
"Yes."  
  
The man nodded and walked to a door that was behind one of the cases. "Oy, Martin. The teacher is here." He said.  
  
A large man came into the room and looked toward Lily. Lily looked apprehensively toward him.  
  
"Are you Miss Lily?" Asked the man with a kind voice. Lily smiled this man reminded her of Hagrid.  
  
"Yes, I'm Lily Evans."  
  
The man nodded and got around the counter. "The mistress sent me to come and pick you up. If you will wait here for a moment I will go and bring the car to the entrance." The man left the room without waiting for a response.  
  
"Don't let him scare you. He seems big and gruff but he is kind." Said the bartender.  
  
Lily smiled. "I have a friend like that. Some people are afraid of him when they first see him but once you get to know him he is just the best person alive.  
  
The bartender nodded. "Would you like something to drink something while you wait? I have non-alcoholic drinks if you prefer." He quickly added when he saw Lily looking at the bottles behind him with an expression of disgust.  
  
Lily nodded and asked for a soda. She sat on a table near the entrance and sipped her glass. The men on the booths had barely glanced her way. The bartender had returned to his cleaning and Lily now had time to look around.  
  
She had barely started to look around when she heard a horn of a car. She quickly stood and walked to the entrance. A black car awaited her. The man who had left the room before was standing by it holding the door open for her.  
  
"If you are ready Miss, I will take you up to the Manor." He said. Lily nodded and with a deep breath got into the car.  
  
The car sped down a narrow path, it was big enough to let two cars pass side by side. Lily looked out the window trying to see the countryside. It looked wild and natural. She liked it. After growing up in the city, the countryside would be a nice change for her.  
  
"What is your name?" She asked to the driver.  
  
"Martin Miss." He responded.  
  
"Are you a wizard too Martin?"  
  
"Yes Miss. My family has served our masters for centuries and they have always made sure that we had what we needed to complete our training." He sounded proud to be part of the household.  
  
"You mean they hire somebody to train you?"  
  
"No Miss. They buy the books and robes and materials that we need to go to Hogwarts and when we come back after the seventh year we have a place to work."  
  
"Oh! Have they always done that?"  
  
"Yes Miss. The current master is planning to have a school build in the state to teach the young ones before they are ready to go to Hogwarts."  
  
"Oh, that sounds like a lot of fun. Are there many kids in the estate?"  
  
"Not many Miss. There are only about 15, from the age of two to nine, including the young Misses."  
  
"What are they like? I know they are twins."  
  
Martin chuckled. "You are going to have your hands full with them Miss."  
  
Lily laughed.  
  
"We are here Miss."  
  
Lily looked toward the house. She gasped at the sight of it. It was a large house. The front was covered with Ivy but it looked like it had been trimmed to let the light shine through the windows. The windows didn't see too large, just like small circles here and there. Two large marble columns stood at each side of the front door, which stood open at that moment.  
  
"Miss?" Lily turned to look at Martin who was standing outside holding the door open for her. Lily blushed. She was so busy looking at the house she didn't notice that Martin had been waiting for her.  
  
She stepped out the door and walked up to the front door. She could see a woman standing by it.  
  
"Welcome Miss, I'm Mrs. Nichols, I'm the housekeeper." The woman said with a smile.  
  
"Hello Mrs. Nichols, very nice to meet you." Said Lily.  
  
"If you follow me Miss. The Mistress is waiting for you in the back parlor." The housekeeper motioned one of the footmen to take the Lily's luggage. She took out her trunk from her pocket and handed it to him along with Jocasta's cage.  
  
Lily was lead across the entrance hall. Several benches lined the walls. Large paintings covered every space of each wall. Next they passed a narrow corridor. The paintings were smaller but like those in the entrance hall they were clearly muggle paintings.  
  
Next they passed a large corridor. Weapons of all kinds lined the walls. Daggers, axes, swords, etc. "This is the armory." Said Mrs. Nichols as she watched Lily looking around.  
  
"An exquisite collection." Lily said.  
  
"They have a protective charm around it. The Master was afraid that the young Misses would become too curious and would hurt themselves."  
  
"Good precaution."  
  
They continued down the corridor but Lily noticed that the weapons were now gone, in their place large portraits lined the walls. They were clearly family portraits and unlike the other paintings she had seen these were wizard paintings as the subjects of the portraits moved and whispered to each other. Lily didn't have time to look at the portraits closely but she thought that they seemed somewhat familiar.  
  
"We are nearly there Miss." Mrs. Nichols said.  
  
  
  
"Come girls we have to hurry up. I told your grandmother I was going to be there when your new teacher got here." Urged James as soon as they had returned to the stables after visiting his tenant.  
  
"Coming Uncle James."  
  
"Uncle James?"  
  
"Yes?" He cautiously asked. When the girls used that tone he knew they wanted something.  
  
"Can we have puppy?"  
  
"Please?"  
  
"Pretty Please?"  
  
"The Hortons have puppies."  
  
"Oh? And where do you plan to keep it?"  
  
"With us."  
  
"In the nursery."  
  
James laughed. "I don't think Nurse would like that very much."  
  
"The stables."  
  
"Dick can keep an eye on it."  
  
"You have dogs."  
  
"Lots of dogs."  
  
"They are hunting dogs. I'll speak with mother see what she says about it."  
  
"All right." Both girls said and ran ahead of him playing an impromptu game of tag.  
  
James walked purposely toward the back terrace, which opened to the back parlor.  
  
James opened the glass doors and the girls sneaked past him as they ran to Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Nana."  
  
"Nana."  
  
"Guess what?"  
  
"We are going to have a puppy."  
  
"You little rascals, I said that we would see." James exclaimed.  
  
"You might as well give up James, these two can get past your barriers and get away with anything." Laughed Mrs. Potter.  
  
James only shook his head. "Am I on time? I have not missed meeting this teacher you hired did I?"  
  
"No, she hasn't arrived yet." Mrs. Potter said as she gave cookies to both girls and little cups of tea. The cups had been made especially for them and they enjoyed playing grown up as they took tea with grandmother.  
  
"Very well."  
  
"Why do we have to have a teacher?"  
  
"You can teach us what we need."  
  
"We don't want a teacher."  
  
"What if she is mean?"  
  
"She is not going to be mean, I'm sure that you both will like her." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
The girls didn't seem to believe that.  
  
"Why don't you two go up to the nursery? I'm sure that Nurse is waiting for you." Urged James. The girls out aside their empty cups and ran out of the room.  
  
"They are going to be a handful mother, I hope this person you hired will be up to it." James said with a worried tone. "What if they take an instant dislike of her?"  
  
"Oh don't worry James, everything will be fine, you'll see." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Madam." A footman called from the door.  
  
"Yes Lyle."  
  
"The teacher has just arrived, Mrs. Nichols is bringing her over."  
  
"Thank you Lyle. Please bring a fresh pot of tea, I'm sure she must be parched." Commanded Mrs. Potter. The footman bowed and promptly left the room.  
  
They soon heard footsteps coming their way. James was standing in front of the large windows looking out toward the gardens. Mrs. Potter was silently waiting for her guest to arrive.  
  
"Madam." Mrs. Roberts called.  
  
"Come in Mrs. Nichols." Commanded Mrs. Potter. James heard the housekeeper enter but he didn't turn around. "Hello dear, it has been a while since I've seen you I hope your trip was uneventful"  
  
"Hello Mrs. Potter. Everything went fine thank you." A familiar voice responded. James quickly turned and his breath escaped as he spied the person who had just entered.  
  
"James dear, you remember Lily."  
  
"Hello James." Lily said in a breathless voice.  
  
"Hello Lily." James replied.  
  
Both stood looking at each other. Mrs. Potter looked from one to the other with a pleased smile.  
  
"Well, why don't you sit Lily, I'm sure you must be tired. A fresh pot of tea should be arriving soon." Mrs. Potter said as she motioned Lily to take a sit.  
  
James and Lily looked away from each other.  
  
"Thank you Mrs. Potter."  
  
"Oh no problem my dear. How are your parents doing? I haven't spoken to them for quite a while."  
  
"They are doing very well."  
  
"How is your sister? Are you an aunt yet?"  
  
Lily laughed. "I honestly cannot see Petunia as a mother, but no, she doesn't have children yet."  
  
A footman entered the room carrying a tray with a fresh pot of tea and extra cups.  
  
"Thank you Lyle."  
  
The footman bowed and left the room.  
  
"Here you go Lily." Mrs. Potter served her a cup of tea. James continued standing beside his mother leaning against the mantel.  
  
"Tell me Lily dear, how was your trip? I hope you didn't have any trouble finding us."  
  
"I was fine Mrs. Potter, Professor McGonagall gave me maps to help me along."  
  
"Oh good. I will send Lyle to show you your room after you are done with your tea. I'm sure you would like to unpack and get settled."  
  
"Thank you Mrs. Potter, I will like to do so. In fact, I am ready now."  
  
"Very well, James dear, go and get Lyle please."  
  
James quietly opened the door and talked to somebody outside.  
  
"I hope dear that you will be rested enough to join us for dinner tonight. We don't use the formal dining room when we are with family so we will be using the small dining room. I will tell Roberts to lead you to us so you won't get lost."  
  
"Thank you Mrs. Potter." Said Lily with a nod and turned toward the door. James stood holding the door open to her and the footman awaited her. "Thanks." She whispered as she passed James.  
  
After the door closed behind her, James turned angrily to his mother.  
  
"Mother, what are you up to? Why didn't you tell me that Lily was the teacher you hired?"  
  
"I thought I did dear, I must have forgotten." She said with a shrug.  
  
"How could you have forgotten mother? I do not believe that. You are up to something." He scoffed.  
  
"Really James, I do not see why you're so excitable about this. I expected her to write and tell you."  
  
"Well obviously I didn't know. Don't you think that I would like to know if the person who was hired to teach my nieces is one of my friends?"  
  
"Honestly James, if you are reacting like this I want you to go to your room."  
  
"Mother, I'm an adult. You can't send me to my room, I'm not a child." James protested.  
  
"When you act like a child I will treat you like a child. Go to your room and get ready for dinner." She exclaimed.  
  
James walked out of the room.  
  
"Honestly!" Mrs. Potter exclaimed in the empty room.  
  
  
  
Lily walked down the front staircase. She saw the butler waiting for her on the bottom step. She sighed with relief, she wasn't too keen on wandering about the house trying to find her way.  
  
"Hello Roberts." She greeted the old man. She remembered him from those days she spent at the Potter's house during the holidays when she was in her seventh year at Hogwarts.  
  
"Good afternoon Miss. Master James and Mistress Susan are waiting for you in the back parlor. The family dining room is just across the hall from it."  
  
Lily walked along with the butler the same way that his sister, the housekeeper Mrs. Nichols, had led her earlier that day.  
  
"Here you are Miss." He said with a bow as he opened the door for her.  
  
"Thank you Roberts." She said with a smile as she passed through the door.  
  
"Hello Lily dear. I hope your room is to your taste." Greeted Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Indeed it is Mrs. Potter, I never expected a room like it. I thought I would be sleeping near the nursery close to the girls." Said Lily. She had been quite surprised the moment she was shown into her room.  
  
It was a pleasant room. Floral wallpapers, flowers adorning every table in the room. A large canopy bed stood in the center with heavy curtains surrounding it. A large fireplace on the side wall. The mantel above it adorned with small picture frames. On the wall in front of the bed was a large entertainment system, a color TV, a stereo, everything she would ever need. The floor was carpeted with lush, colorful rugs. A wall length window opened to a balcony, on which, to her joy, she could see a wonderful view to the gardens. It was a room worthy of a family friend, not of the teacher hired to teach a couple of little girls.  
  
"Oh I thought that you would enjoy that room much better." Mrs. Potter intruded upon Lily's thoughts. "You are not just a teacher Lily, you are a friend as well. A room in the nursery floor is not enough." Mrs. Potter said with a wave of the hand.  
  
"Thank you. I really like it."  
  
"I'm glad dear. James' and my rooms are in the same wing, so if you have any problems you can let us know."  
  
Lily looked down, she thought she would never have enough courage to go and knock on James' room to ask for anything. She made a mental note to ask for its location so she wouldn't knock on it by mistake.  
  
"Here I am mother, the girls will be here soon." Said James as he entered the room. Lily quickly looked toward him and sighed. Even in muggle clothes he looks good, she thought.  
  
"Very well dear. Roberts should be coming soon to tell us that dinner is ready." Said Mrs. Potter. She then turned back to Lily. "The girls always join us for dinner. I think that is the best way to show them how to comport themselves at the table. I hope you don't mind."  
  
"Oh no, that is fine. I would like to meet them."  
  
"Oh that is right you haven't met them yet. I'm sure you will come to love them. James quite dotes on them. I'm afraid that he will spoil them."  
  
"Mother really. You are going to make Lily think that I have no backbone at all. Don't believe her Lily, she is exaggerating." He exclaimed. "Would you two ladies like something to drink as we wait for dinner?"  
  
"Yes dear, a sherry will be fine." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Just a little please." Responded Lily.  
  
While James poured the wine, the two women started to talk about the latest news in wizard society.  
  
"And of course I couldn't let her go on with such a miscomprehension." Mrs. Potter was saying when the door opened and two small faces peered inside.  
  
"Well come on you two, there is somebody here who is eager to meet you." Said James to the little girls.  
  
The girls turned to look at each other and walked quietly into the room.  
  
"Lily, these little devils are Cassandra and Francesca Sivini. Girls, this is my friend Lily Evans, she will be preparing you for Hogwarts."  
  
"Nice to make your acquaintance Miss Evans." The two little girls said with a curtsey.  
  
Lily laughed with delight. "Oh please call me Lily, Miss Evans makes me sound so stuffy. I hope I will soon be able to know you better and know who is who. James, I'm going to have problems, perhaps we can give them name tags." She said with a smile.  
  
James laughed. "Perhaps we should, you are not the only one who would have that problem and they like to change places on us. Maybe we should charm the tags so they wouldn't be able to take them off."  
  
"Oh no Uncle James."  
  
"We don't want tags."  
  
The girls said in horror.  
  
"Don't worry girls, they are only teasing you." Said Mrs. Potter with a smile.  
  
The girls sighed with relief and turned to look at the young lady their uncle said was his friend with curiosity.  
  
"You are pretty."  
  
"How old are you?"  
  
"Girls really don't you know it's bad manners to ask a lady her age." Laughed James. "Lily will think that we haven't being doing a good job raising you."  
  
The girls looked at their uncle. Even though he laughed a lot and always seemed happy especially when Uncle Sirius and Uncle Remus where here, they had never seen him in really good spirits before. On that instant, they decided that if this Lily was going to make their uncle happy then they would behave themselves and make no trouble for her.  
  
"Madam." A voice said from the door. The group turned to notice Roberts. "Dinner is served."  
  
"Thank you Roberts." Said Mrs. Potter. "Shall we go in?" She said to the group.  
  
James led his mother to the small dining room while Lily followed with a girl in each hand.  
  
Family dinners were quite informal in the Potter's household. The food was placed in the middle of the small round table, made to seat only eight people. Baked ham, salad, grilled chicken, marinated trout, fruit, and steamed vegetables were placed on the table. Five settings had been prepared and each sat whenever they liked. James sat at what Lily assumed was the head of the table. Mrs. Potter sat next to him and motioned Lily to sit on his other side. The girls sat on the two remaining seats, Roberts promptly placed two cushions for the little girls to sit upon.  
  
James served the two ladies as they helped the little girls to choose.  
  
"How was John, James? You said you were going to see him today." Asked Mrs. Potter once everybody had been served.  
  
"Oh he is doing fine now. Old Doc patched him up really quick." Said James in between bites.  
  
"John is one of our tenants, Lily dear. He broke his leg yesterday when he tried to check on his roof." Said Mrs. Potter when she noticed Lily trying to follow the conversation.  
  
"Oh, is Old Doc a mediwizard then?" Lily asked with curiosity.  
  
"Yes and no." James said. When he noticed Lily's confusion he added. "Old Doc is muggle born you see. His father was a doctor, his mother a nurse, so when he was over with his training at Hogwarts he continued with his education in muggle medicine in Cambridge, his father's old school. After he graduated from medical school he went into apprenticeship in St. Mungos'. He then set up practice in his father's clinic in London, conveniently near Diagon Alley. Before father was born, the town lost its doctor, and grandfather as leader of the community, put a notice in the London paper searching for a doctor. Old Doc saw the notice and remembered my grandfather's name, after all, the Potters are very well known in wizard society, and he came to apply for the job. Grandfather was happy to hire him, the town would have a new doctor and he wouldn't have to send for a mediwizard in London every time one of our tenants was hurt. So Old Doc has been with us for years now."  
  
"That is a very interesting story. Your grandfather was very lucky to find him, mediwizards with muggle medicine training are very rare to find." Said Lily.  
  
"They are. Old Doc has seen most of the children born and grow up in this area. He doesn't accept money from the town's people, so they pay him with food and services, like fixing anything he might have problems with. The owners of the big houses around the town pay him. We all pool money and pay him a salary." Said James.  
  
"What will you do when he retires? He is going to be hard to replace." Lily said.  
  
"His daughter will come to us. The town and the owners of the manors have decided that when the time comes for him to retire and his daughter decides to come to us, she will have the job." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Is she trained in both forms of medicine as well?" Lily asked. It would be a shame if she wasn't.  
  
"Oh she is. He has two daughters you see, both are witches, but only one decided to get training in muggle medicine." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"I see, so the one with the muggle training will be taking his place if she chooses." Lily said. "What about the other daughter, is she working in St. Mungo's?"  
  
"Oh you know her dear, his eldest daughter is the nurse at Hogwarts, Madam Pomfrey. Her younger sister is the one that we are hoping will replace Doctor Pomfrey. She is working in the clinic her grandfather had originally built. She is doing quite well on her own." Responded Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Oh, I didn't know that about Madam Pomfrey, but then again, she is not very talkative is she?" Said Lily with a smile.  
  
"Well, she is very protective of the Potters, she has a great sense of honor and thinks that she has to treat us with special attention because we were the ones that hired her father. I don't think the girls or my own children for that matter, will escape from her special attentions." Grumbled James.  
  
Lily laughed, but an unbidden picture of a small boy that looked very similar to James came to mind, and she wondered if James' son would look like that.  
  
  
  
The day was a bright fall day. Lily woke up at the sounds of giggling and whispers. She smiled. It seemed that the twins decided to pay her a visit.  
  
"Shhh! You will wake her."  
  
"Did you bring it?"  
  
"Yes. Here it is."  
  
More giggles.  
  
"I suggest you girls be more quiet if you want me to stay asleep." Lily said.  
  
Two small gasps were heard and then silence.  
  
"Come, what are you two doing here?" Lily said as she sat up on the bed. She slid the curtains and let the bright sunshine hit her bed.  
  
The two little girls stood by the end of the bed with their hands on their backs.  
  
"What do you have in your hands?" Lily asked with suspicion. What were these two up to?  
  
"Nothing."  
  
"Nothing."  
  
"Show me your hands. You don't want your uncle or grandmother to find that you were pulling a prank on me, do you?"  
  
"It wasn't a prank."  
  
"We don't know how to pull one."  
  
Lily laughed. "There is no way a Potter would not know how to get in trouble, it just follows them."  
  
"But we are not Potters."  
  
"We are Sivinis."  
  
"But you are daughters and nieces of a Potter, that is enough. Come show me your hands."  
  
The girls turned to look at each other and bowed their heads as they brought their hands to the front.  
  
Their small hands were full of flowers.  
  
"Oh, are they for me?" Lily exclaimed. She thought it was really sweet of the girls.  
  
The little girls nodded.  
  
Lily smiled and slid off the bed to kneel in front of them. She took the flowers from their hands and placed them on the table beside the bed. She then turned back to the two little girls who stood watching her. She smiled. They smiled back.  
  
"Thank you, they are beautiful." And hugged them tight.  
  
"Are you ready."  
  
"To get up."  
  
"It's late."  
  
"Breakfast is ready."  
  
"Will you girls join me for breakfast?" Lily asked as she got up and went toward the dresser. She opened the closet and started to rummage around looking for something to wear. Francie and Cassie jumped on to the bed and watched her choose her clothing.  
  
"No, we ate already."  
  
"Uncle James is getting ready now."  
  
"He can keep you company." They said as Lily closed the door of the bathroom behind her.  
  
"From that I gather that you already paid him a visit." Laughed Lily behind the closed door. The girls could hear the shower ran and movement inside the room.  
  
"Oh yes."  
  
"We like to wake him up."  
  
"He doesn't mind."  
  
"Oh I'm sure he doesn't." Said Lily. "Why don't you two run along and entertain yourselves. I will be ready soon. I'll visit you at the nursery once I've taken my breakfast."  
  
"Ok." Both girls said and Lily heard them ran out of the room.  
  
Lily chuckled. I think I'm going to like this place. She thought.  
  
  
  
James was serving himself some ham and toast that was set in a platter in front of his seat when Lily came into the room.  
  
"Good morning." She greeted him.  
  
"Morning Lily. Did you have a good night?" He asked. He watched her as she stood beside the table laden with food. She picked up covers and looked into the trays trying to make a decision on what to eat.  
  
"Oh wonderful night." She said as she chose some cereal and fruit salad. She then turned to take a seat near James.  
  
"I'm glad." He said with relief. "I hope you are well rested, the twins can be quite a handful sometimes."  
  
"I had a taste of their exuberance this morning." She said with a chuckle. James stopped from taking a bit of his toast.  
  
"Oh, no. Don't tell me they woke you up? I really have to do something about their need to wake everybody up."  
  
Lily laughed, nearly spilling the milk from her plate. "I gather that they do it often." She finally managed to say.  
  
"I say. Sirius and Remus don't mind it. They think it funny. And they don't do it to mother, which I don't understand why. But they like to make sure that everybody is up at an ungodly early hour." James complained. He continued buttering his muffin and continued eating.  
  
"Do you have any plans for them today. I'm not sure if you want me to start with their training right away." Said Lily following his example and buttering one of the muffins found on the middle of the table.  
  
"Hmmm.Maybe you should just spend the time getting to know them first. They won't be paying you any attention for a while, they will be asking you questions after questions until they know everything there is to know about you." James said in between bites of his toast.  
  
"Oh dear." Lily laughed. "I think I will enjoy teaching your nieces James, I wonder if you were like that as a child."  
  
"Good god no, I was quite an angel." He replied as he tried to look angelic.  
  
"I beg to differ. I don't think you have an angelic bone in your body." Exclaimed Lily. She put her napkin on her empty plate and stood up. "I told them to meet me at the nursery so I will be joining them now. See you later James." She turned to leave the room.  
  
"Good luck Lily!" James yelled behind her. He could hear her laughter as she made her way to the nursery. He smiled. He was glad it was Lily who would be teaching his nieces. Very glad indeed.  
  
  
  
Lily walked toward the nursery in trepidation. It was one thing to say that it would be fun teaching; it was quite another to be able to do so. What would it be like teaching two little girls who seemed to have more energy than a snidget?  
  
As she neared the nursery she noticed that it was eerily quiet. She thought it was strange for a room where two little rambunctious little girls where so supposed to be in, to be so quiet.  
  
She carefully entered the room and looked around. The room was like any other play room for little kids. Toy chests and shelves lined the wall. A small table stood in the middle of the room with four chairs around it and two teddy bears sitting in two of them and a tiny tea set on the wooden table. A large doll house stood near the large windows across from the door in which Lily stood. Dolls and books were thrown around the room. On a darkened corner of the room was a large couch. A large woman was sitting on it.  
  
"Excuse me?" Lily asked.  
  
"Yes dear, come on in." The woman said. Lily carefully approached her. She noticed that the woman was older than she thought. She seemed to be around seventy to eighty years of age. She was wearing a black dress made in the style of the last century and a pristine white apron on top of it.  
  
"I gather you are the new teacher then?" The old lady asked.  
  
"Yes I am. My name is Lily Evans." Lily said with a nod.  
  
"Ah, the twins told me that an old friend of Master James had come to teach them. Is that true? Are you a friend of his?" The old lady asked with peering eyes.  
  
"Well, yes. We were in the same year at Hogwarts. I was Head Girl when he was Head Boy." Lily said. She stayed standing in front of the old lady. She sensed that she was on a sort of trial and that this lady was the judge. She preferred to be on her feet if it was so.  
  
The old woman nodded and stayed quiet looking fixedly at Lily.  
  
Lily shifted her weight from one foot to another, was this inquisition over?  
  
"You'll do." The woman suddenly said.  
  
Lily was surprised. It seemed that she just passed a test.  
  
"Hmmm.can you tell me where the girls are? I told them that I would meet them here after my breakfast." Said Lily.  
  
"Wake you up, did they? That means they like you. They only do that to those they like. I'm their nurse you see. I know them pretty well. I have been raising Potter children since Master Aliaster was born." Nurse said.  
  
"Glad to meet you. But where are the girls? I was expecting to see them running around in here." Said Lily with a swept of her hand.  
  
"Oh they never stay in one place for long. They were here for half an hour and then they slipped by me to go to the kennels." The old Nurse said.  
  
"How do you know they went to the kennels?" Lily said with a frown.  
  
"Oh they've been going there on the last couple of weeks to see the puppies. One of Master James' hounds had puppies and the girls found out about them. They are trying to get Master James to let them have one."  
  
"Oh poor James. I gather he is not too keen to the idea." Lily laughed.  
  
"You seem to know him very well if you think that." The old lady said with a pleased smile. "He is not, but he will give in eventually. He usually does. He cannot say no to those girls."  
  
"Perhaps I should go and look for them. It wouldn't do to let them make trouble in the kennels, James would not be too happy about that." Said Lily and waved goodbye to Nurse as she left the room.  
  
"She will do very well for him. I see what Mistress Susan means. She will do quite well." Nurse muttered as she heard Lily walking away from the nursery.  
  
  
  
  
  
A/N: I'm quite happy with myself that I could have this ready for you so soon. I hope you enjoy it. This is the beginning of a new part of my story and there is more to come. 


	26. Part II Chapter 2

A/N: Hello, I'm back again with another chapter. : ) I hope you like this, I'm quite happy with myself really, in the official HP site I'm in Chapter 7 from this part and I must say that is going quite well, even though school and work have cut short my free time. Thank you all for reading and for your wonderful reviews.  
  
Disclaimer: You might know it by now, so I won't repeat it.  
  
  
  
Chapter 2 ~ Harvest Time  
  
  
  
  
  
James left the dining room some moments after Lily had gone up to the nursery. He wondered what the twins had planned for her. Poor Lily, he thought, she has no idea what she got herself into.  
  
James walked across the kitchen gardens toward the stables. He was humming as he walked. He had never felt so light-hearted and happy, he didn't know what might have brought this joy to his life, but he didn't care to examine it to closely.  
  
As he reached the stables he directed his feet toward the back. He passed the stable lads who were busy taking care of the horses and readying them for some morning exercises.  
  
At the back he found a narrow door and he opened the door. Barking met his ears as he entered.  
  
"Good morning Master James. Came to inspect the hounds?" Asked a middle- aged man as he approached James.  
  
"Good morning George. Are they ready, do you think, for the hunt next month?" James asked as he kneeled to pet some of the dogs that had come to greet their master.  
  
"Oh yes Master James. They are all eager to show off." George, the man in charge of the kennels, answered.  
  
James nodded. He was very proud of the kennels in his estate. The Potter family had been able to breed the best hunting dogs in the area for the last two centuries and he planned to continue with that tradition.  
  
He suddenly heard a sound that he wasn't expecting to hear.  
  
Giggles.  
  
He turned to look at George with a lift of his brow.  
  
"Don't tell me the girls sneaked in here." He said.  
  
George only nodded. After all, he reckoned, James said not to tell him.  
  
James sighed and with a last pat to one of the dogs he approached the place where he heard the girls.  
  
"What are you two doing here?" He asked to the two little girls who were playing with a group of newborn puppies.  
  
The girls turned to look at their uncle. They noticed that he didn't seem to be too angry that they had escaped the nursery again, but that he was displeased with them.  
  
"We are playing."  
  
"With the puppies."  
  
"Oh? And did you ask Nurse if you could be here? What about Lily? I thought she was going to meet you in the nursery this morning."  
  
The girls looked down to their white apron that Nurse always put on top of their dresses every morning to keep them clean.  
  
"We are sorry." They both said.  
  
James sighed. He didn't like to scold the girls; he certainly didn't want them to think of him as mean Uncle James. But perhaps his mother was right, he thought, perhaps he would spoil them if he wasn't more strict with them. He certainly didn't want them to grow up to be like Jezebel Robinson or one of her crew. All his Potter ancestors would roll in their grave if they did. They would probably end up in Slytherin. James shuddered at the thought.  
  
"Well, it's Lily and Nurse you should be apologizing to. Now go on, to the nursery. If, nurse or Lily want to bring you down to see the puppies, then it's fine. Otherwise, I don't want to see you in here alone. Do you understand?"  
  
"Yes Uncle James." Said the little girls as they slowly came to their feet. They didn't look up at him; they continued to look down to their feet. Slowly they marched out of the kennels, saying good-bye in low voices to George who had been standing by the door watching the scene.  
  
James shook his head as he watched the little girls leave the room. George approached him and kneeled to take a look at the puppies, who didn't seem to mind that they had lost their playmates.  
  
"How long have they been coming in here?" James asked with a frown forming on his forehead.  
  
"A couple of weeks. Since these lot was born." Said George pointing to the puppies.  
  
"So that's why they have been asking for a puppy." James exclaimed. "What do you think George? Should I let them have one of these? I don't want to spoil them, I don't want them to end up in Slytherin." He said with disgust.  
  
"Well, I reckon that if you tell them that they are in charge of feeding him, bathing him, and exercising him, then it would be all right. It would teach them a bit of responsibility as well." George responded.  
  
James thought about it for a moment. "You are right. I will discuss it with mother, see what she says. I don't think she would be too happy if the girls have a puppy that is sure to follow them all over the house without discussing it first."  
  
George nodded and started to push the puppies toward their mother, who was watching indulgently at her litter play.  
  
"George, I need you to choose some of the lads to help you during the hunt. I expect it will be well attended this year. The McDowells are expected to have a house party at about that time so they will surely bring their guests to participate. Make sure that the horses are prepared as well, I want everything to be in order next month."  
  
"Of course Master James. You can count on me." Said George with excitement. James left the stables with a purpose toward the house, ready to go in search of his mother.  
  
  
  
Lily walked down the main staircase looking around. She was in search of the girls but she remembered that she didn't know where the kennels were. Oh really, how hard could they be to find? She thought. She noticed a small head peering from the banisters at the top of the staircase. There was nobody there when I passed. It could not possibly be the girls. She frowned. She was so sure that she hadn't seen anybody around when she started down the stairs. The she noticed the large eyes and ears that seemed to want to escape from the small head.  
  
"Who's there?" Lily asked cautiously.  
  
"It's Minnie, Miss Lily. Minnie had heard that Miss Lily was here and Minnie wanted to make sure." A small voice squeaked.  
  
Lily smiled. She had wondered what had happened to James' elf. "Hello Minnie, come down here." She said with a smile.  
  
The small elf, skipped down the stairs until she reached Lily, who was standing at the foot of the stairs.  
  
"Does Miss Lily need anything?" Squeaked Minnie.  
  
"Well, you could help me. I need to find the twins and I was told that they might be in the kennels. Where are the kennels Minnie?"  
  
"Kennels are behind the stables Miss Lily. But the young mistresses are not there anymore." Minnie replied.  
  
"Oh? Where are they now?" Lily asked.  
  
"They are on their way to the nursery. Master James just sent them up." Minnie said.  
  
Lily sighed, after all that walking she now had to go back.  
  
"Thank you Minnie." Lily said as she started to climb the stairs once more.  
  
Minnie bowed and skipped down the corridor in direction to the kitchens.  
  
"Oh hello Lily dear, any problem?" Asked Mrs. Potter who was now at the top of the stairs when she noticed Lily on her way up.  
  
"Just looking for the girls." Lily said with a smile.  
  
"Gave you the slip, did they?" Chuckled Mrs. Potter.  
  
"In a manner of speaking." Replied Lily.  
  
"Well, it will take you a while to find them. Come with me, let's wait on the back parlor, Nurse will send somebody for you when the girls return." Mrs. Potter motioned her to follow as they started to go down the stairs. Lily gave a deep sigh as she followed Mrs. Potter down.  
  
Lily followed Mrs. Potter down the corridor toward the back parlor. She was getting used to this big house, she thought it was like a maze, every corridor seemed to lead to somewhere else.  
  
"How are you doing Lily? Had a good night? I hope you liked your room." Said Mrs. Potter as she settled on one of the couches. She motioned Lily to take a seat next to her.  
  
"Thank you Mrs. Potter, I like my room, it is gorgeous." Said Lily with a bright smile.  
  
"Oh, I'm so glad." Mrs. Potter said. "I'm sorry the twins escaped you, they seem to be everywhere at once. They cannot stay put in just one place."  
  
Lily laughed. "Nurse said the same thing. But I think that is common with all children."  
  
"Perhaps you are right, mine seemed to be like that. I couldn't leave James on his own for long, he was a very active child."  
  
"I imagine he was. After all the things he did at Hogwarts I can believe anything about him." Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"Mother, what are you telling Lily? Don't make me sound like a monster child." Chided James as he entered the room. It seemed that he heard part of the conversation.  
  
"Hello James dear. I wasn't saying that you were a monster child, just that you were very active, neither Nurse nor I could keep up with you." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Well, all children are like that, aren't they?" Asked James. He went toward the back of the room. A large cabinet stood there. James opened it and Lily noticed that there was a decanter and clean glasses. The other drawers were closed but Lily assumed that drinks were stored there. "Do you want some mother?" James asked as he served himself from the decanter.  
  
"No dear, I'm fine." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"What about you Lily?" James asked as he turned to look at her.  
  
"No thank you, I don't drink this early on the day." Lily promptly said.  
  
"Oh this is not liquor, it's cider. I don't drink this early in the morning either." Said James with a smile.  
  
"Oh, in that case, I would like some." Lily replied.  
  
James turned to pour more cider into another clean glass and then crossed the room to give the glass to Lily.  
  
"Thank you." She said and sipped from the cup as she watched James sitting on the seat next to her.  
  
"I sent the girls up to the nursery, I found them in the kennels playing with the puppies." James said as he made himself comfortable.  
  
"Oh dear! Those two cannot stay in one place for long." Chuckled Mrs. Potter shaking her head.  
  
"Well, hopefully that may change. I had to scold them but frankly, I think I felt worse than they did. I never did so before." Said James.  
  
"You are going to spoil them." Chided Lily.  
  
"I've been saying that. But you had to do so dear, they won't be the worse for it." Mrs. Potter replied.  
  
"If you say so." James said. "Mother, have you made the guest list yet, we have only one more month to be ready."  
  
Lily looked at Mrs. Potter and James with confusion. What was happening in one month? Mrs. Potter noticed the confusion in Lily's expression and took pity on her.  
  
"We are having the Harvest Festival next month. It's customary for the large estates to host a Festival during Harvest time every year. We have been doing so for two centuries now and it has become a tradition. The Festival takes place in the middle of the town. The local band plays, local merchants put up their booths with merchandise, the local theater group does a small play for the children. The next day we have a hunting race, the Potters have bred the best hunting dogs of the county for centuries, thus, it's only fair that the Potters officiate over that particular event. Then every year one of the estates hosts the ball the next evening. It's our turn this year."  
  
"Oh, that sounds like a lot of fun." Exclaimed Lily. "I can see that you have so much to do. I remember how much work it took to put the Halloween together and it wasn't as big as this one."  
  
"Oh, it is a big job, but it is enjoyable as well and we cannot disappoint the town if we don't do it." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
James had kept silent during his mother's explanation of the event. He remembered perfectly the effort that it cost them to put together the Halloween Festival in their seventh year. He now understood why it seemed that his parents didn't have enough time during this time of year when he was a child.  
  
He mentally shook his head and turned back to listen to the two women.  
  
"We are having a meeting here this afternoon with the other ladies of the big houses to start the preparations. Most of the time, those who are not hosting the ball have a house party. So we are expecting a lot of people to come. The Ball room will overflow with people." Mrs. Potter was saying.  
  
"Oh, if you need any help Mrs. Potter, please let me know, I will gladly help out." Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"Oh, hold on Lily, you do not know what you are getting into. Mother can be a dictator when it's our time to host the ball. I wouldn't do so if I were you, the girls will keep you busy most of the time." Quickly said James.  
  
"Oh really James, I am not that bad and if she wants to help she certainly can. You have no say in the matter, you just make sure that everything is ready for the hunt." Chided Mrs. Potter. "Lily dear, call me Susan, there is no need for us to be so formal. Now, if you want you can come to the meeting, I'm sure James will not mind keeping an eye on the girls for a while." Mrs. Potter said as she started to leave her seat and walked out of the room.  
  
"I told you." Said James with a shake of his head. "You should have said nothing."  
  
"Oh really James, you know I will enjoy it." Said Lily as she hit him playfully in the arm.  
  
"Oh no you don't." Said James and turned to tickle her.  
  
"James stop, you know I don't like it when you do that." Screamed Lily as she tried to keep her distance from him.  
  
He just smiled mischievously and slid down the couch toward her. She quickly left the couch and turned toward the door as she kept turning back to see what he would do. He sat with his legs crossed with a huge smile on his face.  
  
Lily was too busy looking at him that didn't notice somebody standing in front of her until she bumped against a body and nearly fell by the impact.  
  
"Careful there." Said a laughing voice as two strong arms caught her before she hit the floor.  
  
Lily turned to look up to a pair of dark, laughing eyes. Her jaw dropped.  
  
"Sirius." She exclaimed and jumped to hug him. "I'm so glad to see you."  
  
"Glad to see you as well Lily. What are you doing here?" Sirius asked as he gave her a bear hug.  
  
"Sirius, you are hugging me too hard." Lily complained with a laugh.  
  
"Sorry." Sirius said with a sheepish smile as he let her go.  
  
"She is living here now." James said from the couch.  
  
Sirius eyebrow went up in surprise. Did he just say that she was living there? With him?  
  
"It's not what you think, silly." Said Lily hitting him on his arm. "I'm the girls' tutor."  
  
"Oh, you are the new teacher." Exclaimed Sirius. "Well, if it couldn't be Remus at least it's you."  
  
"Oh? You offered Remus this position?" Asked Lily to James. She wondered why he hadn't mentioned that.  
  
"I talked to him about it, but he said that he wasn't ready to come back to England." Said James with a shrug.  
  
Lily had conflicting emotions about this piece of news. She was sad to know that Remus was still away and that probably wouldn't be returning any time soon. But on the other hand, she was angry at him for hurting Emma and breaking things up with her. She stayed silent. There was no need to fight with James and Sirius about it.  
  
The boys had been greeting each other while Lily had been lost in thought.  
  
"I say James, why didn't you owl me that Lily was going to take the position?" Sirius was saying.  
  
"I didn't know until she came." James responded. "It took me by surprise."  
  
"Oh. Then Lily, how come you didn't tell us?" Sirius asked. He had walked to the drink cabinet and was serving himself from the decanter of cider.  
  
"I didn't know either. Dumbledore didn't tell me." Lily said.  
  
"That old man is very secretive, let me tell you. But he is great nonetheless. I received an owl from him the other day. Wants me to go to Hogwarts and meet with him." Sirius sipped from his glass.  
  
James frowned. "I received a similar note. What do you think it's about?"  
  
Sirius shrugged. There was nobody in the world who was able to know what was in Dumbledore's mind.  
  
Both boys turned to look questioningly at Lily.  
  
"Don't ask me, I don't know what he wants to talk to you about. He didn't tell me about this meeting of his." Said Lily. Why hadn't he said anything to her, she thought, this was strange.  
  
"Oh well." Exclaimed Sirius as he sat on a chair. "We'll find out."  
  
"So. What brings you here Sirius?" Asked Lily as she took the chair that Mrs. Potter had emptied earlier.  
  
"Oh, I always come here when I need to hide from mother." He said with a mischievous smile.  
  
James laughed and Lily frowned.  
  
"What did you do now Sirius?" Lily asked.  
  
"Oh, just trying to keep out of her hair for now, she is planning this dinner party next weekend. She told me to go away, that I was distracting her." He said.  
  
"That and he wants to ride my horses." Said James with a laugh.  
  
Sirius smiled.  
  
Lily laughed. "Really Sirius, you aren't going to change are you? Have you seen Katie?"  
  
Sirius expression changed completely. One moment he was smiling widely and the next he was serious. James and Lily turned to look at each other with surprise and trepidation.  
  
"No." Sirius said.  
  
James and Lily didn't say a word. It was clear that Sirius would not appreciate being questioned and it would only served to make things worse.  
  
Lily cleared her throat. "I think it's best if I go look for the girls. I left them to their own devices for too long. I'll see you later Sirius." Lily said with a wave and quickly left the room.  
  
Sirius sat brooding in his seat. James sighed.  
  
"Come then, we might as well go to the stables." Said James.  
  
Sirius shook himself from his thoughts and followed James out to the gardens.  
  
  
  
Luncheon was a happy affair. Sirius stayed to partake lunch with them and the girls were happy to see him. After the meal was over, James and Sirius took the girls to the gardens to play and left Mrs. Potter and Lily to prepare for the meeting with the town ladies.  
  
"I tell you dear, it is a big event but it is so much fun to see it all taking shape." Exclaimed Mrs. Potter as she and Lily prepared the front parlor for the meeting.  
  
"Oh I can imagine." Lily said with an indulgent smile.  
  
"I will owl your parents, perhaps they would like to join us for those days. I'm sure that they will enjoy spending some time with you." Mrs. Potter said as she arranged the vases full of flowers among the small tables found around the room.  
  
"Thank you Mrs. Potter, I'm sure that they will enjoy it." Lily said with a smile as she arranged flowers in to the vases.  
  
"Lily, you agreed to call me Susan." Mrs. Potter chided.  
  
"I'm sorry, habit I suppose." Said Lily.  
  
"Oh don't worry, you will get used to it. So tell me, how was your mother when you last saw her?"  
  
"Oh she was fine. Father has been feeling a bit sick lately but she owled me a few days ago and said that he was getting better." Lily responded.  
  
She had been quite worried at the news that her father had fallen sick. He had never been sick a day in his life. She had considered asking for leave from Hogwarts and go back home but her mother had urged her to stay. The news of his recovery had been a relief to Lily.  
  
"Oh I'm glad to hear that." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
They heard motion outside the closed door and both turned to look as they heard the door open.  
  
Roberts, the butler entered with a cart of refreshments. Biscuits and tiny sandwiches were served on large platters. Plates, cups and glasses were stacked on the second shelf of the cart.  
  
"Madam, here are the refreshments you asked for. I will bring the tea and cider when your guests arrive." Roberts said with a bow.  
  
"Thank you Roberts." Said Mrs. Potter. Roberts bowed once more and left the room. "Well dear." She said to Lily. "We are ready now." She smiled. She clearly enjoyed planning these kind of events.  
  
  
  
While the ladies waited for the neighborhood ladies to arrive, James and Sirius took the twins over to the kennels to play with the puppies.  
  
"So tell me, what really brings you here? You haven't come for a while." Said James to Sirius as they leaned against the wall watching the twins playing with the pups.  
  
Sirius sighed. James was the only one that could see beyond his social mask. He also knew that even though James would leave it alone if he wanted, James would be too preoccupied and eventually would take it out of him.  
  
"Katie is not too happy with me." He simply said.  
  
"What do you mean?" James asked. "Is she breaking up with you?"  
  
"She might as well do so." Sirius scoffed.  
  
"Do you want to break up with her?" James queried.  
  
"No, but I don't know if I can give her what she wants." Sirius answered.  
  
James sighed. Why was Sirius too thick and didn't come out with it, did he have to drag it out himself in order to find out what was going on?  
  
"What did she want you to do?" He asked.  
  
Sirius took a deep breath. This was harder than he thought. He was sure that if he came to James and talked to him, he would get his priorities into perspective, but that wasn't happening. He was just couldn't get out of his head the last time he saw Katie in town.  
  
"She wants to get married." He said.  
  
James gasped. Somehow he never thought to see the both of them married, as a couple they were wonderful but as a married couple he wasn't so sure.  
  
"What did you tell her?" James asked. He wondered if she should tell Lily about this.  
  
"I didn't say anything. I don't know James, I don't want to get married yet, you know that, and I thought she did too but doesn't look like she did. She said that after four years she wants our relationship to continue on to the next level and if I didn't want to do so then we might as well break up. She wants a family, she says, she wants a husband and a home, and if I'm not prepared to give her that then so be it. She will look for someone who is willing to give it to her. What am I going to do James? I don't want to lose, but I also don't want to get married." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
James noticed that Sirius was getting agitated and thought that perhaps it was a better idea if they went for a walk and left the girls to play with the puppies with George, he would keep an eye on them and keep them away from mischief.  
  
"George." James turned to the man standing by the girls. "Sirius and I are going for a walk, keep an eye on the girls will you?"  
  
George nodded and turned back to look at the little girls giggling as the puppies tried to climb over them.  
  
James pulled Sirius from the kennels and led him out of the stables. "Come." He said.  
  
Sirius followed him without a word. A circumstance that made James worried. Sirius never was quiet, he always had something to say.  
  
James walked toward the fields, he didn't think the gardens were safe, especially since they could be seen from the front parlor windows and if Lily or his mother saw them they would want to know what was happening. He thought of the maze, they could go there, but they could also get lost. The fields were safer.  
  
"How do you feel about her Sirius?" James finally said breaking the silence.  
  
"I love her of course, I wouldn't have lasted this long with her if I didn't." Sirius responded.  
  
"But the question is, do you love her enough to spend the rest of your life together? If not, then it's probably best if you let her go Sirius. She deserves to have what she wants, and if what she wants most is to get married and have a family then so be it. You don't have a right to keep that away from her Sirius." James said.  
  
"I know, I want her to be happy. But James, how will I survive knowing that I let her go? I don't think I could take it if I saw her flirting with other men and knowing that one of them might be the man who will marry her. I don't know if I could do it James." Sirius exclaimed running his hand through his hair.  
  
"Have you talked to her about this?" James asked.  
  
"No."  
  
"Perhaps it is time that you do so. Make her understand what you feel and what you think, maybe you could come out with an agreement." Urged James. He didn't know what else to say.  
  
"Perhaps. I'll give it a try." Sirius said with a smile.  
  
James sighed with relief. Maybe things would get better for his friend.  
  
"Let's go get the girls. I see that my tenants are starting to store the grain. Feeling like helping with the apples, I think that's Mark and Jonathan in their way to the orchard." James said as he pointed at two men walking away from them toward the large orchard at the far end of the estate.  
  
Sirius smiled. "Sounds like fun. But only if I can have a barrel of that homemade cider that they will prepare with those apples."  
  
James laughed. "Of course you can. I will also have Otty prepare some apple pies for your mother."  
  
"For mother, what about me, I love those pies." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"Sirius, you like everything, you eat everything." James said with a roll of his eyes.  
  
The two young men walked to the stables and made their way toward the kennels where they found the girls rolling in the hay with the puppies around them and George smiling indulgently down at his charges.  
  
The foursome spent the rest of the afternoon helping the gardeners and the tenants gathering the ripe apples in the orchard. The harvesting party, as Sirius started to call it, ended when James noticed the twins falling asleep on top of full baskets. Sirius and James returned to the house with a girl each in their arms.  
  
James was glad that the neighborhood ladies had left by the time they returned. Lily and Mrs. Potter were busy making plans when they entered by the back parlor.  
  
"Oh the little dears, they must be so tired." Mrs. Potter exclaimed as soon as they entered the parlor.  
  
"We'll take them up mother." James said when he noticed her standing up from her seat.  
  
"Very well dear, nurse will take care of them." Nodded Mrs. Potter and watched as James and Sirius left the room carrying the twins.  
  
  
  
Sirius joined the Potters and Lily for dinner. It was a merry meal as Mrs. Potter told them about all the plans that they had started on their afternoon meeting.  
  
".and of course, she is not too happy about it. She was so sure that she would be assigned the management of the food stands, but none of us have forgotten what happened last year when she was in charge of it." Laughed Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Ugh, I shudder to think what she is capable of doing this year if she was in charge of it. Maintenance is too good for her. If she wasn't the wife of the old Colonel, I don't think any of the ladies in this town would invite her to take part of our little society circle." Said James.  
  
"Is she really that bad? I thought she was a bit common and crude but I thought that it might be because she was brought up in the country." Lily said.  
  
"Oh no, she grew up in the city all right. She is the illegitimate daughter of a titled gentleman, his name was never disclosed of course. But you can imagine what kind of education she had. She took advantage of an old wealthy man. I don't know how the Colonel fell into her trap, but there you are. Now we are stuck with that hussy." Mrs. Potter scoffed. Everybody knew she wasn't too happy with the new wife of their oldest neighbor.  
  
"Well mum, Sirius here has agreed to help me with the plans for our game." James said trying to keep his mother's mind of their neighbor, he really didn't want to here it all over again.  
  
"I have?" Sirius asked with a lift of his brow.  
  
"Oh dear, how wonderful, I'm sure our tenants will enjoy it." Mrs. Potter said taking no notice of Sirius surprise.  
  
Lily giggled behind her napkin.  
  
James smiled at Lily, he understood her laughter, Sirius' face was precious.  
  
"I'm sure it will be the finest of all time." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"What kind of game is it?" Lily asked as soon as she could get hold of her laughter.  
  
"Quidditch." James proudly exclaimed.  
  
Of course, Lily thought with a roll of her eyes.  
  
"But won't it be dangerous to have a Quidditch game this close to town? I thought it was against the law to have games near towns, because muggles would see it." Lily said.  
  
"Well, technically it is. That's why the Department of Magical Games and Sports has built the Quidditch Pitches in marshes and isolated areas. But this is not a national event. It's a local event and as long as security measures are taken it is within the law." James said.  
  
"Besides, the Ministry wouldn't dare tell the Potters they can't do something, most of the former Ministers of Magic have come from the Potter family, they have been councils and advisers to the Ministry. The very first Minister was a Potter and they helped create the Ministry as we now know it. The Potters could get away with murder if they were capable of committing one." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
James looked at Sirius with murder in his eyes and Lily thought that he might have kicked Sirius beneath the table when Sirius stifled a yell and looked at James with hurt.  
  
"Oh don't let Sirius make us seem so saintly Lily, it's true that our family has a long history with the Ministry but I don't think we are favorites. We try to keep everything within the magical laws, we are very careful of doing things the muggle way, especially when we live so close to them." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"But how will you make sure that the game will be kept out of muggle eyes?" Lily asked.  
  
"Oh we have a pitch on the estate, it's in the middle of the orchard. The trees line only the perimeter, there are charms and spells protecting the Pitch. If a muggle stumbles into the field they will see a soccer field, in fact some of the children in town come and ask permission to use it on occasion. It's only a Quidditch Pitch to magical eyes. Only the muggles that live within the estate and are aware that we are wizards can see the Pitch, some of them like to go and see it every time we have a game." Explained James.  
  
"And who will play in this game?" Asked Lily.  
  
"The tenants, those who are wizards and witches of course. It has become a tradition to have a game on the night after the Ball." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"That's another security measure made by the Ministry. Games are only played in the middle of the night, so most muggles are asleep by the time the game starts." Said Sirius.  
  
"Oh, so will you two play?" Asked Lily. They both seemed so excited about the game.  
  
"Only James will. Only tenants and residents of the town are allowed to play." Said Sirius. "I will be the referee." He said with pride.  
  
"Perhaps we can make and exemption, you might as well live here, you are here all the time." Said James.  
  
Lily laughed, she was glad she had come to take the position. She had only been there for a day and she felt as if she had been part of it for a long time.  
  
Dinner was over, and the conversation continued. Everybody seemed so excited about the plans made. Lily was looking forward to taking part of it, she had never seen an event like it, where muggles and wizards came together and had fun as a community. And she was happy to be part of the planning.  
  
The evening ended on a happy note. Sirius apparated out to his house soon after they left the dining room. Lily and the Potters didn't stay in the parlor for too long either. The estate was soon dark with only a few lighted rooms here and there.  
  
A pair of eyes watched from a distance, disappearing from sight before the sunrise the next morning.  
  
  
  
The next weeks were busy and hectic for everybody in town. The large houses invited friends and families, the small businesses in town set up booths in the center of town, and the ladies in the area got together three times a week making sure everything went according to plan.  
  
During this time, Lily became close with Mrs. Potter. Mrs. Potter treated Lily as the daughter she had lost some years ago. James was happy to see this development, but that left no room for him to try to start a relationship with Lily once more. With the twins, things more difficult still. The little girls had come to love Lily. They went to picnics, swims in the lake beyond the gardens, and frequent trips to the kennels to visit the pups that were growing too fast for them.  
  
Sirius was frequent visitor to the estate. Lily knew something was going on with Katie and Sirius but neither said a thing to her. Owls were constantly exchanged between Lily and her two best friends and both had agreed to make time to visit her during the upcoming events. That was enough for her. Her parents had also agreed to come during that time. Lily couldn't be any happier.  
  
  
  
The week previous to the Town Harvest Fair was very busy for the Potter household. The servants, muggle and wizard alike, were busy readying rooms and cleaning every piece of the large Ball room that filled the whole first floor of the east wing of the house.  
  
Mrs. Potter, with Lily's help, stayed most of the day planning and designing the decorations for the ballroom.  
  
"What do you think about this color Lily? Do you think fall colors are appropriate?" Asked Mrs. Potter as Lily and Mrs. Potter sat on a couple of chairs in the middle of the ballroom looking at some pieces of fabric.  
  
"Oh, I think it's very appropriate Mrs. Potter, it is the Harvest Ball after all. This shade of yellow seems suitable and if we combine it with this red and this orange it will be perfect." Lily responded.  
  
"Hmmm.you might be right my dear, they look perfect together. Now let's put this aside and I will send Roberts to buy the bolts of fabric in town." Said Mrs. Potter as she separated the fabrics chosen from the rest before putting them aside.  
  
"Mrs. Potter, have you decided what flowers you are going to bring in here, the gardener came this morning to see if you had made that decision." Lily said.  
  
"Oh dear, I had forgotten all about it." Exclaimed Mrs. Potter. "Why don't you choose dear, I trust your taste."  
  
Lily didn't have a chance to respond to this. Mrs. Nichols, the housekeeper, entered at that moment to talk about the menus with Mrs. Potter. Lily shrugged and left the two women alone as she went out to the garden to look for the head gardener and start talking about flowers.  
  
The servants had noticed the way Mrs. Potter trusted Lily with the management of the house on occasions, they also knew that there had been a history between the young woman and their master. It was very clear to them that Mrs. Potter wished for a continuation to that relationship and noticed that the young master was not averse to it. They all hoped that Lily would agree with them and soon became part of the family. She had stolen their hears and got their respect by her easy manners and the help she was willing to give to the household. Needless to say, they were all looking for the outcome and hoped that this event would help bring Lily and James together.  
  
  
  
Lily looked around the garden for the Mr. Burns, the head gardener. She hadn't had the chance to really look around the grounds of the estate during the three weeks she had been there.  
  
The House was surrounded by gardens. The front was adorned with stately oak trees lining the wide driveway. At each side, topiaries were seen behind the trees, and a fountain at each side.  
  
On the west side were the green gardens. It was mostly comprised of bushes and hedges, at the back was a set of mazes, that James had once told Lily were created by his grandfather. The center of each maze, James said, was different. One was a covered room, with a day bed and furniture and a door which locked from inside. The others were like small gardens, one had a fountain, one had a pool with small fish swimming in the clear waters, and another had only flowers.  
  
On the back of the house were the kitchen gardens. Herbs, vegetables and fruit were grown here for the needs of the cook.  
  
On the east side was the informal gardens. Rose bushes, orchids, all types of flowers that were carefully tended by the vast number of gardeners that the estate employed. Beyond the garden, walls covered with ivy were seen. These were the closed gardens. There were several gardens in a row. Four walls surrounded each garden a wide door on each wall that lead to the next garden. Each garden was different, exquisite in its own way. There was one, however, at the very end of the row that was completely closed. Lily had stumbled upon it and was very curious about it. Unlike the others, three walls had no doors and the one that did, the door was locked. She tried apparating to it because she thought that perhaps contained magical plants and for that reason had been locked so no muggle would come to it. But it didn't work. A shielding charm had been put upon it. This made her even more curious and made a mental note to ask about it.  
  
Beyond the walled gardens were the greenhouses, in which exotic plants and fruits were grown.  
  
It was here that Lily found the balding, middle aged, Head gardener. He was busy repotting a set of flowers.  
  
"Hello Mr. Burns, I hope I'm not interrupting." Said Lily as she hesitantly approached him.  
  
"Oh Miss, not to worry, this can wait." He said as he wiped his dirty hands on the large apron that covered his clothing.  
  
"Mrs. Potter wanted me to discuss the flowers for the ballroom decorations." Lily explained.  
  
"Of course Miss. If you will follow me, I have some flowers here that might be perfect for it. I have several kinds that would be ready by then to cut." Mr. Burns said as he led Lily toward the back of the greenhouse.  
  
As they progressed through the warm room, Lily looked around with awe at the different types of flowers she saw growing there. There were some that she had never seen before, nor known that could be grown in England. Some were clearly brought over from tropical places. It seemed that every single plant in the world was represented within these four walls, and this was only one of the many greenhouses in the estate.  
  
Mr. Burns finally stopped at the very end of the building. Trellis of ivy covered the walls, on the shelves on the floor, dahlias of every color, size and kind were found. Lily looked around and chose some orange, and yellow peonies and pompon. She also made note to bring into the house some of the large trellis. She also chose some orchids, mostly white and pale pink. Finally some greenery was chosen, and happily she left the greenhouse with ideas for decorating in her mind.  
  
When she arrived to the house, it was in complete chaos.  
  
  
  
A/N: I hope this didn't take too long. I remembered as I was editing this chapter that I never told you about the dolls that accompany this story. If you are interested in meeting the characters of this story you can visit my webshots album and see the dolls, the address is http://community.webshots.com/album/45028991uBnciM , you might see some items there that you might not be aware of, that is because in the HP site, this story is ahead some chapters so I download the pictures as I post there. Hope you can visit sometime and like what you find. Don't forget to review. @}---- 


	27. Part II Chapter 3

A/N: Thank you to those of you who reviewed, I truly appreciate reading what you have to say about my story.  
  
Disclaimer: Everything you recognized I do not own.  
  
  
  
Chapter 3 ~ Terror in the Ministry  
  
  
  
  
  
"What happened?" She asked to a maid that ran by her.  
  
"Oh Miss." The maid wailed and ran toward the kitchens.  
  
Footmen ran from one place to another, maids sobbed into their aprons and for the first time in their lives, Mrs. Nichols and Mr. Roberts had no control over the staff.  
  
Lily looked around, trying to find someone to tell her what was going on. She finally approached Mr. Roberts who was trying to direct his staff and calm down a group of maids who were quietly sobbing.  
  
"Roberts, what happened? Why is everybody so upset?" Lily asked.  
  
Roberts sighed, it seemed that he was trying to get his edgy nerves in control. "There was an attack in London Miss, Master James apparated to the Ministry and Mistress Susan was taken to her room, she was really upset." He finally said.  
  
"Oh dear." Lily exclaimed. "Do you know what really happened?"  
  
"No Miss, all we were told was that the Ministry was attacked." Roberts said.  
  
Lily gasped. The Ministry was attacked?  
  
"Excuse me Miss." Roberts said and ran to lead the sobbing maids to the kitchen.  
  
Lily ran up to the nursery to check on the twins, with the house in disarray there was probably nobody who would pay attention to the girls. She found them sound asleep in their rooms, the Nurse keeping an eye on them.  
  
Lily quietly left the room and decided to go to Mrs. Potter's room and see if she was doing better.  
  
Minnie opened the door when Lily knocked.  
  
"Oh Miss Lily." Minnie exclaimed.  
  
"Hello Minnie, how is Mrs. Potter? Is she doing better?" Lily asked.  
  
"She is sleeping Miss Lily. Minnie gave her a sleeping potion to calm Mistress Susan down." Minnie replied.  
  
"Oh dear, she must have been very upset. I will be in the library Minnie, if something happens let me know." Lily replied.  
  
"Yes Miss Lily, Minnie will look for Miss if Mistress Susan wants her." Minnie said with a nod and closed the door.  
  
Lily wished she could go to her room and stay there, but with Mrs. Potter asleep and James gone, there was nobody who could attend to the needs of the house, it seemed that it would fall upon her to take care of the staff.  
  
Lily told Roberts where to find her if needed as she went to the library, housed in the west wing.  
  
The library was a large room. Shelves filled with books lining every wall from floor to ceiling. Two large windows on one wall, in front of which, a large desk stood with papers properly arranged. On top of the windows was a gallery that surrounded the whole perimeter of the room. A set of stairs led to it and Lily could see that more books lined the wall, along with small lamps lighting the gallery. Large and sturdy couches and chairs were placed at one side of the room. Floor lamps were placed at every corner of the room. It was clearly a masculine atmosphere, no feminine touches were seen throughout the room.  
  
Lily looked around the shelves and spent her time looking around and losing herself in the books she found.  
  
She didn't notice when the door opened and quietly closed.  
  
She was sitting on the large chair behind the desk, the light coming through the windows lighting her book. She hadn't noticed that darkness was falling until the lamp that stood on the desk turned on. She jumped and look around. It was then that she noticed that she was no longer alone.  
  
"You are going to ruin your eyesight if you read in the dark." Said James with a small smile. Lily laughed. "Mother always said that." Her expression quickly changed. "James, what happened, was the Ministry really attacked?" She asked apprehensively.  
  
James sighed and a sad expression fell over his face. "Yes, the whole square is ruined Lily. The houses were completely destroyed and everybody inside were killed. I had fifteen people in our London house Lily, all of them are dead." He exclaimed. His eyes were bright and Lily saw that he was trying to hold his tears.  
  
"I'm sorry James." Was all she could say. She left the book on the desk and left her seat. She went round the desk and hugged him.  
  
He hugged her back. He liked the feeling of her back in his arms. He had missed it for so long.  
  
They held each other for a few minutes. James was the one who broke the embrace.  
  
"I'm sorry." He said.  
  
"There is nothing that you should be sorry about." She said.  
  
"How am I going to tell my staff that their relatives were killed? How am I going to face Roberts and tell him that his daughter was among the dead?" He said.  
  
Lily gasped. "Was it him? Was it Voldemort?" She asked.  
  
James nodded.  
  
"The park is completely destroyed, muggles were in that park Lily, muggles died just because they were there. The Ministry is in complete disarray, many of its officers were killed, but it's the only building that was left standing. The houses are just rubble. Nobody survived. Whole families Lily, whole families destroyed in a matter of minutes." He whispered.  
  
Silent tears slid down Lily's face.  
  
"What will happen now?" She asked.  
  
James turned to look at her. He took out his handkerchief and silently dried her tears. She smiled at him.  
  
"We have to wait and see. Sirius was here when the news came, he apparated to Hogsmeade, he will get Dumbledore, maybe he will have something to say. The Minister was injured, Lily, it is rumored that there is nothing that could be done for him and that he is dying. I don't know if it's true or not, I don't belong to the Ministry so I can't have that information, but Dumbledore will know, he will tell us if it's true. I don't know what will happen Lily. They attacked at the heart of our government, if it falls we are lost, there is no way that Voldemort will be defeated." James had started to pace. Lily stood watching him, what could she say? She didn't know how things stood and if things would get better.  
  
"If it is true and the Minister dies, who will take charge of the Ministry?" Lily asked.  
  
"Under usual circumstances, after the death of a Minister the advisors and the Heads of the department will convene and chose a Minister until election time arrives and the nominees are presented. But we are at war here Lily, there is no precedent for this. I assume that the advisors and the Heads will choose a temporary Minister until elections could be held. This is not the best time to hold elections." James responded as he continued pacing.  
  
Lily looked down to the floor, he was starting to make her dizzy but didn't think now was the time to worry about it, the Magical World was in war and it would soon be time for grief.  
  
The door slammed open. James stopped pacing and looked toward the door. Lily raised her head.  
  
"James, I got there fine. Dumbledore is coming." Sirius panted.  
  
James nodded.  
  
"What news do you have, how bad was the damage?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Completely destroyed Sirius. So far, the Ministry says there are more than 100 dead. St. Mungos was filled to capacity with wounded." James responded.  
  
Sirius groaned and shook his head. "Hundreds of Ministry officials on duty and nothing could be done?"  
  
"Nothing, the Enforcement Department lost half of its officers. Many of the offices in the lower floors were destroyed, the labs, the department offices, the waiting rooms, everything, if the building was not magical it would have come down and more dead would be reported, as it is, there are people trapped in the lower floors and nobody knows how many could've survived." James said in a hollow tone.  
  
"Let us hope that things are not as bad as they seem." Said a voice from the door.  
  
Sirius, James and Lily turned to look at the old man standing there, they all sighed with relief.  
  
"Come in Professor." James said as he motioned Dumbledore into the room.  
  
"How are you James, Lily? I see you are all looking fine." Dumbledore greeted them.  
  
Lily approached and hugged her former employer, she had become quite fond of the old man.  
  
"Hello my dear, don't worry, things cannot be any worse." Dumbledore said as he hugged Lily back.  
  
James shook Dumbledore's hand and motioned him to take a seat in the comfortable chairs in the room.  
  
"So tell me James, what did you find when you got there." Said Dumbledore.  
  
For the next hour James described everything he had seen and heard. The approximate numbers of casualties, including muggles, the damage caused and how the Ministry was trying to explain what had happened to muggle police.  
  
Roberts and Mrs. Nichols came in with refreshments and snacks for the group. They were obviously curious about news from London, but the sight of Hogwarts Headmaster made them feel safer and waited calmly for information.  
  
Lily had asked for the kitchen to put dinner back for an hour. James, Sirius and Dumbledore stayed in the library, while she looked into the twins, who were now awake, and Mrs. Potter.  
  
The Nurse and Lily decided that the twins would take dinner at the nursery at the usual hour. Lily didn't think that it would be comfortable for the girls with the tense atmosphere permeating the house.  
  
Mrs. Potter was now awake, and sat calmly in her bed. Minnie allowed Lily into the room when she knocked on the door.  
  
"There you are Lily, thank you for helping us during this time." Mrs. Potter said with a smile.  
  
"Oh it's nothing Mrs. Potter, I'm glad to lend a hand." Lily said with a wave of her hand.  
  
Mrs. Potter smiled. "Has James returned?" She asked.  
  
Lily bit her lip. She nodded. But how much could she tell her.  
  
Mrs. Potter sighed. "It's bad isn't it? A lot of damaged was caused." She said.  
  
She didn't seem to require a response. Lily stayed quiet.  
  
Mrs. Potter looked at her with sadness. "Tell him to see me before he goes to bed. I think I will stay in here tonight."  
  
Lily nodded. "I will ask Mrs. Nichols to bring you a tray here." She said. "Professor Dumbledore will join us for dinner."  
  
Mrs. Potter nodded.  
  
Lily left her room. She was worried, she had never thought to see Mrs. Potter in that state. She decided to discuss with James the matter of the upcoming Fair, would they still participate in it, or would they have to postpone it.  
  
Dinner was a grim affair. James had told Roberts to gather the staff after dinner. He wasn't looking forward to tell them the sad news.  
  
Dumbledore would be returning to Hogwarts after dinner, the Ministry had already contacted him and he would soon be working hand in hand with them.  
  
Sirius would be returning to London and make sure that his family was fine.  
  
Lily had agreed to join James with the staff.  
  
  
  
Sadness and grief permeated the air in the Potter household. It had been decided to keep going with the plans for the Fair, most of the town was muggle and they wouldn't understand why it would be postponed.  
  
The Daily Prophet had a small article about the incident. The magical world was in terror. Nobody had been apprehended and it didn't seem like there would be any in the near future.  
  
"Yesterday afternoon was like any other at Rowe Square. The Mansions surrounding Rowe Park where the wealthy families of our world lived stood proudly against the cloudy sky. The Park was full of muggle children and couples as it usually was. The Ministry offices were as busy as usual. Nobody thought that at the end of the day nothing would remain, only chaos and grief.  
  
Dozens of masked, black robed individuals apparated in the middle of the square. In a matter of minutes the stately mansions were destroyed, muggles in the Park were killed, the lower floors of the Ministry laid in ruins and dozens of Ministry officers laid dead or injured.  
  
None of the attackers were killed nor captured. It is thought to be the work of the group called the Death Eaters that had brought terror to our world in the last few years. Their leader, You-Know-Who, was not sighted, but the eyewitnesses interviewed could not be sure of that fact.  
  
Reports that the Minister of Magic, Elyosius Brown, was fatally wounded were proven false. Many of those trapped in the destroyed floors of the Ministry were found alive. Most had time to perform a shielding charm around themselves, only a few casualties were found. All the inhabitants in the houses were killed, no survivors have been found so far. The Ministry has worked closely with Muggle enforcement units to explain the incident.  
  
The staff of the Daily Prophet gives their condolences to the families and friends of those who were lost. We will bring you further news in the future."  
  
The muggle newspapers also reported about the incident, but of course, it wasn't the whole truth. They were told that an electrical connection in the square, in the buildings around the park and in the park itself, had exploded, electrocuting everybody in the vicinity. For that reason, no injuries were found in the bodies.  
  
Hundreds of owl inundated the Ministry for news and for the names of those killed. The Prophet decided to print the names of the list of casualties on an especial afternoon issue.  
  
The Evans decided to go to Gryffindor Manor earlier than planned. For this reason, Lily was taken by surprise on the next day of the incident when her parents arrived at the manor without sending word.  
  
After luncheon, Lily had taken the girls to the nursery for their afternoon nap. Mrs. Potter was still closeted in her room and James had gone to the Ministry with Sirius.  
  
Lily was coming down the stairs after putting the girls to sleep when she noticed Roberts opening the door.  
  
"Lily!" Mrs. Evans exclaimed and ran to hug her daughter.  
  
"Mum? We weren't expecting you until later tomorrow evening." Lily said looking at her parents with surprised.  
  
"Your mother decided that it was best if we came now. She read the news about the incident in Rowe Square, we had one of your friends to open a subscription of the Daily Prophet for us and have it delivered every morning." Said Mr. Evans as he followed his wife toward his daughter.  
  
"Well, I'm glad to see you. Things have been hectic around here. Let me take you to the parlor so we can talk." Said Lily and led her parents toward the formal parlor, which was closer to the entrance than the family parlor.  
  
The Evans silently followed her, looking around in awe as they went.  
  
The house had been adorned in black that day, for respect for those who were lost on the previous day. Most of the servants that worked with the Potters had been born in the estate, their families having served the Potters for generations. It was a great loss to them all and everybody felt it, from the house elves to the master of the house. Fifteen people were lost in the London House, all their parents now worked or lived the Manor. Lily and James had gone early that morning to visit all the relatives of those lost and a memorial was scheduled to take place that evening in the family chapel. It had been closed for years but now seemed like the best time to reopen it. James was going to bring a wizard vicar with him at his return from his London visit.  
  
The Evans listened in terror as Lily recounted the events of the previous day and thanked God that the Potters stayed in the country instead of their London house.  
  
After staying with their daughter for a few moments they were led to their rooms by a footman. Lily stayed behind to prepare the chapel for the evening memorial.  
  
Family members of each of the lost London staff had brought pictures of their loved ones to the house when word of the memorial was spread. Lily took these pictures and with a group of maids went to the chapel to clean and prepare.  
  
The chapel had originally been built two hundred years ago. It was situated close to the lake in the Northwest side of the Manor, near the orchard. A small cemetery surrounded the back of the chapel, where generations of Potter were buried. In the beginning, a vicar lived in the estate and the family had their own services in the chapel. When the family started to work more closely with the town, the chapel was closed and the town church was used. The chapel was now only used for special occasions. It became customary that every Potter wedding took place in the estate chapel as well as every memorial and baptism.  
  
It was an old looking church, arched glass stained windows and a large mural behind the altar. Sat nearly one hundred people.  
  
Lily and the maids placed pictures of every single lost member of their household and surrounded the pictures with flowers, vases were arranged at the altar and the pews were waxed until they shined.  
  
A few hours later they returned to the house to get prepared for the memorial and wait for James to arrive.  
  
  
  
It was dusk when James finally apparated home. Lily and her parents waited patiently in the back parlor, servants and tenants alike waited in the kitchens, and Mrs. Potter was waiting in her room.  
  
"Good afternoon master." Said Roberts as he took James' cloak.  
  
"Afternoon Roberts, everything ready?" He asked.  
  
"Yes, sir. Miss Lily and her parents are waiting in the back parlor and Mistress Susan is in her room." Roberts replied.  
  
James nodded. "The vicar will arrive in half an hour, make sure that somebody helps him get to the chapel when he arrives." James said.  
  
"Very will Sir." Roberts answered.  
  
"I'll go and greet the Evans, then I'll go and get ready. Have Lotty wait for me in my room. I will only be a moment." James said as he walked toward the back parlor.  
  
Roberts nodded and went toward the kitchens.  
  
James stayed with the Evans only a few minutes before retiring to his room to change, Lotty, his personal elf, waited on him.  
  
He was ready before the vicar arrived. Before he ventured down to lead his people to the chapel he first knocked on his mother's door. Minnie opened the door to let him in.  
  
"Mother." He said as he saw his mother standing in the middle of the room waiting for him.  
  
"Is everything ready James?" She asked.  
  
"Yes mum, we are about to go to the chapel." He replied.  
  
Mrs. Potter nodded and motioned for him to approach her. "Give me your arm James." She said and led him out of the room.  
  
  
  
The service was short but especial to those who attended.  
  
"Let us pray that our brethren are received into the light with open arms. They leave us without notice, but they will always be with us. As long as we live, their memory will survive." The vicar said at the end of the service.  
  
Before the chapel was emptied, every person went to the altar with a flower and placed it on it. The pictures of those lost lined the steps of the altar. By the time everyone had stepped forward, the steps were littered with a colorful array of flowers.  
  
  
  
A/N: When I first wrote this chapter it was mid September and events of the previous year affected me very deeply, that is how this chapter came about. I know it is a sad chapter and rather shorter than most of the my chapters, but I figured that the way we felt during that horrible time was the same way that the magical world felt during the time Voldemort was in power. 


	28. Part II Chapter 4

A/N: Hello! I'm back once more with another chapter. I would like to thank all of you who reviewed, I really appreciate all your input.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own a thing, except for the plot and characters you don't recognize.  
  
  
  
Chapter 4 ~ Life Goes On  
  
  
  
  
  
Life goes on. Mr. Potter had told James that once, life goes on and we must do the best we can. And he meant to do so.  
  
The plans for the Fair went forward and everybody worked non-stop on the following days. Katie had arrived with Sirius on the day before the events would start.  
  
"Oh Lily! I can't tell you how happy I am to see you!" Katie exclaimed the moment she saw Lily waiting for her on the steps.  
  
"I'm glad to see you as well." Lily laughed as she hugged her friend.  
  
James welcomed Sirius as both stood looking at the two young women greeting each other.  
  
"Oh you will not believe all the things that have happened to me." Squealed Katie as Lily and James led their friends to the front parlor.  
  
"Well, now that you are here we will have time to talk about it." Said Lily with a smile. Her friend always seemed to have too much energy for her own good. Then she noticed something. A stone glittered on her friend's finger. Lily gasped. "Katie, you are engaged." She squealed and grabbed Katie's hand to look at the ring.  
  
Katie giggled happily.  
  
James looked at Sirius with surprise. "I thought you said you weren't ready to get married."  
  
"I'm not, but we talked about it and decided to have a long engagement." Said Sirius with a silly smile on his face.  
  
"Just to give him time to get used to it, you understand." Katie said.  
  
"Oh Katie, congratulations, I'm so happy for you." Said Lily hugging her friend.  
  
"Congratulations old man, never thought that you would be the first Marauder to get married, I always thought that Remus would." Said James slapping his friend on his back.  
  
"There is time, as far as we know, I might be the last to do so." Laughed Sirius.  
  
The young people spent a merry afternoon making plans. James and Sirius stood on one side of the room planning the bachelor party, while the girls chatted about bridal gowns and decorations.  
  
Dinner was a happy affair. Everybody was looking forward to the Fair that would start the next day with the Fair at the center of town. There would be dancing, food, and merchandise sold by the small businesses of town. Everybody chatted and made plans for the next day.  
  
After dinner, the group sat on the informal parlor, taking tea and playing chess or card games.  
  
"I went to see her of course, I couldn't just stay at home knowing that Emma was in the hospital." Katie was saying.  
  
"Why didn't you tell me James, that Emma was in the Ministry the day of the attack?" Asked Lily as she hit James on the arm.  
  
"I didn't know." He frowned. "Why didn't you tell us Sirius?"  
  
"I thought you guys knew." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"Well, it doesn't matter, she wasn't badly hurt, she was supposed to leave St. Mungos' today and go home." Said Katie.  
  
"I'll owl her tomorrow. Make sure that she got home ok." Replied Lily.  
  
The group fell silent as they continued playing. They were too engrossed in their game that they didn't notice an owl flying in front of the window.  
  
"Lily, there is an owl behind you." Said Mr. Evans who up to now had been reading a newspaper.  
  
Lily turned to look at the owl behind her and opened the window to let it in. The owl flew around the room until it stopped and dropped a letter in front of James. Then it took off. Everybody turned to look at James who looked at the letter with a frown.  
  
"Go on, open it." Urged Sirius.  
  
James took a deep sighed and reached for the letter. He opened it and read it in silence. Everybody patiently waited to find out what it was about.  
  
They heard James swear and saw him dropped the note.  
  
Sirius frowned and reached for it. He swore as well.  
  
Katie snatched the note from his hand and read it.  
  
"Oh no! This can't be true." She exclaimed.  
  
"What is it Katie? What happened?" Lily said.  
  
"Emma is missing, she never made it home from the hospital." James said.  
  
Lily gasped. Katie started to sob. Sirius ran to her and gathered her in his arms.  
  
"How did it happen James?" Mrs. Potter asked.  
  
"They don't know. All they know is that she left St. Mungos' this morning and used the Floo Network because she felt too weak to try apparating. This afternoon she wasn't home yet. Her parents apparated to St. Mungos' she wasn't there. They can't find her anywhere." Said James.  
  
"Oh dear." Said Lily as silent tears started to fall down her face.  
  
James hugged her, Lily sobbed.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans quickly went to the young women and tried to comfort them.  
  
"I'm owling the Ministry, see what they know." Said James and quickly left the room.  
  
"I'm owling Dumbledore, he might want to know about this." And Sirius followed him out.  
  
"Why don't you take the girls up to their room." Said Mr. Evans.  
  
Mrs. Evans and Mrs. Potter nodded and silently led the girls to their rooms.  
  
Nobody slept that night. Owls flew in and out of the estate the whole night.  
  
  
  
The morning was bright and warm. A perfect fall day. The town was busy putting the last minute touches for the Fair. The families in the large houses were all up and eager to start the festivities. Only the Potter estate started the day in a subdued and sad mood.  
  
Breakfast in the Potter house was silent and morose. Lily and Katie picked their food and ate very little of it. Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans kept looking at the girls with worry. Mr. Evans tried to keep a conversation that didn't seem to go anywhere. Sirius and James had not come down to breakfast.  
  
"Lily dear, try to eat something, you don't want to get ill." Urged Mrs. Evans.  
  
"I'm not hungry mum." Whispered Lily.  
  
Mrs. Evans and Mrs. Potter turned to look at each other in consternation.  
  
Mr. Evans cleared his throat, trying to gain the attention from the ladies. "Perhaps you ladies would like to change for an outing. The Fair is about to start." He encouraged.  
  
Lily and Katie shrugged and left the room in silence.  
  
"Oh dear." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Perhaps an outing is what they need. It will keep them occupied for a while." Said Mr. Evans.  
  
"Maybe you are right." Sighed Mrs. Evans.  
  
The adults soon followed the girls to their respective rooms, while a meeting was taking place in the library.  
  
".they said that she definitely left St. Mungos' but something went wrong, she never arrived home. How could she go missing Professor? She used the Floo Network!" James was saying as he paced the room. Sirius was sitting in a chair by the fireplace and Professor Dumbledore's head appeared floating in the lit fire.  
  
"The Floo Network is never quite safe James, if somebody is not used to it they might come out in the wrong grate, but it can also be intercepted. But that requires precision and planning, somebody must have kept tabs on her." Dumbledore was saying.  
  
"But what do they want with her? I don't understand any of this." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Do any of you know what she did in the Ministry?" Dumbledore asked.  
  
"She does research for the Department of Magical Creatures." Said James.  
  
"In part. She does work for that department, but the research that she has been doing is top secret. There are a lot of people who would like to find out what she has found so far, and I'm afraid that Voldemort might well have a hand in this." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Is the research that important that he would go to that much trouble to get to her?" Asked James.  
  
"Indeed it is. If the research the Ministry has been working on for the last months falls into the wrong hands a lot of damage could be done. Voldemort would become more powerful than ever and there might be nothing that could be done to defeat him." Dumbledore replied.  
  
Sirius and James swore. They didn't know that the work that had kept Emma so busy was that important. Everybody thought that she had just used the work to try to keep her mind off Remus.  
  
"What can be done?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Nothing for now. We don't know where she is and I'm afraid that there is a strong possibility that she might not come out alive from this. Voldemort and his followers will do everything possible to get that information from her, even if it means killing her." Dumbledore said sadly.  
  
That was something Sirius and James didn't want to think about, she had to be found, she had to be alive.  
  
"Do you think the Ministry will get there in time?" Asked James.  
  
"I hope so, but time is of the essence and I'm sorry to say that things do not seem bright. She has been missing for almost twenty-four hours and I can't think that they would keep her alive for that long." Dumbledore responded.  
  
"In other words, there is nothing that we can do but wait here until they tell us that they have found her body." Sirius Exclaimed.  
  
"I'm sorry. But unless they have some news in the next couple of hours, I'm afraid that we might never find her." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Thank you Professor, you will keep us informed won't you?" Asked James.  
  
"I will." Dumbledore said with a nod and after a faint pop, his face disappeared from the fire.  
  
"Oh God! How could this happen, if she knew she was in danger she should've told us!" Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"You know she would never tell us, especially if it was top secret. None of us would tell a secret that we knew would only hurt the others." Said James.  
  
"What are we going to tell Remus?" Sirius asked.  
  
"I don't know. It was hard enough to send him an owl with the news that she was missing." James replied.  
  
"He is going to blame himself, you know that."  
  
"I know. But it's not his fault, none of us knew."  
  
"Should we tell the girls what Dumbledore said?"  
  
"I don't think so. Let's wait until we get some news, whether they are bad or good. No use getting them worried more than they are now." Said James.  
  
"I guess, we should go out there then, and see if we can manage to seem happy for this Fair." Said Sirius and walked toward the door.  
  
James followed him in silence. How were they supposed to act happy when their hearts weighted down in their chests? For the first time in his life, he didn't feel like taking part of the annual Harvest Fair.  
  
  
  
The group from Gryffindor Manor was seen around the fair with happy countenances, only they knew how heavy their hearts felt and how difficult it was to keep their social masks on the whole morning. The only ones who were truly enjoying their time at the fair were the twins, and the grownups were happy to see them thus.  
  
"Uncle Sirius, we want a pie."  
  
"Uncle James, we want to see the show."  
  
"Nana Susan, can we get some candy?"  
  
"Lily, we want to see the people dancing."  
  
They took the group all over the fair. They wanted to see everything and eat everything. It was an enjoyable morning for them and the grownups were happy to leave their worries aside for a moment to keep the girls happy.  
  
A person soon approached them, the twins were happy to see him and squealed with joy the moment they saw him. The grownups were a little surprised to see him but at the same time they felt relieved and happy that he decided to come.  
  
"How are you two little rascals doing? Not making things difficult for your uncle and grandmother are you?" He asked.  
  
"Oh no Uncle Remus."  
  
"We have been good."  
  
The twins replied.  
  
"Well, I'm happy to hear that." He replied with a smile.  
  
"Good to see you Moony." Said Sirius as he slapped his friend in the back.  
  
"You should have said something Remus." Chided Lily as she gave him a swift hug.  
  
"And ruin my surprise? Never." He said as he let her go and turned to hug Katie.  
  
"Oh, we are so glad that you are here." She said, her eyes were moist and she was clearly fighting to be her tears at bay.  
  
"Don't worry Katie, everything will be all right, you'll see." He whispered in her ear before letting her go.  
  
"I gather you received our owl." James said as he shook his hand.  
  
"Yes, I came as soon as I could." Replied Remus.  
  
"Well, doesn't matter, you are here and we are glad to have you." Responded Mrs. Potter.  
  
Remus nodded. Nobody said anything more. The twins soon were pulling Remus toward the food booths wanting to show him everything in the fair. The rest followed in silence happy to leave the twins in charge of Remus.  
  
Soon, it was time to return to the Manor. The group walked silently to the house, the twins running ahead of them, playing an impromptu game of tag. Only their laughter and giggles filled the air.  
  
As soon as the entered the house, the twins were taken to the nursery by their nurse. They were to be fed and put in bed for an afternoon nap.  
  
The rest walked toward the back parlor and stood in silence by the door when they noticed that there was somebody there, waiting for them.  
  
"I hope you don't mind that I made myself comfortable in your house." He said.  
  
"Oh no Albus, you are welcome here, as you well know." Said Mrs. Potter leading the group into the house.  
  
"Do you have any news, Professor?" Lily asked as she came into the room.  
  
"Indeed I do my dear." He said with a smile. The others watched him with surprise and suspense. What did he find out? "She was found a couple of hours ago. She is hurt but alive. She was taken to St. Mungos'."  
  
Emotions exploded from this piece of news. Katie and Lily started to sob with relief, James and Sirius hugged them as they tried to comfort them. Remus fell into a chair holding his face. Mrs. Potter and the Evans started to bombard Dumblodore with questions.  
  
Dumbledore laughed and motioned everybody for silence. The room quickly turned quiet and he continued.  
  
"As I said, she is St. Mungos' a group of aurors are keeping guard at her door. She is sleeping now, the doctors had to give her a sleeping potion to calm her down. The Ministry and I will talk to her later. She was found in an empty lane near Hogsmeade, we believe she escaped and was trying to get to Hogwarts. We will not know the whole story until we speak to her. I will have to ask you to stay here for now. She must rest and there is nothing for you to do. I will bring her here while she recovers. She will stay here for a few days, they will be looking for her, she is still in danger. I will take her to a place where she will be taken care of and be safe. I must ask you to not go looking for her. As long as Voldemort is in power, he will be looking for her." Dumbledore said.  
  
The others nodded their understanding but didn't respond to his news.  
  
"Very well, I'll be owling you with further news." Dumbledore said as he stood from his chair.  
  
Mrs. Potter quickly came forward and walked with him as he left he house.  
  
"Oh, I'm so glad she was found." Said Lily, silent tears running down her face.  
  
"Don't worry Lily, she will be fine. Dumbledore will make sure that she is kept safe." James said as he gathered her in his arms and comforted her.  
  
"Come Edward, we need to talk to Susan about tomorrow, I'm sure that she will need our help." Said Mrs. Evans, clearly trying to give the young people some time alone.  
  
"Yes, dear." Mr. Evans said as he followed his wife out.  
  
Sirius, Katie, Remus, James and Lily didn't noticed them leaving, they were too preoccupied with their own thoughts.  
  
"I wonder where they will take her." Katie said.  
  
"And how long she will have to stay there." Lily responded.  
  
Silence filled the air as the young people lost themselves into their thoughts.  
  
  
  
The Potters were to host the hunt the next day. James woke up early that day, he wasn't really feeling like running with the hounds and hunting an innocent fox, even if it wasn't real. The fox that was hunted was a charmed wooden animal that passed off as the real thing. The Potters always believed that it was unsporting to hunt a small animal with horses and dogs. What luck did the fox have of escaping? That is why the Potters had created this charmed creature, the town would have its sport and the Potters didn't feel sorry for killing the small fox.  
  
James sighed before leaving his bed. Lotty, his personal elf, was in the dressing room putting his attire in order and starting the shower for James.  
  
"Lotty, make sure that Remus and Sirius are awake, please. If I'm going to have to ride the horses in this hunt, they might as well help me with it." Said James as he entered the dressing room.  
  
"Yes, Master James. Will Master James want breakfast this morning, or will Master James wait until after the hunt?" Asked the bobbing elf.  
  
"I think I will have only a cup of tea and a piece of toast, I don't want to get sick when I ride. We'll be ridding hard today." Said James after thinking about it for a minute.  
  
Lotty bowed once more before leaving the room. James got into the shower, doing things automatically as his mind lost itself once more with thoughts of what was going on in his once orderly world.  
  
Remus and Sirius were woken up by elves. They mumbled and complained but they also knew that James would require their help and it was a good way to think of other things besides their current problems.  
  
The three young men met in the front parlor after once they were ready.  
  
"Really James, I see no reason why this thing has to take place in such an ungodly hour. Why won't you country folk do the same as in town and sleep until noon?" Exclaimed Sirius the moment he entered the room.  
  
"Because we have lots to do, unlike you lazy bums that have nothing to do but go to parties and spend money." Responded James good naturally.  
  
"Hey, I'm not a lazy bum. I like to have fun that is all." Sirius said.  
  
"Yes, I'm sure you do. But I think that you wouldn't be able to live by yourself and making do with what you have even if your life depended on it." Said Remus as he stood by the window listening to his friends sparring.  
  
"I could, if there was a need for it. But as I don't see why I should, then I don't see why we need to discuss it." Said Sirius.  
  
"Well, if you two are done with your morning greetings, I think it's time for us to go to the stables. The neighbors should be here soon." Said James taking his riding hat and crop from a table beside the door.  
  
"Oh very well. Let's ride then." Said Sirius as he and Remus followed James out of the room.  
  
By the time the three young men had arrived to the stables, most of the neighbors who would take part on the hunting were starting to congregate.  
  
"Good morning Potter, a good day for riding, what?" Said the old gentleman when he saw James approaching the group.  
  
"Good morning Mr. Morris, it certainly looks like the gods are smiling upon us." Responded James.  
  
"Well yes, it seems that our little fair is going quite well. My wife is certainly planning on shopping this afternoon." Said another old gentleman.  
  
"Indeed, so is my wife, I really don't see the need but as long as it keeps her out of my hair I don't mind." Said another gentleman. Those around him laughed.  
  
"You are lucky young man, you are not married but I'm sure that your time will come soon." Mr. Morris said as he slapped James on the back.  
  
"I'm sure it will, but I do say that the lady who will become Mrs. Potter will never tire me." Said James.  
  
"Oh no, Lily would never do so." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
James glowered at Sirius while the other gentleman stated to ask questions. "Lily who?" "Young man, you have been hiding someone." "Well James, it seems that you have a lot to say during this ride of ours."  
  
"Oh come gentleman, Sirius is only teasing, he is so besotted with his own intended that he thinks we all should be getting married." Responded James and smiled when the others turned to Sirius.  
  
"Oh I say. Good news that."  
  
"When is the wedding young man?"  
  
"You must present her during the ball."  
  
Sirius in turn glowered at James who just looked at him with an innocent smile. Remus was chuckling behind him.  
  
As the gentleman met at the stables getting ready for the hunt, their ladies were either still in bed or getting ready for a turn around the town and shop in the fair.  
  
Mr. Evans soon joined the other gentleman in the stables. Lily, Katie, Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans were in the informal dining room eating a healthy breakfast.  
  
"Well dears, what do you feel like doing this morning?" Mrs. Potter asked as she looked at the two young ladies.  
  
"Oh, we are fine for now Mrs. Potter, we thought of going to the gardens and have a try to one of the mazes." Said Katie with a smile. It seemed that the news that they had received last night brought up their spirits.  
  
Mrs. Potter nodded. "I'm sure you will enjoy it. I remember I got lost in one when I first came to the manor. Alaister had to go and find me when it was starting to get dark." She laughed. The others laughed with her.  
  
"Perhaps you should take a string and mark your way dears." Smiled Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Oh but that would take away the sense of adventure mum." Exclaimed Lily. "But if it starts to get dark and we are not back, send a couple of servants or James and Sirius. I'm sure they will bring us back in one piece."  
  
They laughed and chatted as they continued to make plans for the day. Tomorrow was the ball and they all knew that they would be busy the whole morning.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans decided to go to the fair in town and shop for things that they might need for the next day.  
  
  
  
The gentleman returned from their hunt a little after noon. They were all in good spirits. Men from all ages had joined in the fun, the youngest was thirteen and the oldest was sixty-four. But they all had fun and enjoyed their morning. Mrs. Potter was waiting for their return with a light luncheon served in the formal dinning room.  
  
"Oh thank you Mrs. Potter, we are quite famished." Exclaimed Mr. Morris as soon as Mrs. Potter welcomed them.  
  
"Oh I'm sure you are, my son could eat more than the lot of you I wager." Mrs. Potter laughed.  
  
"Mum, I do not eat that much!" Exclaimed James, while the others laughed or smiled. They had all seen James grow up and knew how much James used to eat, and they were all sure that there were times that he forgot his manners and ate as he used to.  
  
The dining room was full of gentleman eating and drinking among chatter and laughter. It was a very masculine atmosphere and the ladies didn't deem it appropriate to join them. As a result, the ladies of the house as well as the wives of some of the riders who had come to meet their husbands after their exercise had a small luncheon in the informal dining room.  
  
The conversations in both rooms couldn't be any more different. The ladies talked about their husbands, their families, fashion, the ball of the next evening, and housekeeping while the man talked about sports, their lands, their newest equipment and their plans for the next evening.  
  
As a whole, it was a very entertaining day. It was late afternoon when the guests had left the manor, all in good spirits and assuring the Potters that they would be returning the next day for the ball.  
  
"Phew! That went well." Exclaimed James as he flopped on one of the couches in the back parlor. Mrs. Potter, Mrs. Evans, Lily and Katie were all busy reading magazines and discussing their attire for the next day.  
  
"Really James, you need to change dear, you still have your riding clothes on." Said Mrs. Potter noticing her son in his muddy attire with a lift of her brow. "I don't want to have this place cleaned up James, go change dear." She urged.  
  
James rolled his eyes. "Yes, mother." He said as he slowly walked out of the room. Behind him he could hear Lily and Katie giggling.  
  
  
  
The next time they all met again was for dinnertime. The Potters, the Evans, Sirius and Katie met in the back parlor before dinner.  
  
"I'm sure dear that it will look great on you." Mrs. Potter was saying to Lily. They were discussing the dresses they all planned to wear the next evening.  
  
"Well f you think so ma'am." Lily replied.  
  
There was a knock on the door. Everybody turned to look, hoping that it was Roberts with the news that dinner was served. They were all hungry by now, it had been an exciting day.  
  
The door opened, and indeed, Roberts came in, but it wasn't with the news that they expected.  
  
"Professor Dumbledore, ma'am." Roberts said before stepping aside to let Professor Dumbledore in.  
  
"Albus, welcome. We were not expecting you." Exclaimed Mrs. Potter.  
  
"I'm sorry my dear that I didn't let you know but I have been in London on urgent matters." Professor Dumbledore said with a smile.  
  
"Oh not to worry Professor, will you join us for dinner?" Invited James as he greeted the old Headmaster.  
  
"I will be glad to James, but I came because there is somebody that would like to see you." Professor Dumbledore said.  
  
They all turned to look at each other with questioning glances.  
  
Dumbledore stepped out of the room for a moment, then returned with a young lady in hand. She looked tired and in need of a good meal.  
  
"Emma!" The young people exclaimed before they ran to her.  
  
Emma sobbed in silence as her friends hugged her and exclaimed over her.  
  
"Oh Emma, are you all right?" Lily asked.  
  
"How are you feeling?" Katie wanted to know.  
  
"Perhaps you should sleep." Said James.  
  
"That's a good idea, she should go to bed, one of the servants can take some food to her room." Said Sirius.  
  
"What do you want to do Emma?" Remus asked.  
  
Emma smiled at her friends' worry. "I would like to rest." She quietly asked.  
  
James quickly turned to Roberts, who had been standing by the door all this time, and ordered for a room to be readied and a servant or an elf to help her to the room and serve her during her stay in the manor. Roberts bowed and silently disappeared down the corridor.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans had taken hold of Emma and led her to a chair. The group of young people followed her to the corner where the older ladies had sat her.  
  
"There you are dear, Mrs. Roberts will have a room ready for you in a moment and you can rest all you want." Said Mrs. Potter. "Now the rest of you keep away from her, I don't want you tiring her." She said turning to the others as they waited behind her.  
  
"But mum -" James started to say.  
  
"No buts James, she needs rest and you lot can be so tiring sometimes." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
James, and Sirius mumbled but Lily, Katie and Remus looked resigned.  
  
Roberts returned a few minutes later with the news that a room had been readied and that he would lead Emma to her room.  
  
Emma followed him out eager for a soft bed and some rest.  
  
Those left behind in the parlor watched her go with mixed feelings. They were happy that she was alive and safe, but worried that she had lost so much weight and spirit. Professor Dumbledore seemed to read their thoughts.  
  
"Don't worry." He suddenly said breaking the silence. "She will be all right. All she needs for now is some peace and quiet. Don't be surprised if she doesn't say anything about her ordeal, she will talk about it when she is ready. The Ministry and I have decided that she can stay here for a couple of weeks only while we make arrangements to take her to a safe place where she can hide." Dumbledore said. The rest nodded and felt silent.  
  
When finally they sat for dinner, everybody was in a happy mood. Emma was back and they would make sure she was kept safe. They discussed the best way to keep her so as they ate.  
  
"The Ministry will send a group of Aurors to stay here while she does." Dumbledore was saying.  
  
"Perhaps it would be wise if they disguised themselves as James' servants, that way nobody would know that they are Ministry agents." Mr. Evans said.  
  
Dumbledore nodded. "Undercover agents you mean. I agree. There is always a chance that there might be somebody watching. She will be safer as long as there are less people aware that she is here." Dumbledore said.  
  
"How many people in the Ministry know that she is here?" James asked.  
  
"Only a few. The Minister and his advisors, and Mr. Crouch, Head of Magical Enforcement Department, they are the only ones that know. Her old co-workers don't know. Not even her Supervisor knows, but I think he would think that she is in hiding. Jack Robinson is a clever fellow and knows that the project his team is working on would bring Voldemort down, but if his findings fall into Voldemort's hands, we might never be able to defeat him." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Jack Robinson? I remember my father talking about him. He said that Mr. Robinson was a genius in Potions and Charms and that at the time father died he had been working in some very important research." James said.  
  
"Indeed. Jack Robinson is Head of Experimental Charms Department. He took over the research when it first started." Dumbledore said with a nod.  
  
"Would he look for her?" Lily asked.  
  
"No. He knows that as long as she is hidden and away from Voldemort, his work is safe. He also knows that if Emma had been broken, Voldemort would have gone after him by now. He is happy to keep things as they are." Dumbledore said.  
  
"How long will she stay away?" Remus asked.  
  
Everybody turned to Dumbledore, the same question running through their minds.  
  
"I cannot tell you that, as long as Voldemort is alive and in search for power, her life and the knowledge she carries is in danger. Only when there is somebody that can defeat him can she return." Dumbledore replied.  
  
"That can take years." Katie quietly said.  
  
Dumbledore nodded.  
  
Dinner was soon over. Dumbledore left to return to Hogwarts and the others decided to go to bed early.  
  
None could sleep that night.  
  
  
  
Everybody woke up late the next day. The servants and elves were running from one place to another putting things in order for the Ball that evening. Lily, Katie and Mrs. Evans went to town to shop while James, Remus and Sirius went to the hidden Quidditch Pitch to play, Mrs. Potter had asked them to leave the house and let her prepare the ballroom in peace.  
  
Emma stayed in bed. Lily and Katie had invited her to go with them but she didn't really feel up to the task. She felt weak and saddened by the events of the last weeks and felt a headache coming on.  
  
Emma was awoken later that morning by movement in her room. She sat up abruptly and reached for her wand, which she kept under her pillow. She sighed in relief when she saw who it was.  
  
"Does Miss want something to eat? Minnie brought toast and chocolate for Miss." The small elf said when she noticed Emma had woken up.  
  
"Thank you Minnie, I am feeling a bit hungry." Emma said with a smile.  
  
Minnie bowed and promptly levitated a tray toward the bed. Emma reached for it as soon as it hovered near. She truly was hungry, she thought as she started to butter her toast. Her stomach growled and she chuckled. It had been a while since the last time she had a good meal. That thought brought memories of her ordeal and suddenly the hunger abated. There was a time when she thought that she would never see the light of day again.  
  
"Isn't Miss hungry?" Asked Minnie when she saw Emma putting the toast down to the plate.  
  
"I'm sorry Minnie, I'm sure my hunger will come back in a minute. My memories just intruded there for a minute." Emma said gently.  
  
Minnie nodded and turned to start putting things away. Professor Dumbledore had sent that morning a trunk with Emma's belonging. Minnie was trying to put things away to make Emma feel at home.  
  
Emma watched as Minnie worked silently.  
  
"Minnie, can I ask you a question?" Emma asked.  
  
Minnie turned to look at Emma. "Of course Miss. Minnie will try to answer." Minnie said with a nod.  
  
"Don't you ever want to be free?" Emma asked.  
  
Minnie looked scandalized. "What would Minnie do with freedom?" The elf asked.  
  
Emma shrugged. "You could do whatever you want. You could go to different parts of the country. You could have a family of your own. You could have fun." She said.  
  
"But Miss, elves don't have fun. Minnie does all things Miss mentioned. Minnie goes with Master James and Mistress Susan when they travel, and Minnie has a family. The Potters are my family. Why would Minnie wish to leave her family?" Minnie asked. Her eyes were wide and questioning.  
  
"But don't you want to have money so you can buy what you wish? Wouldn't you like to have some time off and rest?" Emma asked. She never had questioned the roles of elves before but now she was starting to see things differently.  
  
"But Minnie has money Miss. The Potters pay their elves, there is a vault in Gringotts with money for elves." Minnie said with a frown. She obviously didn't see the need for such vault to exist.  
  
"There is? And what do you and the other elves buy with the money?" Asked Emma. She had never known of a family before that gave money to their elves. It seemed that the Potters' elves were relatively free compared to others in other families.  
  
"Oh Minnie and the others don't touch the money Miss. There is nothing that is needed." Minnie said with indifference as she continued to put things away.  
  
Emma continued to watch the small elf and smiled. It seemed that there was no need to feel sorry for the elves in this house, they seem too happy. She found that her hunger had returned and promptly picked her toast and started to enjoy her meal.  
  
  
  
James was flying around the goal posts waiting for Remus who was looking around the orchard for the quaffle. Sirius had thrown it too far and it was now hovering around the apple trees.  
  
"Did you find it yet?" Asked Sirius as he sat on the floor with his broom hovering beside him.  
  
"Yeah, I see it, it's stuck in one of the trees." Remus called back  
  
"How come you don't have a shielding charm around the Pitch James, there should be one so the balls don't escape." Sirius said as he munched on an apple.  
  
"There was one, but it seems to have worn off, I might as well put one on as soon as Remus returns, it wouldn't do if the balls escape during the game tomorrow night." Said James as he landed by Sirius.  
  
"Need any help with it?" Sirius asked after he discarded the apple core.  
  
"No, I can do it." James said.  
  
Both saw Remus running back toward them with the quaffle cradled in his arms.  
  
"I have it." He said as soon as he stopped, panting, in front of his friends.  
  
"You need some exercise Moony." Laughed Sirius.  
  
"I'm not the one spending his days in parties and luncheons. I think I am in better shape than you are." Said Remus.  
  
"I'm not idle. Why does everybody thinks that all I do is sit and eat and do the pretty at parties, that alone is a lot of work." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Perhaps we should test your prowess." Said James. "The full moon is coming up, let's see how fast Padfoot is then."  
  
"Are you mad! I cannot stay here during my transformation, you know there a lot of things that can go wrong." Exclaimed Remus.  
  
"For once I agree with Moony. This isn't Hogwarts. In Hogwarts we could do whatever we wanted on the grounds, there were not a lot of people who dared to leave the warmth of their beds in the middle of the night. And when things got really bad, the Shack was there for our use. There are a lot of people who could get hurt here James, and you know your tenants are up at all times of the day and night taking care of things." Said Sirius.  
  
"We could return to Hogwarts, nobody needs to know." Said James a twinkle starting to shine in his eyes.  
  
"Hogwarts?" Both Sirius and Remus asked in surprise.  
  
"Yes, we know every part of that castle and I think we need to have some little fun don't you? It has been years since we've done it. And maybe we can tell Dumbledore that Remus will need to use the shack for a couple of days as I don't have a safe place for him here in the estate. I'm sure he will let him use it and keep students away from the grounds on those nights. With Remus inside we can easily sneak into the shack. We would just apparate in Hogsmeade." James said trying to get the others to agree with him.  
  
"You are forgetting something." Quietly replied Remus.  
  
"What?" Asked James with a frown. He was sure that he had thought of everything.  
  
"One of our little group is not here." Remus said.  
  
"We can contact Peter easily and get him to join us, that is no problem." Said James with a wave of his hand.  
  
The others shrugged, it did sound like fun. It had been a while since the Marauders had been together and have some fun.  
  
"If that is settled maybe I should perform this charm before we start playing again. I don't want the snitch to escape, I wouldn't know what to say to the muggles in town." Said James.  
  
Remus sat beside Sirius and pulled some apples from his robes, he had picked some while he looked for the quaffle. The two friends sat munching on apples as they saw James walking around the Pitch performing the blocking charm.  
  
  
  
While the Marauders made plans in the Quidditch Pitch, Mr. and Mrs. Evans along with Lily and Katie were being entertained by the things they saw around the town square during the Fair.  
  
It was the third day of the Fair, and there was one more day for the town to enjoy themselves. The weather was still warm and a small breeze flowed through the square. Farmers were selling their product. Merchants were crying out loud trying to get the attention of potential customers. There was a small tent in the middle of the square where a puppet show was taking place; the children were squealing and laughing and it could be heard throughout the Fair. The twins had been brought by Nurse and were currently in the show clapping and enjoying themselves with the rest of the children. At one end of the square stood a small stage, a band playing on it. In front of the stage was a cleared space where couples danced as people surrounded the space clapping and cheering those who were dancing.  
  
Katie, Lily and the Evans walked throughout the Fair trying to take it all in. It was a happy atmosphere and they were glad to be part of it. The first time they had been there they didn't enjoy it as much; it was the day after they found out that Emma was missing. But Emma was back now and they could now enjoy it and take part in the festivities with a lighter heart.  
  
  
  
Everybody was back at the manor by early afternoon. The young men were in an exuberant mood, and the ladies were excited. The light luncheon that they partake at was cheery and fun. The ladies talked about their wardrobe and about the music and about all of those who would be joining them that evening for the ball. The men just listened and contributed to the conversation once in a while, they knew better than to interrupt the raptures of the ladies.  
  
Once luncheon was finished, they all retired to their rooms to prepare for the ball. Servants and elves were seen quitting and entering their master's and mistresses' rooms at all times.  
  
Emma was the only one that stayed quiet in her own room. At the moment she was sleeping, a servant keeping watch on her as she rested. She knew her friends would be visiting her before they went down to wait for the guests. They had come earlier to try to change her mind about attending the ball.  
  
"You should go, Emma. You need a bit of fun." Katie had said as she and Lily sat at each side of Emma's bed.  
  
"But I really don't feel up to it Katie. I don't think I could even handle dinner." Emma had responded.  
  
"You could come just for part of the dance. You do need a bit of exercise it will be harder for you to recuperate if you don't try to walk once in a while. Your muscles need to exercise." Lily had said.  
  
"Perhaps, but I don't even have the energy to leave the bed at this moment. I don't see how I would leave to go to the dance. Even if it is for a little while." Emma proclaimed.  
  
"Are you sure you want to stay up here all by yourself? You won't feel lonely?" Asked Katie.  
  
"I'm sure. You two go ahead and have fun. You must come tomorrow and tell me all about it. I just want to rest and recuperate my energy. It won't be long before Dumbledore comes and takes me away and I want to be better by then." Emma said with a smile.  
  
The three fell silent at the reminder that soon Emma would be leaving them for a safer place. They didn't know to where nor for how long. All they knew was that the Sirens would be no more and that they will certainly miss the good times they had together.  
  
"Well." Lily said; breaking the silence that they had fallen into. "If you are sure that you will be staying here then we will leave you to rest. I'm sure we must be tiring you. We'll come later, before we go down to dinner." Said Lily as she stood up. Katie nodded and together, the two girls walked out leaving a thoughtful girl behind.  
  
She knew that Dumbledore and the Ministry were doing the best they could to keep her safe. Nobody had said anything but she knew that secret agents were posted inside the manor as servants. She knew she had seen some in the Ministry before. She wanted to know where she was being sent to, but Dumbledore wasn't talking. It must be a very secret place and a very important one because she knew that the Ministry and Dumbledore had sent several owls and were in constant contact with somebody. All she had heard about this person was that it was a woman. She heard mention of "The Lady" at all times as she worked in the Ministry. Nobody seem to know who this Lady was and it seemed that only Dumbledore and the Minister himself were the only ones who knew her and owled her. Emma had the feeling that this Lady was very important to the Magical world, even if nobody knew about her.  
  
  
  
The men were the first to finish getting ready and awaited the ladies in the front parlor.  
  
"Do you wish for refreshments?" James offered as soon as all the men reunited in the formal parlor.  
  
"Just some cider." Said Remus.  
  
"Might as well." Said Sirius with a shrug.  
  
"Mr. Evans?" James asked as he turned to Lily's father.  
  
"Just a bit of brandy." He said.  
  
Mr. Evans had been silent most of his visit. James thought that he seemed tired and listless. So different from the man he met some years ago during the Christmas House Party on his seventh year. The man he met was full of energy and life. James knew that Mr. Evans had been sick earlier in the summer. Lily had told him that much. Now he worried whether the older man had completely recuperated from his illness. James didn't say what was on his mind of course. There was no need to worry the Evan ladies, especially if he was wrong.  
  
James turned back to the others with his hands full of glasses and sat to wait for the ladies to make their appearance.  
  
It was half an hour later when the ladies were ready to join the men. Mrs. Evans and Mrs. Potter were the first to arrive to the parlor, Katie and Lily had gone to Emma's room.  
  
When they had arrived to the parlor, they found the men in an exuberant conversation about Quidditch. The young men were trying to explain the concept of the game to Mr. Evans and were trying to tell him about some of the professional games that they had attended to. Mr. Evans seemed to be interested in the sport and was looking forward to the game for the next evening.  
  
"Good afternoon gentlemen." Greeted Mrs. Potter as soon as she and Mrs. Evans glided into the room.  
  
The men stood and greeted the women.  
  
"You are looking extremely well my dear, dare I hope that you will allow me the first dance of the evening?" Whispered Mr. Evans to his wife. Mrs. Evans blushed. She was giddy to think that her husband still thought of her as a beautiful lady after all these years of marriage.  
  
"I'm sure I can make the arrangements." She whispered back. Mr. Evans winked and kissed her hand. "Oh you!" She exclaimed before breaking into giggles.  
  
Meanwhile, Mrs. Evans was looking at the young men and nodded with satisfaction at what she saw. The young men certainly knew how to dress for a party.  
  
"Where are Lily and Katie?" Asked Remus after James had served some wine to the ladies.  
  
"They should be coming along in a few moments. They wanted to check on Emma before coming down." Said Mrs. Evans as she daintily sipped her wine.  
  
"I see. How is Emma doing? I haven't gone to her room. It seems inappropriate if I go." Said James.  
  
"Of course it is inappropriate, a gentleman should never enter a lady's room without invitation. Not that you should with an invitation either." Responded his mother. James just rolled his eyes while Remus and Sirius chuckled. Who would think of such old fashioned ideas nowadays?  
  
Before Mrs. Potter said anything, Lily and Katie came into the room. The young men were impressed at how wonderful they looked, and for once, Sirius was happy that Katie was his intended. That ring in her hand would certainly keep other men away from her.  
  
Before James could offer refreshments, cars were heard arriving in the driveway.  
  
"Well, it seems that our guests have begun to arrive. I only invited the most important families to dinner, there will be only thirty sitting at the table tonight. The rest of the town will be coming along later for the dance." Said Mrs. Potter as Roberts and his footmen took their places at the door ready to welcome the guests.  
  
Soon, the parlor was overflowing with people. Servants moved along the crowd with trays of drinks as the guests waited for those who still needed to arrive before dinner was announced. Wizards and muggles blended and chatted to their neighbors and from some discussions Lily overhead it seemed that the muggles in the area knew that some of their neighbors were wizards and witches, especially as she overhead a discussion between the old colonel, who was a muggle, with old Mr. Fitzwilliam, who was a wizard, about the quidditch game scheduled for the next evening.  
  
Lily was surprised at this and looked with consternation to James, who was beside her at the moment. James lifted his brow with a questioning glance.  
  
"Why are they speaking about quidditch in mixed company? I thought that it was against the Ministry rules to speak of anything magical in front of muggles." She said.  
  
"Well technically is not a rule, it's a precaution that we are urged to follow. But people hereabouts have known that there are wizard families in this area. The town as well as Godric's Hollow, were originally settled by wizard families. That is why our family has property in those areas. But as time went on and wizards and witches were born from muggle families, they brought their families to these areas and muggles started to settle with us. Most of the people here are old folks who had lived here all their lives and might have a family member who is magical. There are only a few muggles that have no idea about magical folks, but we all know who they are so nothing is said in their presence. The old Colonel has a brother who is a wizard, and he wished all his life that he had magical talents as well, but it wasn't so. He enjoys talking about the magical world, in his mind I think he thinks of himself as a squib." Said James with laughter in his eyes as he looked at the old colonel who seemed to enjoy his quidditch conversation.  
  
"Oh. So most of these people here will come to the game tomorrow?" Lily asked. Who would've thought that there were communities were muggles and wizards lived together without problems. During all her time at Hogwarts she had been told about all the rules the Ministry had passed in order to keep the magical community in secret, and she never thought that she would see something like this town that seemed to accept the talents of their neighbors. She knew that there were people who would never countenance this kind of society. Some muggles went out of their way to keep a blind eye to magic, even if it was in front of them. Petunia came to her mind. Her sister was so scared of magic and the talent that Lily had that she acted as if no sister had ever existed, and her husband, Vernon Dursley, was just like her.  
  
Half an hour later the group was moving into the dining room, eagerly seating at the table for a fine meal.  
  
  
  
In a town near the welsh coast, there was a small house. A lady laid in bed resting as a young man sat in a small parlor, reading a parchment with a frown.  
  
"Meet me in the town inn in two weeks from now. It is to your advantage that you are there, otherwise, your mother will not live for long."  
  
No signature at the bottom of the page. Peter Pettigrew was worried. Everybody knew that he had spent the last years after Hogwarts taking care of his mother, magical potions and charms couldn't do much for her and muggle medicine seemed to ease her pain.  
  
Four years ago she had been diagnosed with lung cancer. She had seek help at St. Mungos' but at the time there were no potions and charms that could take care of it. She was then referred to a muggle hospital where surgery and chemotherapy had kept her alive. But the cancer had emerged two more times after it was first diagnosed and the chemotherapy had started to take its toll.  
  
When Peter graduated from Hogwarts he had moved his mother to the coast, hoping that the fresh air would help her. It seemed to be working, they flooed every month to London for Mrs. Pettigrew's appointments with the doctor and the rest of the month they spent it quietly at the small house that Peter had bought with the money the Ministry gave him after the death of his father. His father had been an auror for the Ministry, for forty years he worked for the Department of Magical Enforcement and had been killed in one of the first attacks that the Death Eaters had done some seven years ago. The Ministry had then started to take care of the widow and teenager that he had left behind. When Peter left Hogwarts, the Ministry had stopped giving him money, but his mother would still receive money until she died. Peter, had taken that money given to him and invested with help from James and his friend's father, Aliaster Potter, as a result, by the time Peter had left Hogwarts, he had accumulated a small fortune that allowed him to live quietly as he took care of his mother.  
  
He had lost some contact with his friends. Sometimes he received owls from them but he wasn't a very good correspondent, thus, his notes were brief.  
  
At the moment his mind was on the note in his hand. Who wrote the message? And was it a threat that he was reading? He knew that sometimes he was slow to arrive to conclusions and that was why he had been so close to his friends, because they helped him along. He would've never finished Hogwarts if it hadn't been for them. He thought of going to James with the note, but at the same time he was afraid of leaving his mother alone, especially if it was a threat. He thought that if he told somebody about it, the person who wrote the note would somehow find out and his mother would be in danger, and he would do anything to keep her alive and well. She had gone through a lot already.  
  
He made up his mind. He would not go to James, it was time for him to take care of his problems by himself.  
  
  
  
Dinner was soon over and the guests started to pile into the ballroom waiting for the rest of the town to join them. The musicians were starting to test their instruments. The windows were open, a cool breeze flowing through them ready to cool those inside after a few dances warmed them up. Golden curtains and lace had been tied beside the windows. The French doors were open leading to the formal gardens that were lighted with old- fashioned lanterns. The flowers that Lily had chosen a few days ago were creatively arranged in vases placed in columns around the room. An ivy trellis with small flowers was placed behind the band. The colors of the cloth and flowers were perfect for the Fall season being celebrated.  
  
Cars were heard arriving, the guests started to pour into the room, soon, the ballroom was overflowing with people, laughter and gaiety.  
  
James and Mrs. Potter stood at the door greeting those coming in, the rest mingled and chatted with the townspeople. When the strains of the violins were heard, Mrs. Potter motioned James it was time to leave the door and start the dance. Roberts would greet the latecomers.  
  
James led his mother to the center of the room and as the first melody played, the couple started to dance. Soon, the dance floor was full of dancing couples, and only those too old and too young to dance were left at the sidelines sitting in couches and chairs lining the walls.  
  
The cool breeze was welcome, the heat in the room had increased several degrees in just half an hour and refreshments were placed in an adjacent room. In another room were placed game tables for those who wanted to get away from the dancing for a bit. Card tables, chess and checkers were seen throughout the room and was soon filled by gentlemen who were not very fond of dancing.  
  
Lily and James were dancing later that evening, their parents were sitting together resting for a while.  
  
"Enjoying yourself?" James asked with a smile as he noticed Lily's shining eyes and happy expression.  
  
"Oh yes. I never thought that a position as a teacher for a couple of twins would allow me to have such fun." Lily said with a laugh.  
  
James laughed as well as he twirled her around the floor.  
  
"Slow down James, you are going to make me lose my dinner." Squealed Lily.  
  
James slowed down and looked at Lily with a sheepish expression. "Sorry." He said.  
  
"Tell me about tomorrow. You must be very excited about it." She said.  
  
"Oh yes, the Quidditch game is the most important part of the Harvest Fair." James exclaimed.  
  
Lily laughed at this. "Only you would think so." She said.  
  
James smiled. "Well, perhaps. But everybody around comes to see it. Only those few that do not know that there are wizards and witches around these parts don't come. You will see a lot of muggle neighbors tomorrow night. Some of them have even tried taking part of it of course, but as they don't have any magical abilities they cannot play. The Ministry has rules about muggles and Quidditch, that there are muggles here who know what we are and about the game is bad enough, but if the Ministry gets wind of it then we are in trouble." He responded.  
  
"Oh. How is it that they don't know about it?" Lily asked.  
  
"Don't know, there have been enough Ministry workers here during this time, even the Minister. I guess they have decided to turn a blind eye on it." James said with a shrug.  
  
"Your family must have a lot of influence in the Ministry." Lily said with awe. James just shrugged. It was clear to Lily that he really didn't want to speak about it.  
  
The dance continued until very late at night. The last guests left around one in the morning. It was close to two when everybody in Gryffindor Manor was finally asleep.  
  
  
  
The next day was quiet around the town. Everybody seemed to be still in bed, recuperating after the dance from the day before. There were only a few people who seemed to be fine enough to be up that morning and go around taking care of business. The servants in the big houses were also up, those that worked with the Potters were busy putting things back in order. They were all glad that they were all wizards and witches and the elves were there helping, otherwise it would've taken longer than what it actually did.  
  
Emma was also awake. She was looking at the ceiling and studying the carvings of the wooden panels around the room.  
  
She was bored. She knew that it would still be a long time until her friends were awake and come to see her. She had tried getting up earlier. Tried to walk. But her body was still sore and it hurt when she moved.  
  
She was thinking that she should've asked for some books brought up, but she hadn't thought about it.  
  
She sighed. She must as well sleep some more, she wasn't going to be going anywhere anyways.  
  
She must have fallen asleep, because the next time she opened her eyes there was somebody in the room with her.  
  
There was somebody sitting in the chair beside the bed. She smiled when her mind registered who it was.  
  
"I'm sorry, I didn't want to wake you." Remus said.  
  
"I was awake earlier but I got bored so I thought to sleep some more." Emma said with a smile.  
  
"Thought that you might get bored, I brought you some books." He said as he motioned to a stack of books on the nightstand.  
  
Emma smiled. "Thanks."  
  
"Don't mention it." Answered Remus. The silence that follow was awkward as both remembered that this was the first time they were alone after their breakup.  
  
Remus was the first to break the silence. "I'm sorry."  
  
"About?"  
  
"If I had been here none of this would've happened."  
  
"You couldn't have done anything to stop it. The work that I do is special. I knew that it was dangerous the moment I started working with the group. I knew what I was getting into. I still would've accepted working on it if you and I would've stayed together." She quickly added when she noticed he was about to say something.  
  
Remus just sighed, what could he say after that?  
  
"Don't worry." She said. "I will be alright. Dumbledore will take care of me."  
  
"Do you know where they are taking you?" Remus asked.  
  
Emma shook her head. "No. I just know that it is supposed the safest place in the world."  
  
"I missed you while I was away, but I had the hope that I would still be able to see you whenever I returned. Now you won't be here." He said.  
  
"I missed you too. I will miss you. Perhaps it was for the best that our relationship didn't work as we hoped it would or our goodbye would be harder this time." She whispered.  
  
"Perhaps." He tried to speak past the lump that had formed in his throat. "I will leave you to rest. The others will be up soon and I'm sure the girls will want to tell you about everything that happened last night." He said as he got up from the chair and started to walk toward the door.  
  
"Thanks for the books." She called after him.  
  
"Enjoy them." He said with a smile and closed the door behind him.  
  
It was an hour later when Lily and Katie walked into Emma's room. Emma had spent the hour reading one of the books that Remus had brought her and barely noticed the passage of time.  
  
"Oh Emma, you cannot guess how much fun it was. You missed a great night." Squealed Katie the moment she came in. She bounced onto the bed.  
  
"Katie, you will hurt Emma." Lily chided as she sat in the chair beside the bed.  
  
Emma just smiled. "Don't worry, I'm fine." She said.  
  
"Oh Emma, you should've seen the decorations." Katie prattled off for several minutes. Emma and Lily laughing as she told about all the things she had seen and heard. She kept them all entertained for a couple of hours.  
  
  
  
Sirius had just walked into the bookroom where he found James and Remus sitting by the fireplace talking.  
  
"About time you showed up." James said the minute he saw Sirius walk in.  
  
"I was tired." Was all Sirius said.  
  
"Well, now that you are here we can go to the pitch and practice." James said.  
  
"James, we are not in Hogwarts anymore. This is not the game for the House Cup, it's just a friendly game, don't be so serious about it." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
Remus laughed. It was true, James had been so obsessed about the game lately that it was as if they were back at Hogwarts and the upcoming game was the one against Slytherin.  
  
James just smiled. "I suppose that means that I have been obsessed again."  
  
"Yes!" They both said.  
  
"All right!" Exclaimed James. "Let's go to the pitch and get things ready, my gardener wanted to see if the grass needs to be trimmed." Said James. He quickly stood from his chair and walked toward the door.  
  
Sirius and Remus followed him out.  
  
  
  
The day was sunny and warm, really uncommon for that time of year. The gardeners and tenants were busy working on the Pitch and around the orchards to make everything ready for that night. The seats were being inspected and cleaned, and a space in the back prepared to sell food and drinks for the game. The money from the sales was given to the elders and poorer families of the town.  
  
James, Sirius and Remus walked into the pitch to find it full of activity.  
  
"Master James." A short, stout man called as soon as James stepped into the pitch. The man ran toward James, panting and in a slow pace.  
  
"Yes, Mr. Sanders." Said James as soon as the man approached him.  
  
"Master - James." Mr. Sanders panted. "I wanted to make sure you were going to participate tonight. The tenants were asking earlier." He finally finished.  
  
"Oh. Yes I will, why? Is there a problem?" Asked James with a frown.  
  
"Oh no Sir, I think they are thinking of making banner for you." Mr. Sanders said.  
  
"Oh, tell them not to worry about it." James said a blush flushing his face. He was embarrassed and pleased at the same time that his tenants were cheering for him.  
  
"Oh Sir, they will enjoy it. Have you decided who is going to referee the game?" The older man asked.  
  
"Remus here will referee Sanders." James said slapping his friend's back. "And Sirius will be the captain for the other team. Has everybody signed up for the game?"  
  
"Oh yes Sir, we had to turn down some people because we had enough players." Mr. Sanders said with a smile.  
  
"Good, is everything ready?" James asked as he looked around at all the people working in the Pitch, there was laughter in the air. It was clear that those working in the Pitch didn't mind it one bit.  
  
Mr. Sanders was James' estate manager. He was originally hired by Aliaster Potter to take care of the estate while he was away in London working with the Ministry. James had seen no need to change managers when his father died. He was fond of the older man. He was the one that had taught James how to shoot and how to take care of the estate. When James was a small boy and his parents were too busy with guests and Ministry issues, the young James used to escape his nurse and join Mr. Sanders on his rounds around the estate. Mr. Sanders had taught James how to keep the estate books in order, how to deal with merchants and had introduced him to all the tenants in the estate. The older gentleman was also very proud of the young man beside him. James had become the son that Mr. Sanders never had. Mr. Sanders had been committed to the estate, as a result, he never had the opportunity to meet a caring woman and marry. He didn't mind his single state though, he enjoyed his job and couldn't work for a better family, there was nothing that he regretted.  
  
Mr. Sanders was a wizard born from muggle parents. After he finished his training at Hogwarts he had apprenticed with his own father as estate manager of a wealthy muggle family but he had kept contact with the magical world. Six years after he left Hogwarts he saw an ad in the Daily Prophet and a muggle newspaper that the Potters were looking for an estate manager. He was ecstatic. He applied for the job the next day and got hired on the instant. Aliaster Potter never regretted his decision and James didn't think that he would either. Mr. Sanders was also a very good beater and always participated in the annual estate Quidditch Game at James' side.  
  
The Pitch was looking at its best this day. The bleachers were starting to shine in the sun, the grass was looking greener and the aroma of the food being prepared was smelled through the air.  
  
"I'm getting hungry." Sirius suddenly said as his mouth started to water from smelling the food.  
  
James and Remus laughed. "That is no surprise." Said Remus.  
  
"Well, I for once, agree with him. That food is making me hungry, maybe we should go back there and see how the food is going." Said James with a sparkle in his eye.  
  
Sirius readily agreed with him. Mr. Sanders watched the three young man walk toward the kitchens with an indulgent smile, everybody knew how fond James and Sirius were of food.  
  
  
  
Afternoon was soon over and everybody was sitting for dinner. James and Sirius were impatient and excited about the game that they gobbled down all the food served in front of them.  
  
"James, Sirius, slow down. I'm sure nobody wants to see you get sick in the middle of the game." Chided Mrs. Potter as she watched her son eat a stake in record time.  
  
"Don't worry Mrs. Potter, James and Sirius always ate that much before a game in Hogwarts and they never managed to get sick." Said Lily with a laugh.  
  
"Oh dear, I have never seen anybody eat that much." Exclaimed Mrs. Evans when Sirius shoved a large piece of chicken in his mouth.  
  
Mr. Evans laughed. "That's because we never had any sons dear, our daughters would never eat that much."  
  
"Well, they always managed to win the game." Said Katie looking at the two young men with disgust.  
  
"But this time they are playing against each other." Said Remus.  
  
"This is going to be a good game." Said James after he swallowed a quarter of an apple. It seemed that he didn't even chew but just swallowed everything that entered his mouth.  
  
At that moment Francesca and Cassandra came running into the room. They were giggling and in high spirits.  
  
"Uncle James."  
  
"Uncle James." The twins hollered as they came to stop beside James' chair.  
  
"What happened?" Asked James with surprise. His food out of his mind for the moment.  
  
"When is the game?"  
  
"We want to go to the game." The twins said looking expectantly at James.  
  
"Is that why you came here at such speed? The game is not until later tonight, and if you want to go to the game you should be in bed right now taking a nap." James chided. The girls' sunny faces fell which made James feel bad about scolding them.  
  
"Come here dears, why aren't you up in the nursery with Nurse?" Asked Mrs. Potter as she motioned the girls to come to her.  
  
"Nurse is asleep."  
  
"We sneaked away." They said in whispers, which really weren't because everybody heard them. All the adults in the room smiled. The twins had become really dear to everybody who met them.  
  
"You shouldn't have done so dears, go upstairs and get into bed. We will wake you up when it's time to go to the game." Mrs. Potter said as she shooed the girls to the door.  
  
"Will you really?"  
  
"Promise?" The twins asked looking at their grandmother.  
  
"I promise. Now go up and rest, otherwise you will fall asleep in the middle of the game and you won't see it." She said. The girls nodded and ran out of the room toward the stairs. A footman appeared from the entrance hall and silently followed them up to make sure that they got to the nursery all right and to make sure that they didn't get into mischief before getting there.  
  
The twins were known for their curiosity. They were often found in the empty rooms of the house looking through furniture and opening doors at random. The staff had taken it upon themselves to keep the girls safe and keep them from mischief. But they weren't always successful.  
  
"I shudder to think what kind of owl we will get from Dumbledore, mother, when those two get lose in Hogwarts." Said James after the girls were gone.  
  
"No worse than the owls your father and I received about you I wager." Said Mrs. Potter with a smile.  
  
Lily and Katie giggled while Sirius and Remus looked at James with commiseration. It seemed that there would be a new generation of Potter terror in Hogwarts and they new quite well of the mischief a Potter could get into. If one Potter was enough, how will Hogwarts survive after two Potters?  
  
James shuddered. Perhaps he was being punished for all the trouble he got into when he was in school. He hoped that his own children would be more circumspect and less energetic, he didn't think he could handle too many owls about their mischief.  
  
"As long as there isn't any Lupins or Blacks, or Pettigrews there to urge them, perhaps they would be fine." Said Lily with a tone that clearly said she really didn't believe what she just said.  
  
"Well, I'm going to see if things are ready, we still have five hours until the game starts." Said James as he put his napkin aside and got ready to leave the table. "Enjoy your dinner everybody, I'll see you at the game." He said before leaving the room.  
  
"I might as well go as well, I don't even know who is in my team yet." Said Sirius as he grabbed some of the pies waiting for desert and followed James out.  
  
Remus shook his head and looked longingly at the vast array of sweets and ice cream waiting in the middle of the table. With a sigh he stood up. "I might as well go, I'll try to keep them out of trouble." He said. Throwing a last look at the desert platter he slowly left the room.  
  
"Oh poor Remus, he does love his sweets." Said Katie.  
  
"Perhaps we should put some away for him. He can have them after the game." Said Lily as she started to pile some of the cookies and pies into a plate. She covered the plate when it was full and put it aside.  
  
"Will he want to eat all that food after the game. Granted that I have never seen a game of qui-, quit- how do you say it?" Asked Mrs. Evans looking at her daughter.  
  
"Quidditch." Lily said.  
  
"How is this Quidditch played? Sirius and James tried to explain it to me earlier but I must say that they made it sound too complicated." Said Mr. Evans.  
  
Katie and Lily laughed. "You couldn't have chosen anybody worse to explain it to you daddy, they are Quidditch mad. I bet they tried to tell you all about fouls and some history of the game when you asked." Said Lily with laughter.  
  
"Yes, I believe they did." Said Mr. Evans.  
  
Lily and Katie tried to explain the game to Mr. and Mrs. Evans. Mrs. Potter listened with a smile in her lips.  
  
The house was silent. There were a few servants and elves walking around the house doing last minute chores. Everybody was looking forward to the game that night and they were all planning to have a short nap before leaving for the Pitch.  
  
  
  
In an inn, not far from the Welch coast, sat a portly young man. He was nervous and scared, what had made him come? He asked himself. Why was he here? But of course, there was only one reason that would make him leave his house at such a late hour, his mother's safety.  
  
Peter had been waiting in a booth of the town's inn for a while now. The note that he had received the day before was in the right pocket of his coat. The note had made him nervous. He didn't want his mother to be in danger, but he thought that the note made it clear that if he wanted to keep his mother safe then he will have to be in danger. He didn't know what the writer of the note wanted from him, but he knew it must be dangerous.  
  
He was too preoccupied with his thoughts that he didn't notice two men entering the inn. They were dressed in black suits. Because the town was a muggle town, they were dressed in muggle clothes, and anybody who would look at them would think that they were just two businessmen who had just got out of work. The two men looked around the room. One of them pointed at Peter sitting in a booth at one corner of the room. The light was dim in that side of the room and made the booth look as if it was separated from the rest of the room. A perfect location for their clandestine meeting. The two men started walking toward it.  
  
Peter was taken by surprise when the two men sat in front of him.  
  
"You?" He gasped.  
  
"Oh please Pettigrew!" Said a familiar sneering face.  
  
"What are you doing here Malfoy, are you and Snape here writing threatening letters now? What a thrill for you." Said Peter.  
  
"Don't try to be witty Pettigrew, it doesn't suit you." Snapped Snape.  
  
It had been three years since Peter had seen the two Slytherins sitting in front of him. He had never thought that he would see them again after leaving Hogwarts. They ran in completely different social circles and Peter had been living away from society since graduation.  
  
Peter looked at the pair warily. What did they want from him?  
  
"Let's get to the point. Pettigrew, our master wishes to speak with you." Said Malfoy.  
  
"Master?" Asked Peter. What the heck were they talking about?  
  
"Use your brain Pettigrew! We are talking about You-Know-Who!" Snapped Snape. He had been looking around the booth in a nervous manner, making sure that they were not being overheard.  
  
Peter blanched at the mention of You-Know-Who. "W-w-why does he want to see me?" He stuttered.  
  
"Because he wants you to do something for him." Malfoy said.  
  
"What?" Asked Peter.  
  
Malfoy sighed and Snape rolled his eyes, they clearly thought of Peter as a fool and didn't understand why Voldemort would want Peter in their prestigious group.  
  
"He wants some information, and you might be able to get it for him." Malfoy said.  
  
"What kind of information?" Peter asked. Perhaps he should have popped to see James after all and gotten his help. He didn't know how to deal with this situation.  
  
"A couple of days ago we got hold of a Ministry worker who had secret information about the latest work in the Experimental department but before our master could get information from her, she escaped. We know that the Minister and Dumbledore will take her to somewhere safe, somewhere where she might not be found. We want to know where she is being taken." Said Snape.  
  
"You are speaking of Emma." Exclaimed Peter. He had been owled about her disappearance and her escape from the Death Eaters, he also knew that she was taken to somewhere safe.  
  
"Bravo Pettigrew, you can think on your own after all." Sneered Malfoy. Peter glared at him but Malfoy didn't seem to mind. "We are talking of Holmes, we want the information she carries and we want you to find out where she is taken, I'm sure that Potter and the rest will be told where she is being taken, you will be able to find out." He said.  
  
"Why would I do that?" Said Peter.  
  
"Because if you don't, your mother will not live for long Pettigrew, and you are not a wizard that can stand up to our group." Snapped Snape.  
  
"Since when does You-Know-Who makes propositions, wouldn't it be easier for him to torture me and kill us anyways?" Said Peter trying to sound brave, but inside, he was quaking, he didn't want to die.  
  
"We think so, but he says you could be of use in the future. Think about it Pettigrew. You have two days to decide if you prefer death or safety." Said Malfoy. Both Snape and Malfoy stood up and walked out of the inn without looking back.  
  
Peter stayed in the booth watching them go. "Oh Lord." He exclaimed in a whisper. What should he do?  
  
  
  
Night had fallen. Most lights in the town had been turned off and it seemed that the inhabitants of the town around Gryffindor Manor were asleep. But if somebody looked out their window and watched closely, dim silhouettes could be seen sneaking out of some of the houses making their way to the Manor.  
  
In contrast, the Manor was brightly lit. The servants and elves seemed to be everywhere at once. Some were walking down the path toward the orchard with bundles in their arms. Others kept watch in the house. The members of the family didn't seem to be part of this migration.  
  
Lily and Katie were currently in Emma's room. Emma was feeling well enough to be part of the spectacle and was looking forward to watching the game. Lily and Katie were helping her get ready.  
  
"Oh, you should wear this Emma, it looks good on you." Katie was saying as she held up a revealing dress.  
  
"Katie, she can't wear that. We don't need the referee to be distracted during the game. Besides, she would get a chill in that dress." Said Lily.  
  
Emma was watching them as she sat in front of the dresser, looking at them with an amusing glance.  
  
"I'm already dressed." She said before her friends said anything else.  
  
"Oh. Then what are we waiting for?" Asked Katie turning to look at Emma.  
  
"We are waiting for a footman to come. Emma is being taken to the Pitch by a footman. He is going to carry her down there so she won't tire." Said Lily with an exasperated tone.  
  
"Oh. Why isn't one of the boys taking her?" Katie asked.  
  
"Because they are at the Pitch getting ready." Answered Emma as she looked at herself in the mirror making sure her hair was in order.  
  
Katie shrugged and flopped down on the bed with a sigh.  
  
"It won't be long." Said Lily taking the chair by the bed. She knew that Katie was bored. Katie had not been able to nap that afternoon and had been a pest for the whole evening.  
  
There was a knock on the door. A footman entered when Emma called him to enter. The girls were excited. It had been a while since they had gone to a game and were really looking forward to see the boys play once more.  
  
They walked down the path toward the Pitch accompanied by the other members of the household. Mr. Evans was looking forward to watching a game that so far he only knew by description. Mrs. Evans didn't know yet how to feel about the game. According to what she heard it seemed very dangerous to her but Susan didn't seem too worried about James playing. The twins were skipping and running beside them playing a game of tag as they made their way to the game. The staff followed behind. Everybody seemed eager to reach the Pitch.  
  
The orchard surrounding the Pitch seemed dark and silent. Nobody looking at it would understand why hundreds of people would want to walk toward it. But once the orchard was crossed and the center was reached, tall walls surrounded the center and a glowing light seemed to be coming from it. No sound was heard but everybody knew that there were lots of people waiting inside.  
  
When the party from the Manor entered, a kaleidoscope of color greeted their sight. The walls supported a ring of seats high up in the air. They had to go up several flights of stairs until they reached a boxed area with cushioned seats and near the food court. The group sat around the box, each choosing the seat that gave them a better view. The twins sat in front beside their grandmother who was trying to keep them still before they got themselves into trouble or shoved one another over the ledge in front of them. Lily, Katie, Emma, Mr. and Mrs. Evans sat behind them.  
  
Mr. Evans looked around the Pitch. The young people had tried to explain what the game would look like but somehow their explanations didn't seem to give him much of an idea of how it was done. He looked in awe at the large posts at each end of the field; three long poles with rings at the top at each side. He looked around the seats and saw several pairs binoculars in front of them. He grabbed one and stared at it with a frown. Unlike the ones that he owned and took with him whenever he joined some friends at a soccer game, these were very different. Lily giggled when she noticed her fathers' confused glance at the apparatus he held in his hand.  
  
"They are omnioculars daddy." She said.  
  
"Omnioculars? How do they work?" He asked with curiosity.  
  
"Well you see these knobs here?" Lily asked as she pointed at the knobs on top of the omnioculars. When her father nodded she continued with her explanation. "Well, this one slows the game down if you turn it this way, if you want to return to normal time you just turn it back. This knob here gives you a play-by-play breakdown. Now this one here gives you a replay." She explained. Both her father and mother listened attentively with expressions full of awe. Who would've thought that something like this existed?  
  
"Do you think I could get one of these for my soccer games?" Asked Mr. Evans as he played around with his omnioculars getting the hang of them.  
  
Lily laughed. "Sorry daddy, they only work with Quidditch. You would only get weird looks it you take a pair of these to a soccer game." Lily said.  
  
Mrs. Evans chuckled. "I don't think your father would mind that dear, as long as he can get the game with these."  
  
Lily smiled at her parents. She was so glad that unlike her sister, Petunia, they had accepted her for what she was and had embraced her world with open arms. There weren't many who would put aside their fear of the unknown and try to learn about the magical world in order to keep in touch with their daughter. She had never imagined that she would be able to share such an important aspect of her world with them.  
  
"I'm going to get some food for these two." Said Mrs. Potter pointing to the twins as she looked behind over her shoulder. "Maybe that would keep them still until the game starts. Do you want anything?"  
  
"I'll go with you Susan and help you." Said Mrs. Evans. Both ladies stood up and walked with the twins toward the back were food was being sold.  
  
"Whom are they playing against?" Asked Lily to her friends, who were sitting on one side. Her father was sitting on her other side.  
  
"James' team is made up from tenants of the estate, Sirius' by townspeople." Said Katie as she looked over the audience with her omnioculars.  
  
"Who will comment?" Asked Emma.  
  
"I heard old Mr. Thomas will." Said Katie. When she noticed that her friends were looking at her with questioning glances she continued. "The innkeeper. He was a beater for Hufflepuff you know. Sirius told me." She said with a shrug.  
  
"Speaking of Sirius. When are you going to get married?" Emma asked feeling a little envious of her friend. She never thought that Katie would be the first of the trio to get engaged.  
  
"We haven't decided yet. Sirius needs to get used to the idea." Katie responded as she looked at her engagement ring with a smile.  
  
"I'm sorry I won't be there." Said Emma with sadness.  
  
"Oh no, you have to be there!" Exclaimed Katie looking at Emma with horror.  
  
"But I'm leaving soon remember, I don't know when I will be back." Emma replied.  
  
"Oh, we will miss you Emma. I never thought that you wouldn't be there for our special events." Said Lily as tears started to shine in her eyes.  
  
"Don't worry, I will be fine." Said Emma. Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans returned at that moment, followed closely by the twins, therefore Lily and Katie didn't respond to Emma's optimistic view.  
  
"Roberts said that the game will start soon. Mr. Thomas is on his way to the commentary box." Reported Mrs. Potter as she sat by the twins who were busy eating some of their snacks.  
  
The group settled in the chairs and watched as the glowing in the walls seemed to dim. Lights at the top of the walls got brighter and shined at the center of the Pitch. The audience was quieter and looked at the small doors by each end of the field for the teams to appear with held breath.  
  
A portly, middle-aged man entered the box next to the Potter's box. Lily recognized him as the town's innkeeper and tonight's commentator.  
  
"Good evening ladies and gentlemen." His magnified voice was heard throughout the stadium. "Welcome to the annual Quidditch game of the Harvest Fair." Thunderous applause was heard permeating the air. "Let's thank the Potters for allowing this tradition to continue." Applause continued without stopping. "Let's welcome the players for this year's game." One of the doors at each side to the Pitch opened and seven red blurs flew around the Pitch. "The team representing the Gryffindor Estate. Mr. Potter, captain, Jones, Mulligan, Smith, Sanders, Moran, and Goldsmith." Applause, cheers and catcalls filled the air.  
  
The other door opened and seven golden blurs blended with the red ones as they flew around the field.  
  
"Representing the town, led by Mr. Black, Mallory, Pierce, Carroll, Stevens, St. John, and Blake." More cheers and applause was heard throughout the audience.  
  
"And refereeing this evening, Mr. Remus Lupin." Mr. Thomas yelled. Remus walked into the pitch. The chest with the balls underneath his arm.  
  
"Mr. Lupin mounts his broom. Kicks open the chest and the bludgers and snitch fly into the air. Remember that the seeker that catches the snitch ends the game and wins 150 points for his team. Mr. Lupin holds the quaffle and with a whistle throws it up into the air. Let the game begin." Mr. Thomas yelled.  
  
"Look at them go. Mr. Potter and Mr. Black seem get the quaffle from each other as soon as they steal it back. Potter intercepts, Black slips it out of Mr. Potter's grasp. Mr. Potter again. Back to Black. Boy, no wonder Gryffindor was undefeated with these two in the same team. Potter again. Back to Black. Potter. And he makes his escape after Mr. Black had to sidestep before a bludger hit him. Potter has hold of the quaffle, throws it to Jones, back to Potter. Look at that move, Mallory had no chance to steal before Potter passed that quaffle to Mulligan. St. John getting ready to stop that quaffle from getting through. Mr. Black trying to intercept. Mr. Potter shoots, and ten points to the Manor Team." Mr. Thomas screamed.  
  
The families of the tenants and the servants of the Manor yelled and waved their homemade flags and banners.  
  
"Wow, this looks exciting. We have to go to a professional game dear, I really would like to see how those look like." Mr. Evans yelled at his wife as the people around them screamed and jumped urging their team.  
  
The game continued. "Mr. Black has the quaffle. The Manor team getting ready to intercept. Passes to Mallory, Pierce in possession, back to Black. A bludger narrowly misses Black. Look at them go. Back to Mallory. Mulligan is now side by side with Mallory, will he be able to steal it. Yes, he did. Ouch, that bludger must have hurt. Mulligan is hit and Mallory steals it back. He flies into the scoring area and shoots. Ten points to the Town Team." The audience exploded into cheers and catcalls. "How is that for an exciting game folks. Our teams are truly playing their best." Mr. Thomas yelled.  
  
The game continued in similar manner for several minutes. The teams didn't seem to score one or two goals ahead of each other, and when they did the other team quickly caught up. It was clear that the only way a team was going to win was if the snitch was caught, but so far the snitch had eluded the seekers and they flew around above their teammates.  
  
Suddenly there was a gasp among the audience and everybody turned to see at the two seekers as both sped toward the ground where the golden snitch could be glimpsed fluttering about. "And the snitch has been spotted. The snitch has been spotted." Mr. Thomas said. Everybody was holding their breath as every eye followed the movements of the two seekers.  
  
"Oh dear, they are going to crash." Exclaimed Mrs. Evans covering her eyes with her hands.  
  
"Don't worry dear." Said Mr. Evans as he looked through his omnioculars with delight. "I'm sure they know what they are doing."  
  
The seekers were near their target. The golden snitch still fluttered about one meter above the ground. The others players had stopped playing as they watched the two seekers speed toward the golden ball.  
  
"Look at them go, either one could fly away with the ball here folks." Mr. Thomas was saying. But nobody seemed to be paying attention to anything he said, they were all too busy keeping an eye on the seekers.  
  
The two seekers were trying to keep control of their brooms, they were both flying at great speed and bumping against each other trying to make the other lose control and pull up. The snitch continued fluttering above the ground. It looked as if it was taunting the seekers calling them to it. Suddenly both seekers were upon it and a fight ensued as both tried to keep hold of the snitch as it tried to escape the hold of someone's grasp.  
  
Everyone was holding their breath, who got the golden snitch?  
  
The score was tied, the seeker with the snitch would win the game for his team.  
  
"The snitch seemed to be caught between the seekers, but who got it? The seekers are struggling to keep hold of the snitch."  
  
It felt like minutes as the seekers fought for the ball, but actually it was just a matter of seconds. The crowd moaned and cheered when one of the seekers finally lost the battle and fell off his broom while the other flew into the air with the struggling snitch fluttering in his grasp.  
  
The crowd exploded into cheers and applause. "And Adam Goldsmith has the snitch. The Manor Team has won the game. The Manor Team has won the game." Mr. Thomas was yelling.  
  
James was flying around the Pitch in a form of victory dance. The servants and tenants of the estate were jumping and dancing in the stands. The twins were jumping and screaming. Mrs. Potter, Mrs. Evans and Mr. Evans were applauding. Emma, Lily and Katie were yelling excitedly.  
  
"Uncle James won."  
  
"Uncle James won." The twins were screaming.  
  
"Yes dears, they won. But please contain yourselves, you are going to fall if you don't take care." Mrs. Potter said in an effort to calm down the girls.  
  
"Can we go and see him?"  
  
"Please grandma." The twins asked looking at their grandmother hopefully.  
  
"We will wait until they are ready. They will go and change now and then we will join them." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"Poor Sirius. This is the first game he has ever lost." Said Katie.  
  
"I'm sure he won't mind. It was a good game." Emma said.  
  
"At least he didn't lose to a Slytherin." Lily replied.  
  
"That would've been worse." Katie laughed. "But I will uplift his spirits."  
  
The girls giggled. They had a good idea of what Katie could do to cheer Sirius up.  
  
The Pitch was slowly filling with spectators. Tables and chairs were being brought down. It was customary for a victory party to be held right after the game in the Pitch and everybody was invited to attend, winners and losers alike.  
  
"Let's go down. The teams will join us as soon as they are ready." Said Mrs. Potter. She took the twins' hands and led the group down to the field. They walked slowly so that Emma wouldn't tire too easily.  
  
A small band was forming at one side of the field. Servants from the inn were bringing in kegs of ale and cider. Servants from the manor were setting food and fruit upon the tables set nearby the band.  
  
People were grouped all over, talking about the game and it's exciting end. The group from the manor was constantly stopped by others to congratulate them. They slowly made their way to the chairs brought down to the pitch were they sat to wait for the teams to join the revelry.  
  
When the teams finally made their way out of the lockers they were greeted with cheers and applause by everybody in the field.  
  
The kegs were opened and toasts were called. After a few minutes the band started to play and the dancing began.  
  
'There is my baby. Oh James I'm so proud of you." Squealed Mrs. Potter as James, Sirius and Remus joined them.  
  
"Mum!" James exclaimed as he blushed at his mother's name for him. He really didn't like it when she called him her baby.  
  
"Great game young men." Exclaimed Mr. Evans. He had been really impressed by the game and the agility that the players seemed to posses in order to do a good show.  
  
"Thank you Mr. Evans, I gather you liked the game." Said Sirius as he accepted a glass of ale from one of the servants nearby.  
  
"Indeed. That was some game." Said Mr. Evans.  
  
The men started to talk about the game, the girls rolled their eyes and Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans were joined by other older women.  
  
The party continued until early hours of the next morning. Mrs. Potter had retired earlier with the twins who had fallen asleep as the party went on. Mr. and Mrs. Evans followed soon after. Only the young people stayed behind until the party finally ended.  
  
It was getting chilly and the sun was setting as the group slowly made its way to the house. Emma and Remus walked in front whispering to each other. Sirius was leading Katie to the kitchen garden holding her hand. Lily and James brought the rear. Both felt like it was a magical time. It had been a while since they all felt this way.  
  
"That was great." Lily said.  
  
"Yes, just like Hogwarts wasn't it?" James said with a smile.  
  
"Indeed. We only needed Professor McGonagall telling us to go to bed." Lily laughed.  
  
James chuckled. It was true, the atmosphere in the party after the game had been so similar to those they had in Gryffindor Common Room after every game and for a moment James had thought that they were back in Hogwarts and had just defeated Slytherin for the Cup.  
  
"Those were simpler times." James whispered.  
  
"They were." Lily responded. Both remembering the good time they had together during those earlier years.  
  
"Come, I want to show you something." James suddenly said. He took her hand and started pulling her toward the walled gardens.  
  
"Where are we going?" Asked Lily with surprise. A sense of exaltation spread through her body.  
  
"You'll see." Said James as they ran down the path.  
  
They finally stopped in front of the walled gardens. Lily had explored them before and had found them fascinating. The one that intrigued her the most was the last one. The one that was kept locked and out of bounds. She had asked Mrs. Potter and had been told that nobody knew what was inside. The last time it was opened was before James' father died. And at the time it was barren and dirty. But James had taken hold of it and locked it.  
  
"What are we doing here?" Said Lily as she panted and held a hand at the stitch in her side.  
  
"I want to show you something." James said. Looking at her with a sparkling eyes.  
  
Lily smiled. James hadn't looked at her in that way since they had broken up.  
  
James led her through the gardens, one led to another each different to the others. They finally arrived at the last garden. The locked garden.  
  
"Here we are." Said James.  
  
"What about it? I know it is locked, I tried." She said.  
  
James laughed. "You and everybody in the estate." He said. He started looking through his pockets until he took out a small golden key. "But I have the key."  
  
Lily smiled. She was trembling with excitement, what would she find inside? And why was James showing it to her now?  
  
"Ready?" He asked.  
  
Lily nodded.  
  
The walls were covered with Ivy. James had to pull it aside to find the knob. When he finally found it he put his key in and turned. Lily heard the key mechanism turn and a slight squeak as James pushed the door open.  
  
Lily gasped. "Oh James!" She exclaimed.  
  
"I had inspiration." James whispered.  
  
The walls were surrounded by rose bushes, red, white and pink; Lily's favorite colors. There were orchids and tulips in small beds around the garden; also some of Lily's favorite flowers. There was a small pool in the center of the garden. Lilies of every color surrounded it. Water lilies floated in the pool. Golden fish swam in the sparking water.  
  
Lily turned to look at James. Tears shining in her eyes. "It's beautiful." She whispered.  
  
"Not as beautiful as you. I tried to captured that, it isn't enough." He responded with a sheepish smile.  
  
"Thank you." She said before kissing his lips for just a second. She smiled up at him.  
  
He smiled back and leaned in to kiss her. This kiss lasted longer than the one Lily had given him.  
  
  
  
  
  
A/N: Here you are, it took me a while to finish this chapter originally and after rereading and editing now to post it here I saw that it was perfect after the previous chapter. I know that the Quidditch Game doesn't sound as exciting as the ones JKR writes, but I gave it my best, I'm not an athletic person and sports are not really my forte. Anyways, I hope you liked it and please don't forget to review. 


	29. Part II Chapter 5

A/N: I'm here again with one more chapter for you. I'm glad that you like what you have read so far, I really appreciate all your reviews.  
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing, nothing.  
  
  
  
Chapter 5 ~ Last Goodbyes  
  
  
  
It was late in the afternoon when the members of the household woke up. The sun was shining bright and a cool breeze flew among the town.  
  
James was up before anybody else and after taking some food walked toward his garden. He didn't regret showing it to Lily, he imagined that now it would become their garden and would become a place where they could be together out of anybody's sight. He took the small golden key in his hand and muttered something as he gently tapped it with his wand. A second key appeared. He muttered something else and a golden chain appeared though the key. He smiled and went back to the house.  
  
He walked silently through the hall leading to the bedchambers. He stopped in front of Lily's door. He kneeled and pushed an envelope through.  
  
Lily was stirring in her bed. She blinked a couple of times trying to gain her bearings. The room was bright with sunlight. A steaming pot of hot chocolate stood in a tray beside the bed. With a pleased smile she reached for it. When she leaned over the side of the bed, she noticed something by her door. Intrigued, she left the tray were it lay and stood up. She walked toward the door and saw the small envelope on the floor. With a frown, she reached for it. She opened it and a small key with a golden chain fell on her hand. She smiled. She knew what door it opened and who had given it to her. The memories of last night came flooding through her mind.  
  
James and Lily spent countless minutes in each other arms after their initial kiss. They both knew that they couldn't go back to that innocent relationship they had during their last year at Hogwarts. Events interfered then, but this time they were more mature and they planned to make it work and make the most of it.  
  
Lily returned to her chocolate after she clasped the chain around her neck. With a smile she began a new day.  
  
  
  
Emma was laying on the bed staring up the ceiling. Remus had been so attentive the night before. He kept her entertained during the victory party and got refreshments for her whenever she was in need of some. He had walked her back to the house at the end of it. He even asked if she was tired, he said he wasn't too tired and wouldn't mind carrying her to her room if she preferred. She had smiled and said it wouldn't be necessary.  
  
She sighed. It would be so easy to fall back to their old relationship. And she truly wished that they could, but things were different now. Then, it had been him the one to break their relationship up. She understood his reasons, and even though it had hurt her, she knew that it had been for the best. Now it was too late to try again. She would be leaving soon, she didn't know to where and for how long but she did know that in her new life there would be no room for Remus.  
  
The sun streamed through the curtains. Birds were chirping by the window. And Emma continued lost in her thoughts.  
  
  
  
Katie was standing by the window. She was in high spirits this day. She had seen James leave the house earlier and then saw him return. She smiled. She had a feeling that Lily and James would be all lovey-dovey for the next days, not that she would mind at all, she had other things in mind. Well, she should say someone else in mind. She turned to look back at the bed. The sheets looked like she had been turning and kicking the whole night. But that hadn't been the case. Sirius had left her room earlier that morning waking her up with a kiss before leaving. She smiled smugly. She knew what her friends would think if they knew about her nightly activities, but she also knew that they couldn't be too naïve to think that Sirius and she hadn't been together before. They had been in their relationship for four years now, and now they were engaged. And they knew that Sirius was no innocent.  
  
Katie smiled and went back to bed. She felt a bit sore, but she didn't mind. With a smug smile she went back to sleep.  
  
  
  
It was during dinner that everybody saw each other again. Everybody had left their room at different hours of the day and had been so involved in their own affairs to pay attention to anybody else.  
  
Everybody was in subdued spirits. The Harvest Fair was over. No more treats to look forward to. James had received an owl earlier from Professor Dumbledore who will be coming to see them soon enough. Everybody knew that it meant that Emma was going to leave soon. Emma had joined them for dinner that evening and it seemed that it had become a farewell dinner because of the way everybody kept asking her how she felt and tried to avoid the reason for Dumbledore's letter. She sighed and kept her mind on her food, she really didn't want to think about leaving either.  
  
"Well young men." Said Mr. Evans breaking the silence that had taken over the table. "That was some game last night."  
  
"I'm glad you enjoyed it Mr. Evans. That is the only Quidditch game open to muggles in our world, usually you wouldn't have been able to see it." James said.  
  
"Indeed. I suppose it is against the rules to let us see it." Mr. Evans replied.  
  
"It is. That is why the Professional games are played in areas away from population. There are charms and hexes that keep muggles away. This Pitch also has charms protecting it from muggle eyes, but it only works with muggles that have no knowledge of the magical world, they would just see a soccer field. Most muggles in town have family members who are magic, so they can see the games, they just can't participate in it." James explained.  
  
The rest of dinner was spent with talk of last night's game and with James, with some help from Remus and Sirius, trying to explain all the rules of Quidditch to Mr. Evans. The women kept half an ear in their conversation and soon started to turn the conversation to the party.  
  
Dinner broke up some half an hour later. Because they were all still tired from the previous evening they decided to go to bed. Soon after, the house was dark. The night was clear and the stars sparkled. And a shadow detached itself from the woods nearby, a pair of eyes keeping watch over the sleeping Manor.  
  
  
  
The weather started to get colder by the next morning. James was out all morning with his tenants making sure all the harvest had been collected and stored. The kitchen pantry was completely full of fresh vegetables, grain and fruit, enough for a whole month. Mr. Evans, Sirius and Remus had taken a couple of rifles out and had gone to hunt in the Manor woods. Only the girls remained behind.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans were in the back parlor with their embroidery while Emma, Lily and Katie were in the music room playing and chatting. The twins were all over the house, followed closely by one member of the staff. Their squeals and laughter could be heard all over the house.  
  
By luncheon time, the men were back. A light repast was served in the deck outside the family dinning room. The day had gotten a little warmer and everybody agreed that a meal outside would make for a nice change.  
  
The afternoon was spent in quiet entertainment. Mr. Evans had gone to the library while his wife and Mrs. Potter were in the kitchens deciding on the menus for the rest of the week. Lily, Katie and Emma were in the back parlor looking through some magazines and listening to the radio, they were a bit sad after James had announced during luncheon that Professor Dumbledore would be coming over for dinner. James, Sirius and Remus had taken over the game room and were playing billiards.  
  
"Do you think he will take Emma tonight?" Asked Remus as he watched James play with Sirius.  
  
James shrugged. "I don't know. He didn't say anything about it, just that he was coming tonight."  
  
"Don't worry, Moony, old friend. Maybe he is coming to prepare her." Sirius said.  
  
"Perhaps." Answered Remus with a thoughtful expression.  
  
They continued to play in silence for a few minutes before James continued.  
  
"I received an owl today from Peter." He said. "What does the old boy has to say? I haven't received an owl from him for a while." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"You know he is busy taking care of his mother." Replied Remus.  
  
"Yes, but he could sit for a few minutes and write." Sirius said.  
  
"Well, he wrote that his mother is better and will be going to a friend's house for a little while so he will be coming here." James explained.  
  
"Hey, that would be perfect for that plan of your Prongs." Sirius shouted.  
  
"Really Sirius, there is no need to shout. And what plan are you talking about?" Asked Remus.  
  
"That plan he had to go back to Hogwarts for the next full moon." Sirius said.  
  
"It would be perfect, the four of us will be together then. All we need is to apparate in Hogsmeade, sneak into the Shack and wait there for the transformation." Said James.  
  
"And then we will have Hogwarts' grounds for ourselves. We did have fun then, didn't we?" Said Sirius with a sigh.  
  
"You are getting melancholic Sirius. Never thought that Padfoot here would be so sentimental." Laughed Remus. "But I don't know. So many things could go wrong."  
  
"Don't worry Moony, everything will be fine." Sirius said once more.  
  
"I will tell Dumbledore tonight that Remus wants to use the shack for his next transfiguration. I'll tell him that there isn't a safe place around here for him to do so and that we could only think of the Shack. He'll say it's fine and he will make sure that nobody is on the grounds on those days." James said.  
  
"Oh very well, but if something goes wrong, I'm blaming you." Said Remus.  
  
"Fine." Both Sirius and James said.  
  
The girls were also worried about Dumbledore's visit.  
  
"What if he is coming to take Emma." Said Katie.  
  
"I don't think so, he would've said something. After all, she is not ready to leave yet." Lily said.  
  
"Maybe he is just coming to check on me. If he thinks I'm better, then he will tell me when I leave." Emma replied.  
  
"Oh. Maybe we should put you in bed and tell him you aren't completely healed." Said Katie.  
  
"No Katie, I have to go eventually. Nobody knows that I'm here and if Voldemort finds out, then not only I am in danger, but everybody who is here, and I couldn't live with myself if anything happened because of me." Emma said.  
  
"But I don't want you to leave." Katie said with tears gathering in her eyes.  
  
"I know, I don't want to go either but I must." Replied Emma.  
  
"Well, let's not think about it, let's hear what Dumbledore has to say first." Said Lily trying to sound cheerful.  
  
"You know, I think the boys are planning something." Said Emma as she tried to keep her mind from her departure.  
  
"What makes you say that?" Asked Katie.  
  
"I don't know, it was a feeling I got." Emma said.  
  
"Well you know them, there is always something that they are planning. If we were still in Hogwarts, I would be wary about it, but they have behaved themselves for quite a while." Lily said.  
  
"Besides, Mrs. Potter is here, James wouldn't dare to do anything with her here." Katie said.  
  
"Well let's just hope that it isn't dangerous." Emma replied.  
  
Katie laughed. "You know that if there is danger involved they will most likely do it. Let's hope it's safe and boring, that will keep them away from danger." She said.  
  
Lily and Emma laughed. It was true, the boys liked a bit of danger in their lives, they wouldn't be friends if it wasn't so.  
  
Dinnertime was soon approaching. The young men had left the game room to go to the entertainment room were the young ladies soon joined them.  
  
The entertainment room was located in the second floor, near the family chambers. It was decorated with muggle posters of movies, singers and teams on the walls. There was a special section of the wall that with a tap of a wand it would transfigure the posters upon it to posters of Quidditch teams and players. Against the longest wall was an entertainment center. A large T.V. at the center and several modern equipment beside it. There was a video tape recorder, which had first appeared in the market a few years ago. There was a large stereo with a record player. In the middle of the room were couches facing the television arranged in a semicircle.  
  
On this evening, the young people were watching muggle television. Wizards had not found the way to have a wizarding channel yet.  
  
Soon they were being called to get ready for dinner. Professor Dumbledore would arrive any minute.  
  
  
  
Everybody was sitting in the family parlor waiting for their visitor. Remus kept watching out the windows while Mrs. Potter kept her eyes in the fireplace. There was no laughter, no talk, the twins were taking dinner in the nursery and everybody in the parlor was nervously waiting for Professor Dumbledore.  
  
"He is here." Remus suddenly said. Everybody turned to look at him.  
  
"He just apparated, there is someone else with him." Remus reported.  
  
Soon after, the doorbell rang and they heard Roberts greeting someone at the door.  
  
The door to the parlor opened and Roberts appeared.  
  
"Professor Dumbledore and Mr. Crouch." He announced.  
  
Two men came in. One was very familiar with the people waiting. The other was unknown to most of them even though his name wasn't. He was the new Head of the Department of Magical Enforcement.  
  
"Good evening." Professor Dumbledore said as soon as he entered the room. "Let me introduce to you Mr. Crouch, I'm sure you must know who he is."  
  
"Of course. Welcome Mr. Crouch, why don't you make yourself comfortable." Said Mrs. Potter as she motioned her visitors to take a seat.  
  
"Thank you Mrs. Potter." Mr. Crouch said. He seemed eager to make the acquaintance of the Potters. It was know in the Ministry that whoever had the support of the Potters, that person would become the next Minister of Magic. Mr. Crouch obviously had plans for his future. He was introduced to the others while Dumbledore greeted each like old friends, which most of them were.  
  
"I hope my visit is not trouble for you Mrs. Potter, I know that you weren't told that I was coming but it was decided at the last minute." Mr. Crouch said after greeting everybody in the room.  
  
"That's all right Mr. Crouch, Professor Dumbledore can tell you that there is always enough food at our table." Mrs. Potter replied.  
  
"Special with young men like these three." Professor Dumbledore said with a smile. The girls giggled while the three young men in question just smiled.  
  
"Well yes." Said Mr. Crouch, he obviously wasn't a frivolous man. "I came because we thought it best to get Ms. Holmes ready for her departure."  
  
"When will I be leaving Mr. Crouch?" Emma asked.  
  
"In three days most likely. There are a few things that we still have to do, but The Lady has agreed to take you on." Mr. Crouch.  
  
"Don't worry my dear, she will take good care of you, she will keep you safe." Professor Dumbledore said.  
  
Emma nodded.  
  
"Who is this Lady?" Sirius wanted to know, he wanted to make sure that Emma would indeed be kept safe. Everybody else had the same question in mind.  
  
"I'm sorry Mr. Black but that is something that you cannot know. But I guarantee you that Emma will be safe." Professor Dumbledore said.  
  
Sirius reluctantly nodded.  
  
"Very well, I'm sure we can continue this after dinner. Why don't we all go to the dinning room?" Mrs. Potter said.  
  
She took Professor Dumbledore's arm and led the group into the adjacent room.  
  
Dinner was rather subdued compared to previous ones. Nobody knew whether it was the fact that Emma would soon be leaving or if it was the presence of Mr. Crouch. He seemed like a kind of person that didn't have a frivolous bone in his body. His conversation revolved entirely around the Ministry and politics. Needless to say, the young people got bored soon enough and wanted dinner to be over soon.  
  
When the food platters were returned to the kitchen with food upon it, Otty, the cook elf, was rather worried that Master James and his friends might be ill. He resolved to send soups and juices up to their rooms before they went to bed.  
  
After dinner, Professor Dumbledore and Mr. Crouch closeted themselves with Emma in the library. The others stayed in the parlor hoping that they would soon find out what was going on behind the closed door. Dumbledore and Mr. Crouch left some time later, Emma was rather silent and didn't respond to the questions her friends had and excused herself to go to her chamber. The others followed her example soon after.  
  
  
  
Lily woke rather earlier the next day. Mr. and Mrs. Evans would be returning to London that morning and she wanted to make sure she took breakfast with them before they left.  
  
She dressed in silence. She would miss her parents, but unlike Emma, she knew she could see them whenever she wanted. It wouldn't be the same with Emma, according to what little her friend had let on, Emma would be leaving to a secret location where nobody would be able to contact her. They didn't know for how long she would be gone, the only thing they did know was that as long as Voldemort was in the loose, Emma would be in danger.  
  
Lily shook her head. There was no need for her to think about it, all she needed was to make the most of the time she still had with her parents and friend.  
  
Half an hour later, she made her way to the dinning room. She could see Roberts working in the entrance hall, polishing the brass. Footmen were helping him as all the carpets and pictures were also being cleaned. She also noticed some of the elves popping here and there helping with the cleaning. She had never thought of how much work it was to keep the house clean. The staff and the elves seemed to know what to do, even if there was nobody around.  
  
Lily made her way to the family dinning room. As she entered, she noticed that only her father was there.  
  
"Morning Princess." He said with a smile.  
  
Lily smiled back. Even though she was now twenty one, her father still called her by the pet name he had given her when she was only a toddler. "Morning Daddy. Where is mum?"  
  
"Making sure all the packing is done. Those elves are god sent, otherwise I would still be up there trying to pack everything back." He said.  
  
Lily laughed. Her parents seemed to be getting used to magical life, she was afraid that they would soon like to have an elf on their own to help around the house and she was sure her sister, Petunia, wouldn't be too impressed.  
  
She went round the table choosing from the food upon it. "Has nobody come down yet?" She asked as she took a seat near her father.  
  
"Young James was here earlier, but he had to go and check on the house of one of his tenants, it seemed that their roof was damaged somehow." Mr. Evans said.  
  
"Oh, I'm sure he will be back soon. When are you planning to leave?"  
  
"I want to be off before luncheon, I want to get home before it gets dark."  
  
"Thanks for coming."  
  
"Oh, we wanted to see you Princess. We missed you." Mr. Evans said looking at his daughter with loving eyes.  
  
"I missed you too." Lily responded.  
  
"I'm sure Young James will take care of you. I made sure to let him know that if he hurt you again he will certainly be sorry for it." Mr. Evans shook his finger at Lily.  
  
"Daddy, you didn't?" Lily exclaimed.  
  
"Of course I did, just because you decided to give him a second chance doesn't mean I will."  
  
"Daddy!"  
  
"You didn't think that we wouldn't know that you are back together again, did you? We are not blind Lily, we know what is going on with our children. We don't need magical powers to see it."  
  
"I know you are not Daddy, and I was going to tell you but with Emma leaving I kind of forgot about it." Lily said with a sheepish expression.  
  
"Well that's all right then. But he better be good to you, or he will be answering to me." Mr. Evans said.  
  
"I'm sure that everything will be fine." Lily replied.  
  
Mr. Evans didn't say anymore, Mrs. Evans soon joined them at the table.  
  
The meal dragged on for a couple of hours, Sirius, Remus, and Katie joined them after some time. Soon it was time for the Evans to prepare for their trip. Lily accompanied them to their room to help them with their luggage. Even though the Evans only stayed in the Manor for less than two weeks, they had brought a lot of luggage with them. It took the servants a couple of trips to gather all the baggage and pile it in the entrance hall. The Evans' car was brought round and was waiting for them at the door.  
  
"Take care of yourself dear. Remember to owl me." Said Mrs. Evans as she hugged Lily at the entrance hall.  
  
"I will mum, have a nice drive." Lily replied.  
  
"Now Princess, don't let this young man here give you any trouble." Said Mr. Evans motioning toward James who was waiting by the door.  
  
Lily laughed. "Don't worry Daddy, Mrs. Potter will take care of him if he does something." She said.  
  
"Oh, you can be sure that I will." Said Mrs. Potter who was standing by Lily waiting for her turn to say goodbye.  
  
"Take care Susan. I hope to hear from you often." Said Mrs. Evans as she hugged Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Oh, you bet I will. Nothing short of death will keep me from it." Susan Potter replied. "Take care Rose, don't worry about Lily, we will take care of her."  
  
"I'm sure you will Susan." Said Mr. Evans turning to his hostess. "I'm happy she ended up with you and nobody else."  
  
After more hugs and goodbyes, the Evans climbed into their car. The trunk and back seat were piled with baggage. The Evans waved goodbye before starting up the car.  
  
Lily and James stood upon the steps of the house waving as the car slowly disappeared in the distance.  
  
Lily sighed. James turned to look at her.  
  
"They will be fine." He said putting his arms around her.  
  
"I know. But I can't help but worry. They didn't say anything while they were here but I know that Daddy hasn't totally recuperated from his illness. I'm not even sure what it was that made him sick. Mother never mentioned it." Lily said leaning her head against his chest.  
  
"If they didn't deem it important to discuss it maybe it wasn't very serious. Don't worry Lily, if anything happens they will let you know." James tried to soothe her.  
  
"Perhaps you are right." She said.  
  
"Come." He said and pulled her toward the gardens.  
  
"Where are we going?" She asked.  
  
"To our garden of course." He said with a smile.  
  
Lily smiled back. Since that night when James showed her the garden, they had been meeting there whenever they wanted some privacy.  
  
The weather was warm. The sun was shinning. And everything seemed peaceful. They all liked it that way. Soon enough they would have to think about the problems that their world was getting through. But for now, they liked to think that everything would continue as it presently was.  
  
  
  
While Lily and James spent some time alone in their garden, Emma was sitting at the piano in the music room. Remus was sitting in a couch nearby listening with his eyes closed. "Perhaps you should go to your room and rest. You seem a little tired." Said Emma as she stopped playing.  
  
"I'm not tired. I enjoy your playing, don't let me stop you." He said with a smile looking at her with his lids lowered.  
  
Emma shrugged and continued playing.  
  
They were silent as Emma continued with her playing. Both found the music soothing and kept their minds off their separation.  
  
Both hoped that things could be different. But both also knew that they couldn't do anything to stop the course of fate. All they had left was to do the best they could of their remaining time together.  
  
Everybody in the house spent the time in quiet entertainment. Lily and James spent most of the time in the gardens. Emma and Remus were in the music room. Katie and Sirius were in the nursery playing with the twins, and Mrs. Potter spent the afternoon with her housekeeper talking about linen, menus and housekeeping.  
  
Dinner was quiet that evening. The night was getting chilly. James had told them that Peter would soon be joining them, probably in a couple of days. Lily and Katie were making plans with Emma to spend some quality time together before it was time for Emma to leave them. The twins had joined them for dinner this time. They made everybody laugh with their questions and points of view.  
  
Nobody wanted to stay up for tea afterwards. The twins were taken to the nursery by Minnie. James, Sirius, Remus, Lily, Katie and Emma went to the entertainment room and spent some time watching a muggle show. And Mrs. Potter retired to her room to rest.  
  
The night was quiet. The scenery peaceful, and the town calmly sat in the middle of the valley.  
  
  
  
The next couple of days were pretty much the same. Everybody tried to think of ways to keep Emma entertained and spend their time together. They came up with picnics, rowing in the lake, quiet games of chess, impromptu musicales, and special dinners in the evening. The last day soon arrived. Dumbledore had owled James to remind them of his visit that evening. As the time before, Mr. Crouch would be accompanying him.  
  
Emma was sitting quietly on her bed that afternoon. Lily and Katie had just left from helping her with her packing. She didn't have too many belongings with her. Only what she needed the most and her most special belongings had been packed.  
  
She was sadly looking down at her luggage on the floor when there was a knock on the door.  
  
"Enter." She called without looking up.  
  
"Ready?" Remus asked. Emma quickly looked up and smiled at him.  
  
"As ready as I will ever be." She said.  
  
"I wanted to give you something." He replied as he pulled something from his pocket.  
  
"There is no need for you to." She argued. Tears were threatening to fill her eyes and she didn't want him to see her cry.  
  
"I wanted to. Something to remember me by." He said. He opened a small squared box. A ring with a small solitaire diamond sat in the satin lining.  
  
"Oh Remus!" She exclaimed with a sob.  
  
"I'll get your answer as soon as you return." He said pulling the ring from the box and reached for her hand.  
  
"Oh dear, you are going to make me cry." She said with a sad smile.  
  
Remus slid the ring in her finger. He didn't let go of her hand, instead he brought it up to his mouth and kissed her knuckles tenderly.  
  
"You are very dear to me Emma. I'm sorry that I couldn't see that before and we lost some precious time together. But after all this is done, I promise I won't let you go." He whispered.  
  
"I won't let you." She said.  
  
Remus smiled and put his arms around her. She willingly stepped into his embrace. It was a moment that she would never forget. He slowly leaned down and smiled down at her before pressing his lips to hers in a swift and tender kiss.  
  
It was some time later when Emma and Remus finally made it to the parlor room. Luckily, they were early than the others and didn't have to answer the questions that their friends would surely have if they had seen them come in together.  
  
They didn't have to wait very long before the others arrived. They were all too distracted to notice Emma smile sweetly at her hand before turning to smile at the young man sitting beside her.  
  
They were all waiting for Professor Dumbledore and Mr. Crouch to make their appearance. They knew that it might be a while for them to do so, Roberts had brought in a tray with tea and biscuits to hold them over until dinner was served.  
  
Soon they heard the doorbell ring. They heard Roberts opening the door and greeting the visitors. Soon footsteps could be heard coming their way.  
  
"Professor Dumbledore and Mr. Crouch, Ma'am." Roberts said.  
  
"Thank you Roberts. Welcome Albus, Mr. Crouch. I trust you had a nice day." Mrs. Evans greeted the two men that came into the room.  
  
"Hello Susan my dear. Looking lovely as always. Mr. Potter, I trust you and your friends have been behaving yourselves." Said Professor Dumbledore as he entered the room.  
  
"Oh were have been quite angelic. Everybody can tell you so." Laughed James.  
  
"Indeed. If you had seen us like it at Hogwarts, Professor McGonagall would've said that we were ill." Said Sirius in what he thought was a surprised expression, when in fact, he looked quite mischievous.  
  
Dumbledore laughed. He had missed the mishaps this particular group seem to leave in their wake at Hogwarts. The students seemed too quiet and studious after this lot had left.  
  
Mr. Crouch silently greeted those around the room. He envied Professor Dumbledore the intimate relationship he seemed to share with the family. It was no wonder that the Ministry had been after him for ages to run for Minister. It was also no secret that he had declined the offer several times. He wished he was as loved as the old man was. Even though he had the respect of his peers, the common people would be the ones choosing the next Minister and the love and respect of the people was something tricky to win. The only one in their world who enjoyed those things was Dumbledore. No matter what odd things he did at Hogwarts and how much some families complained. The old Headmaster had been able to retain the love and respect from his students. And if you kept in mind how long he had been in that position, that meant that most of the young witches and wizards remember the old man with fondness, and the future generations would remember him that way.  
  
Roberts announcement of dinner broke Mr. Crouch's thoughts. Mrs. Potter led the way to the dinning room with Professor Dumbledore and the others followed behind.  
  
Dinner was quiet and subdued. All of the young people were not very eager to end dinner soon. They knew that as soon as dinner was done, one of their members would leave. But like all good things, it eventually came to an end.  
  
The group quietly made its way to the parlor.  
  
"Are you ready Ms. Holmes? We should be going." Said Mr. Crouch as he noticed the time.  
  
"Yes, of course." Said Emma quietly. Some elves appeared in the room with Emma's trunk and bag. Emma quietly took them in her arms. The shrinking spell was done and the items stored. She then turned to look at her friends. "Good bye." She said.  
  
"Oh Emma, take care." Exclaimed Katie. Tears starting to fall down her face.  
  
"Bye Katie. Be happy, don't let Sirius overwhelm you." Emma said.  
  
"Oh don't worry. I won't let him." Katie laughed as she tried to dry her tears with the sleeve of her blouse.  
  
"Remember that we are here and that we always will help you if you need us." Lily whispered as she hugged her friend.  
  
"I will never forget you. I know you and James will be happy. Take care my friend." Emma whispered back.  
  
Lily nodded, her eyes were starting to fill with tears.  
  
James and Sirius had their turn saying goodbye, both tried to lighten the mood and succeeded in making the girls smile.  
  
Finally it was Remus' turn.  
  
"I'll miss you." She said. Her eyes were getting moist once more.  
  
"I'll miss you as well. Don't forget me, I know I won't." He whispered in her ear as they hugged.  
  
"Oh Remus, I wish I didn't have to go." Sobbed Emma.  
  
"I know, I wished that as well. But I want you safe, and if this the only way for you to be then so be it. Be careful." He said.  
  
"I will. Be careful as well. I want a fiancé to come back to." She smiled sadly.  
  
"Bye." Renus said.  
  
Emma stepped back and looked at her friends with tears in her eyes. "Bye." She whispered.  
  
Mr. Crouch led her through the door. Professor Dumbledore followed. By the time the group arrived to the entrance hall to wave them goodbye, they had disappeared from sight.  
  
Katie and Lily turned to James and Sirius crying. The boys took them in their arms and tried to comfort them. Remus left them and went to the music room. He needed to spend time alone.  
  
The next day was rather quiet around the house. Even the twins, who were as energetic as always, sensed the subdued atmosphere around them. They didn't understand what had happened, they only knew that a friend of their uncle's left and that the adults were rather sad about it.  
  
On this bright morning, Lily tried to continue teaching the girls. She didn't notice that the girls were uncommonly attentive to their lessons and unlike other days when they tried to get away from the schoolroom to play, they stayed in the nursery the whole day and did as they were told.  
  
James took Sirius and Remus with him on his rounds around the estate. He thought it would be a good day to keep their mind of Emma's departure. Especially Remus who was really too quiet for his own good. James and Sirius were planning to keep him entertained for the rest of the day.  
  
Katie was helping Mrs. Potter with the gardening. Katie liked flowers and always found peace and serenity every time she worked in the garden.  
  
Meal times were rather subdued compared to the previous days. The only good thing the boys were looking forward to was the arrival of the fourth member of their little group. James and Sirius had started to make plans for their upcoming 'guy's night out' as they started calling it.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
A/N: Sorry it took me a while to prepare this, school and work takes much of my time. I know this chapter is short compared to others, but I hope you enjoy it. Hope you all had a Happy Thanksgiving! 


	30. Part II Chapter 6

A/N: Hi! I'm back once more with a new chapter. I would like to thank all of you for reviewing, makes me feel good about writing this story. Now this is a more light-hearted chapter and I enjoyed writing it, I hope you enjoy reading it.  
  
Disclaimer: If you know it, I don't own it.  
  
  
  
  
  
Chapter 6 ~ The Marauders' Return to Hogwarts  
  
  
  
Everything seemed quiet and morose around the estate, and it was in this mood that Peter found it a couple of days after Emma's departure.  
  
James, Sirius and Remus had just returned from a ride around the estate. It had become a custom for them to do so every morning after breakfast. Lily and Katie were in the greenhouses collecting flowers and fruits. The flowers were going to be used to decorate the rooms in the house, and the fruit for pies Otty, the elf cook, was planning to do.  
  
The boys were in the game room, sipping some brandy and playing billiards when the door opened and Roberts entered.  
  
"You have a visitor sir." He said as soon as he opened the door.  
  
"Who is it?" Asked James as he leaned on the table to take a shot.  
  
"Mr. Peter Pettigrew, Sir." Roberts said.  
  
"It was about time he got here." Sirius Exclaimed. "Where is he?"  
  
"I'm here." Said Peter as he stepped from behind Roberts.  
  
"Come here you." Said Sirius as he turned to greet his friend.  
  
A round of greetings and exclamations ensued from that moment. Peter was given a glass of brandy and his trunk taken from him before he knew what was going on. Like always, he just shrugged and decided to go with the flow.  
  
"How is your mother?" Asked James as he led the other three to the couches at one end of the room.  
  
"She is doing better. The sea air seems to agree with her." Peter said as he settled himself in a comfortable looking chair.  
  
"What have the doctors said?" Asked Remus, his troubles going out of his mind as he thought of the ones his friend had to go through.  
  
"They say that it's looking good. The cancer hasn't returned since two years ago and she has regained a lot of her former strength." Peter replied.  
  
"That's good, I bet she was feeling happy to be able to go visiting." Said Sirius as he joined them with the decanter of brandy in his hand.  
  
"She was. She has been cooped up for four years now and she was starting to get bored." Peter said.  
  
"Well, now that you are here, we can go on with our plans." Said James with a bright smile.  
  
"Plans. What plans?" Asked Peter with confusion.  
  
"These two want to go to Hogwarts the next full moon and do as we did when we were there." Said Remus with a disgusted tone.  
  
"What? Why?" Exclaimed Peter.  
  
"Why not?" Asked James. "It would be fun. We certainly need it these days."  
  
"They are mad, that's what they are." Said Remus.  
  
"Oh come Moony, old friend, old pal. You know you are going to have fun." Said Sirius.  
  
Peter just looked at them with suspicion. They certainly were acting like madmen.  
  
"Well, we will talk about it later, it's almost time for dinner and Peter here has to freshen up a bit before the women see him." James said.  
  
"Women?" Asked Peter.  
  
"Oh yes, mother, Lily and Katie." Said James.  
  
"Lily and Katie are here?" Peter sounded surprised.  
  
"Yes, didn't James tell you? Lily is the teacher he hired to train the twins. Not that she had done much you understand, keeping busy with James here." Sirius was saying. James scowled at him.  
  
"And Katie is engaged to Sirius so they haven't been separated since he popped the question." Laughed Remus.  
  
"You engaged? How on earth did you manage that?" Exclaimed Peter.  
  
Remus and James laughed. "That is what we ask ourselves everyday." James finally choked out.  
  
"I think she told him what to do." Said Remus.  
  
"Oh come, I'm not an idiot, I know how to propose." Said Sirius. "What about you? You haven't proposed, so how would you know." Sirius shouted.  
  
"Who says I haven't?" Said Remus. They were out of the room now and were slowly making their way to their respective rooms.  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"When?"  
  
"To who?" The others questioned. They hadn't heard this piece of news.  
  
"I'm not telling you. We better take Peter to his room and go to our own to dress. I think the gong is going to sound soon."  
  
"Don't change subjects. Why didn't you tell us you had proposed?" Asked James.  
  
"Because I'm not engaged, now am I?" Remus replied.  
  
"Oh, sorry old boy. She must have been a fool not to accept you." Sirius said in a commiserating voice.  
  
"Oh, she didn't say no. She just hasn't given me an answer." Remus quickly said.  
  
"We are speaking of Emma, right?" Asked Peter, he was starting to get confused by this conversation.  
  
"Yes, of course, who else is there?" Said James.  
  
"But Emma is gone for quite a while Remus. You might never get your answer." Whispered Sirius.  
  
"Doesn't matter. I'll wait." Said Remus.  
  
The other three turned to looked at each other. They better change the subject or their friend will fall back into his morose state. That was something they didn't want to deal with. James thought if it wouldn't be best to tell Lily about it, maybe she knew of a way to make Remus feel better. With a nod, he decided to do so.  
  
They walked Peter to a room near their own, which had been prepared for him the moment he owled with news of his visit.  
  
They left Peter at the door of the room and each made his way to his own room to prepare for dinner.  
  
Half an hour later, Lily and Katie were sitting in the back parlor waiting for the rest to join them. They had heard that they had a visitor, but didn't know who it might be.  
  
"I wonder who it is." Said Katie.  
  
"We'll find out soon enough." Said Lily. She was looking out the window.  
  
The trees were barren. The leaves had started to fall and the ground was covered with them. She knew that the servants were planning to work on them for the next couple of days. The twins had told her that they helped every year and they were looking forward to jumping into the piles. Halloween was soon upon them and she couldn't help but remember the Feast that Hogwarts had every year. She also remembered the last Halloween, when along with James they had put together the Halloween Festival. She smiled at the memory of it all. It was then when her feelings for him started to grow. It was a perfect memory, a sweet memory. A memory that she looked forward to sharing with her children and grandchildren. She knew in her heart that he was the one, she had always known.  
  
The door opened and James came into the room, closely followed by Peter.  
  
"Look who is here!" James exclaimed.  
  
The girls squealed their welcome. Sirius and Remus soon joined them and waited for Mrs. Potter to join them. She entered a few paces before Roberts.  
  
"Well, now that we are all here, we should go to dinner. Welcome Peter. Don't let these three overwhelm you." Mrs. Potter said as she led the group to the dinning room.  
  
"Oh don't worry Mrs. Potter. I have lots of experience with them." Said Peter.  
  
The new addition to the table brought a new energy. Remus, James and Sirius were trying to tell Peter about everything that had happened on the last few days. Peter listened with care and with obvious interest. None thought of it unusual. Only Peter knew of the job he had to do and the information he had to gather.  
  
When dinner was over, Mrs. Potter retired to her room to rest. Lily and Katie went to the music room to practice. And James took the others to the game room to play.  
  
".so I talked to Dumbledore and he said it was all right for Remus to use the Shack for this month." James was saying.  
  
"I still don't understand why you want to go to Hogwarts to do this. We could do the same here. I'm sure there is a private spot here in the estate where we can transfigure and keep Remus company." Said Peter as he watched James and Remus have a go at billiards.  
  
"But we would have more fun at Hogwarts, we always did." Said Sirius coming behind Peter and taking him in a headlock.  
  
"Get off!" Peter exclaimed as he tried to get lose from Sirius.  
  
"Oh come Wormtail. You can't think that I would let this opportunity pass do you?" Said Sirius as Peter struggled.  
  
James and Remus stopped their game to look at the other two.  
  
"Sirius let him go." Said James shaking his head.  
  
"Are you sure that you are 21? You surely don't act like it." Said Remus as he pulled Peter from Sirius.  
  
Peter looked darkly toward Sirius who just stood by with a wide innocent grin on his face.  
  
"We were just having some fun. Weren't we Wormtail?" Said Sirius with a smile.  
  
"We were not!" Exclaimed Peter. "I don't see why Katie wants to marry you. I'm sure you used a love potion on her."  
  
"I have no need for love potions. It's my charm and animal magnetism that has her enthralled." Sirius said.  
  
James laughed, Remus snickered and Peter scoffed while Sirius puffed his chest out and looked at them with a superior air.  
  
The conversation continued like it. Teasing each other and playing around. It certainly felt like they were back at Hogwarts. The Marauders were together once more.  
  
  
  
The next couple of days were spent making plans and riding around the estate. Lily and Katie looked at the boys askance, they knew that they were planning something but none had the courage to find out what it was. They both spent the time with the twins, taking them around the gardens, helping with their music lessons and sneaking into the kitchens to steal a bit of pastries from Otty. Not that Otty minded too much. He liked the thought that his food was really liked by the humans in the house. It made his elvish heart happy.  
  
Peter spent the time close to Remus, listening to him talking about Emma and his despair of having her away for so long. Peter had felt a sense of relief when he found out that nobody knew where Emma was. He thought that if he couldn't have that information then Malfoy and Snape would leave him alone. He didn't think Voldemort would have that much use of him. So he threw into the plans for their next adventure with energy.  
  
On the third night of Peter's arrival the boys had some news for the girls.  
  
"We'll be gone for a couple of days. Four days at the most." Said James during dinner.  
  
"Where are you going?" Asked Mrs. Potter with surprise. "Is there a problem?"  
  
"No mum. Everything is fine. We are just going to town, that's all." Said James trying to keep his mother from worrying.  
  
"Boys' night out is it?" Asked Katie with a dangerous glint in her eye.  
  
"Well, sort of. Now don't worry my dear, we are not going to go to any strip shows or anything like it if you don't want us to." Sirius said.  
  
"Awww!" The other three exclaimed before bursting into laughter.  
  
Lily and Katie weren't amused.  
  
James noticed the girls' mulish expression. "Don't worry, we'll try not to get into trouble. We just want to have a nice time out and enjoy ourselves while Remus and Peter are here." He said.  
  
Lily grunted but with a nod she seemed like giving her permission to let him go. Peter and Remus chuckled, as the only two unattached young men in the room, nobody looked ready to murder them if they dared get into trouble.  
  
"Very well dears, but please be sure to let me know how to get in contact with you. Just in case, you understand." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Oh, that should be no trouble mum, just send an owl. We thought of maybe popping up in Hogsmeade and have a look in with Dumbledore." Said James.  
  
"Oh, that's good then. When are you leaving?" Mrs. Potter asked.  
  
"Tomorrow afternoon." Sirius said.  
  
"Isn't that a bit late to travel?" Asked Lily with a suspicious glance.  
  
"Not really, shouldn't take us a lot of time to pack, and all we have to do is apparate." Said Remus. During the last couple of days he had tried hiding his weakening strength that always got hold of his body before his transformation. Thankfully, the girls had thought that it was due to Emma's departure and had forgotten all about his malady.  
  
"Hmmm.I still think this is too soon." Said Katie glaring at the young men sitting on the other side of the table.  
  
"Katie. We are wizards. It doesn't take a lot to pack and unpack. And it's not like we have to buy tickets or rent a car to go wherever we want to go. All we have to do is flick and swish and point a wand and have everything ready." Sirius said with exasperation. Honestly, why was he getting married again?  
  
"I'm not an idiot Sirius. Don't patronize me." Said Katie. If looks could kill, Sirius would've died on that instant. As it were, he was just happy that wands were in their rooms or he would've grown boils or something. Katie knew some good hexes that he was sure she would be too happy to use on him.  
  
"Now Katie. Don't worry. We will be fine. Why don't you two take the days off too and go to London and start planning the wedding?" Said Remus trying to save his friend from some horrific death.  
  
"Hmmm.there is a thought. We could go shopping and have a grand time looking at bridal gowns and stuff. What do you think Lily?" Asked Katie. Her anger toward her erstwhile fiancé vanishing at the thought of a shopping expedition.  
  
"It sounds like fun. We could stay with my parents, I'm sure they wouldn't mind having us for a couple of days." Said Lily with excitement.  
  
"I could go and visit your Uncle Fletcher, James. He hasn't seen the twins for quiet a while and he was owling me the other day trying to get me to visit for a while." Said Mrs. Potter with plans running through her mind. She could do with a few days of rest herself.  
  
They boys turned to look at each other with triumphant glances. This was way too easy.  
  
"Well, if we are all going away for a couple of days then we should all go to bed early tonight. I will speak with Lotty and Roberts and let them know that we are all leaving." Said James as he pushed his empty plate away from him.  
  
"Yes, I will speak with Mrs. Nichols and Minnie to get the twins ready and keep an eye on the house while we are gone." Said Mrs. Potter with a smile. It had been a while since she had left the Manor. She hadn't gone anywhere since the death of her husband. Perhaps it was time for her to travel for a bit.  
  
"I'll go and owl mum." Said Lily.  
  
"I'll owl mum as well, she might want to go shopping with us." Said Katie.  
  
Everybody left the dinning room soon after. The boys to the game room to make plans and congratulate each other in getting the women out their hair. The women to make their own plans in their respective rooms.  
  
The next day was sunny and warm. James, Remus, Sirius and Peter were up early. Mrs. Potter was in the nursery making sure that the right clothes for the girls were packed. Lily and Katie were busy with packing on their own. Elves and servants alike could be seen running from one room to the other, helping with the packing and getting things in order for their departure. The grate in the ballroom fireplace was cleaned as Mrs. Potter and the twins would be using it to Floo to Uncle Fletcher's house. Katie and Lily would be apparating to Daigon Alley where they would get transportation to the Evans' and the boys were apparating to Hogsmeade where they would wait for night to arrive and make their way to the Shack.  
  
James had written Dumbledore with the news that Remus would be using the Shack that night. Dumbledore had owled back with the news that everything was ready for his return. The only thing that James didn't mention was that Remus wouldn't be alone.  
  
By noon all preparations were in order. There was no luncheon that day only a light snack, it wouldn't do to have the twins sick after their travel by Floo. Soon they were all saying goodbye. Mrs. Potter and the twins were the first to leave. Then Lily and Katie walked toward the forest with the boys to apparate. The boys were the last to leave. With a pop, all four disappeared from sight. The Manor seemed silent. The servants continued with their chores. The gardeners were busy trimming the hedges and gathering the fallen leaves. All was quiet in Gryffindor Manor.  
  
The boys entered The Three Broomsticks soon after they apparated in Hogsmeade. Rosmetta, the waitress, soon came over to greet them and take their order. All four ordered butterbeer after some teasing and flirting with Rosmetta, who seemed to enjoy it as much as the boys did.  
  
"What now?" Asked Peter after Rosmetta had returned with their drinks.  
  
"I think we should go up to Hogwarts, visit for a couple of hours. Let Dumbledore know that Remus is here. They would think that we are just here so see him safely established and that we will be back at the Manor before dark." Said James.  
  
"But before we go I want to go to Zonko's." Said Sirius.  
  
"What for?" Asked Remus with surprise.  
  
"Because I want to see what new things they have. And maybe I can find a gift for Filch." Sirius said with a grin.  
  
"Really Sirius, is that safe?" Snorted Peter.  
  
"What is he going to do? Give me detention?" Exclaimed Sirius. "It does seem like a good opportunity. Maybe we could sneak into the Slytherin Common Room." Said James.  
  
Peter and Remus groaned, Sirius laughed. The fun was about to start.  
  
The boys spent a couple of hours going through Zonco's merchandise. James and Sirius were in alt. Remus and Peter followed with a resigned air, but as they walked down the aisles they were soon caught up in the excitement.  
  
"Are you sure that this is wise?" Asked Peter when the group left the store.  
  
"Of course it is Peter. Now stop dawdling and let's go up to Hogwarts." Said Sirius.  
  
"Let's hurry, we have at least three more hours before it starts to get dark." Said James leading the group through the lane that led to Hogwarts.  
  
"Are you sure, Dumbledore is all right with this. It seems to me that he should be suspicious that I want to use the Shack when I have been able to find a way on my own on the last three years." Said Remus. He wasn't completely sure this was a good time to be here, but the idea of running on Hogwarts' grounds once more was very tempting.  
  
"Will you stop worrying? Everything will be fine. Nothing happened when we were in Hogwarts." Said Sirius in an exasperated tone.  
  
"I beg to differ with you Sirius, but if I remember correctly, it was you who created trouble for a certain Slytherin and Remus on our sixth year." Said Peter.  
  
"It wasn't my fault. How was I supposed to know that the slimy git would actually believe me and go to the shack?" Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"It doesn't matter that you didn't mean it, it was still your fault. I shudder to think what could've happened if James hadn't found out about it." Said Remus shaking his head. That night still gave him troubled dreams.  
  
"Well, it was hard not to notice Sirius here chuckling to himself." James said.  
  
"Well it was funny at the time." Said Sirius getting a bit grumpy that his friends wanted to talk about this when he really didn't.  
  
"Only you would think so." Snorted Peter.  
  
"We are almost there. Did we got all we need?" Asked James looking at Sirius who was carrying the bag with all their shopping.  
  
"All we need and more." Said Sirius with a grin.  
  
"How are we getting into Slytherin?" Asked Peter. "We don't have the map anymore remember."  
  
"We don't need the map Peter, we know that school better than the founders themselves." Said James.  
  
"Well, how are we getting into Slytherin then?" Asked Peter once more.  
  
"Through the elf passage, it's the easier way and we will be able to know if anybody is around." Said Sirius.  
  
"Aren't you two planning this a little too close? I have to be in the Shack in three hours, the students are probably not at dinner yet. You are not going to have enough time!" Said Remus.  
  
"We have a plan." Said Sirius looking smug.  
  
"You always have a plan, that doesn't mean that it's going to work." Said Peter.  
  
"Will you two stop being such party poopers? Everything will be fine." Said James.  
  
Remus and Peter said no more. They were now in front of the Hogwarts' gates. The gates slowly opened and the four stepped into Hogwarts one more time.  
  
They looked around them with loving glances trying to notice any changes. They couldn't perceive any.  
  
"Come, Dumbledore must be waiting for us." Said James as they started to make their way to the castle.  
  
"Do you think we could have a go at the Pitch?" Asked Sirius as he looked over to the Quidditch Pitch.  
  
"Don't you have enough to do?" Exclaimed Peter.  
  
"We'll do it some other time Sirius. Peter is right, not enough time." Said James.  
  
"Oh well." Said Sirius with a shrug.  
  
The four boys walked up the stairs, someone very familiar waiting for them.  
  
"It was about time you got here." She said tapping her foot.  
  
"Hello Professor McGonagall." The four boys said with smiles.  
  
"Humph!" She snorted. Warily watching at the young men standing in front of her.  
  
James and Sirius gave her their famous charming smiles she well remembered from their years at Hogwarts. It was the same smile that had made all the girls swoon at their feet. Except her of course, she liked to think that she was impervious to that smile, even if they were her favorite Gryffindors of all time. Peter looked apprehensively at her, no matter that he was no longer at Hogwarts, she still looked too strict for him. Remus smiled and looked around the grounds.  
  
"Well, what are you waiting here for? I thought you were here to see Dumbledore." She snapped.  
  
Peter nodded. James' smile grew wider and stepped forward. "But you are here, my dear Professor McGonagall, how could we let the chance pass and see how you are getting on?" He smoothly took her hand and rested it on his arm and led her through the door toward the Great Hall. Professor McGonagall fell under his charm and let him lead her. Sirius chuckled and followed after them. Remus laughed as he stepped forward. Peter shook his head.  
  
Everything looked just the same. The moving staircases, the pictures hadn't been moved, Peeves wrecking havoc somewhere, and Filch with Mrs. Norris running around the castle trying to catch Peeves or a student in trouble.  
  
The Great Hall was still empty but it would soon be time for dinner. Professor McGonagall gave them a tour around the castle, each of them exclaiming over something or other. They met several of the teachers as they walked and they just had to stop and chat with each before resuming their tour.  
  
They eventually ended up in front of the statue guarding Professor Dumbledore's office. They all knew what was behind it of course, after all their troublemaking years at Hogwarts they knew the offices of each and every teacher very well.  
  
Professor McGonagall said the password and led them through the door.  
  
"If you wait here he will receive you soon. I believe he is with someone at the moment. I'm sure you can entertain yourselves as you wait. Just don't touch anything." She warned before leaving them alone.  
  
A squawk came from one side of the room. The four boys turned and beheld a pair of wary eyes looking straight at them.  
  
"Hello Fawkes." James called to Dumbledore's pet phoenix.  
  
Fawkes seemed to remember the Mauraders quite well as he allowed them to pet him.  
  
"Well, you look to be fine as well." Said Remus as he petted Fawkes, the others had moved to tease one of the previous Headmasters hanging among the pictures around the room.  
  
The door to Dumbledore's office suddenly opened and a figured completely cloaked passed by them without a word. The Maruaders looked at each other with the same question in their minds. Who could that have been?  
  
"I see all of you are here." Said a voice from inside the office. The boys turned to look at Dumbledore sitting behind his desk looking at them.  
  
"Hello Professor, I gather business goes as usual." James said as he led the others into the room.  
  
"Indeed." The Professor said as he looked over the four young men with pleasure. "I gather your trip was good."  
  
"Of course, no problem." Said Sirius as he remembered the bag of tricks in his hand, he quickly put his hands behind his back trying to hide it from the Professor's sharp eyes. It wouldn't do for him to see it and take it away from them before they got a chance to use them.  
  
Dumbledore's eyes twinkled as he turned to look at Remus. Remus had lost some weight since the last time he had seen him. His illness of course was responsible for it. There were rings around his eyes and lines in his face that showed the pain that the young man was going to have to go through for the next few days.  
  
"How are you holding up young man?" Professor Dumbledore asked.  
  
"All right Professor." Remus responded.  
  
Dumbledore nodded. "I wanted to tell you that Ms. Holmes arrived at her destination without problem."  
  
"Is she all right?" Remus quickly asked.  
  
"She is doing fine." The Professor answered. The boys knew that they wouldn't get anything else from him but it didn't matter, they now knew that Emma was doing well.  
  
Dumbledore stood from behind the desk. The boys stayed were they stood.  
  
"I thought you would like to join us for dinner." Professor Dumbledore said. "It's almost time. Then we can lead young Lupin here to Madam Pomfrey. She wanted to have the honor of taking him to the Whopping Willow for old time's sake." He said with a smile.  
  
"Aww. I think Madam Pomfrey has a crush on someone." Sirius said with a chuckle as Dumbledore left the room before them.  
  
Remus hit him. Sirius hit him back. James laughed and Peter smiled. Dumbledore smiled without turning back. He had missed this group, things had certainly been a little too quiet lately.  
  
The group soon arrived at the Great Hall. There were only a few students sitting among the House tables waiting for the rest to arrive. Chatter and whispers broke as some noticed the four young men walking with Professor Dumbledore. As they walked to the staff table they could hear some of the conversations taking place.  
  
"Wonder who they are."  
  
"I bet they are very important." Two young girls said as they boys passed by them.  
  
"Don't be daft, they are the Marauders." Said an older girl.  
  
"Who are they?"  
  
"They left three years ago. They were the most popular group while they were here."  
  
"Oh, I can see why." A girl sighed. "I wonder if they will stay overnight."  
  
"You don't have a chance with any of them. If they are still together with the girls they dated on that last year, they would not look at any other woman twice." Another girl scoffed.  
  
The boys smiled to each other as they heard the conversations around them. 'We still got it.' Mouthed Sirius to the others.  
  
James chuckled but decided that he wouldn't say anything about this to Lily if he didn't want to get in trouble, and it would probably be best to warn Sirius, especially since the girls are planning a wedding.  
  
They sat next to Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall sat at Dumbledore's other side. Professor Hooch decided to sit next to them and soon they were lost in a discussion of Quidditch games and strategies.  
  
The room soon filled with the rest of the students. Those who had been at Hogwarts when the Marauders were still there came up to the staff table to greet them and chat for a while before the Professors sent them back to their respective tables.  
  
"How are Ms. Bennett and Ms. Evans?" Professor McGonagall asked as the food started to appear before them.  
  
"Oh, they are fine. They are in town at the moment making plans for the wedding." Said Sirius as he reached with his plate ready to pile it high with food. He was so engrossed with his food that he didn't notice the teachers turning at him with surprise.  
  
"Wedding? Who is getting married?" Asked Professor Hooch. She had turned to look at James with eagerness.  
  
"Don't look at me." James exclaimed.  
  
"Sirius and Katie are getting married." Remus said.  
  
Sirius nodded with his mouth full of food.  
  
"Mr. Black is getting married?" Professor McGonagall asked with surprise.  
  
"It took us by surprise as well." Said Peter. "We always thought that James would be the first to get shackled."  
  
Dumbledore chuckled. "Indeed, so did we. But I believe congratulations are in order." He said turning to look at Sirius with a smile.  
  
"Thanks, Katie would like to hear that." Said Sirius.  
  
"When is the wedding?" Asked Professor Sprout, who was sitting next to Professor McGonagall.  
  
"I don't know yet." Said Sirius.  
  
The Professors looked at him speechless. Who ever heard of the groom not knowing when his wedding was going to take place?  
  
"I'm sorry, but I thought you said that the wedding was being planned." Said Madam Hooch.  
  
"It is. She just hasn't told me when the date will be." Said Sirius with a shrug.  
  
The teachers looked at him in disbelief. James laughed while Remus chuckled and Peter smiled. Only Sirius would get married without knowing the date of his own wedding.  
  
Dinner went on without further conversation about weddings, Sirius didn't know a thing about it and the others knew even less. Students kept looking toward the Staff table at the four young men eating and talking with the teachers. The bewitched ceiling was getting dark, and a few stars started to appear.  
  
"I better go to see Madam Pomfrey." Said Remus as he cleaned his lips with a napkin and stood up.  
  
"Of course dear boy." Said Dumbledore with a nod. "You will still have some time before you leave the castle. The Heads of each House will make sure that students go straight up to bed."  
  
Remus nodded, he knew what was to be done, after seven years the routine was set.  
  
James, Sirius and Peter watched him walk down toward the door. Sirius kicked James under the table. James yelped and turned to glower at Sirius.  
  
"It's time for us to go, don't you think." Sirius said as he slightly nodded toward the Slytherin table.  
  
"Oh yes, we are going to see Remus off and then we will leave Professor." Said James turning to Professor Dumbledore.  
  
"Of course." Said Professor Dumbledore with a nod.  
  
"We will return to get Remus in a couple of days." Said Sirius as he stood up, pulling Peter along with him. "See you then." He said.  
  
The three left the room among whispers and longing glances.  
  
"Who would have thought that schoolgirls would still find us attractive." Chuckled Sirius as they left the room behind.  
  
"Don't you dare mention it to Lily and Katie." Said James quickly.  
  
"Lord no! I don't want her going through the roof." Said Sirius with a mock shudder.  
  
James and Peter laughed. They knew Katie could hold her own in front of Sirius. She was the only female they ever met who could control Sirius in any way. Not even his mother had that much power over him.  
  
"Where are we going?" Asked Peter as James led them through a narrow corridor. Peter knew that it wouldn't lead them to the infirmary.  
  
"To Slytherin of course." Said Sirius.  
  
"We are going in there now?" Exclaimed Peter.  
  
"Why not, it's perfect time. Everybody is still at dinner, it will be at least half an hour before the first students start getting to their common room. That's enough time for us to do what we have to do." Said James.  
  
"And we can pass by Filch's office in our way to the infirmary." Said Sirius.  
  
"I don't think that safe." Whispered Peter.  
  
"Will you relax? They can't do anything to us, we are not students here anymore, remember." Said Sirius.  
  
"Yes, but I don't want my children to have to suffer for what we did to Filch." Replied Peter.  
  
"Peter, our children will be ready to hold their own against Filch. We'll see to it." Said James.  
  
The boys continued on their way toward the dungeons. The corridors were dark, only a few lanterns lighting their way. They walked quietly, looking around them making sure that nobody was around.  
  
Finally they stopped in front of a small door at one end of a small corridor. James kneeled and pushed the door open. The door was wide enough to let the boys slide through after much swearing and wriggling.  
  
"I never thought about the fact that we have grown since the last time we were here." Said James  
  
"You are telling me." Exclaimed Peter who was having trouble getting through. "I need help, I think I'm stuck." He finally said.  
  
James and Sirius laughingly pulled him through the door.  
  
"I think we are going to need another exit." Said Sirius as soon as all three were standing in the middle of the common room.  
  
"We'll just go through the door, we won't need the elf door anymore." Said James. He took his wand out and turned to the others. "Well, if we are ready we should begin."  
  
"How are doing this?" Said Peter as he searched for his wand among his robes.  
  
"I think we should make sure that it won't take effect until tomorrow morning. Nobody will think it was us, if we are not here." Said Sirius with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes.  
  
James nodded and raised his wand.  
  
Remus was waiting in the infirmary. Madam Pomfrey had given him a potion to control the pain that he was about to go through during the next three nights. She had told him it was a fairly new potion, still in experimental basis but that she thought it would be a good opportunity to use it on him. He had agreed. He would use anything that would help him during his illness.  
  
He waited patiently while Madam Pomfrey got ready for their walk to the Whopping Willow. Madam Promfrey seemed so happy to see him walk into the door fifteen minutes ago. She had bustled up to him and taken charge. Memories flooded him as Madam Pomfrey fussed over him and examined him. He didn't argue. He just smiled and let her do what she needed to do.  
  
He didn't know if the others would join him before he left or if they would after. He shrugged. They might be at this moment wrecking some havoc at Slytherin for all he knew.  
  
Madam Pomfrey walked into the room once more.  
  
"How are you feeling?" She asked. Her piercing eyes watching him closely.  
  
"Fine." Remus said.  
  
"Humph!" She snorted but didn't say anything more. "I hope those rakish friends of yours get here soon. The moon will rise in less than half an hour and I don't want to take any chances." She snapped.  
  
"We could always go now, I will see them soon enough." He said with a shrug.  
  
The door opened and James, Sirius and Peter walked in laughing.  
  
"There you are! About time." Exclaimed Madam Pomfrey.  
  
"Poppy!" Exclaimed James hugging her tight and kissing her cheek.  
  
"Stop that." Snapped Madam Pomfrey hitting his hands on her waist. She fought hard to keep from giggling and blushing.  
  
Remus laughed. "I hope that Lily doesn't find out about this James, or you will be in big trouble. What kept you too long?"  
  
"We got lost." Said Sirius.  
  
Peter snorted, Remus shook his head. Madam Pomfrey looked suspiciously at them.  
  
"Well, now that you are here we can go." She said as she turned to take her cloak from a peg by the door.  
  
The four Marauders walked behind her as they walked out the castle, whispering as they went.  
  
"What did you guys do?" Remus whispered.  
  
"We'll tell you later, it wouldn't do for them to find out until tomorrow." Said Sirius with a chuckle.  
  
"We met Mrs. Norris when we were walking to the infirmary." Said Peter.  
  
"And?" Asked Remus.  
  
"Let's just say that Filch will not be too happy." Chuckled James.  
  
"What did you do?" Remus urged. He was sorry he missed all this fun.  
  
"We'll tell you later." Said Sirius. They had arrived in front of the Willow.  
  
"Well, in you go." Said Madam Pomfrey as she motioned to the tree.  
  
Remus stepped forward, took a branch lying on the floor and prodded the trunk of the tree until the flailing branches of the tree stopped.  
  
"See you later." Called James.  
  
"Don't wreck the shack." Called Sirius.  
  
"Don't listen to them." Said Peter.  
  
Remus just waved and entered the tunnel that would lead him to the Shack. Sirius, James and Peter stood watching the tree. Madam Pomfrey started toward the castle.  
  
"I bid you farewell, hope you don't get into any trouble." She said before she left them.  
  
"Oh don't worry. We won't." Said Sirius with an innocent looking smile.  
  
"Humph!" She snorted.  
  
The three boys waited until nobody was around. Night had fallen and the moon was shinning. Howling and growls were heard from the distance.  
  
"Right, here we go." James whispered.  
  
Suddenly the three young men disappeared and three animals appeared in their place. The smallest of the three ran around the flailing branches. A few seconds later the branches stopped. The other two animals followed under the trunk of the tree and disappeared from sight.  
  
It was a quiet night. Students and teachers slept in their rooms. Filch walked down the corridors of the castle looking for Mrs. Norris, whom he had not seen since before dinner. Peeves could be heard playing around in one of the rooms. Quite an ordinary night. But, if anybody had been up and looked out the window, he would've encountered an unusual sight.  
  
Under the moon, four animals played around the grounds of Hogwarrts. A stag, a wolf, a dog and a rat would've been seen running and playfully bounce on each other. Around the lake, around the castle, into the forest, they played all over. And they did so, until the moon set and the stars stopped shinning.  
  
Quite an ordinary night, and a fun night, but only for four young men.  
  
The next morning was quite a disaster for some members of Hogwarts. An anguished yell was heard on one small room in the east wing. Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall ran into the room to find Filch crooning and sobbing with Mrs. Norris in his arms.  
  
"Look what they did to you my sweet." He was sobbing.  
  
"What happened?" Asked Professor McGonagall.  
  
"Look, look what they did to my sweet." He sobbed as he lifted Mrs. Norris into the air.  
  
"Oh dear." Said Professor McGonagall with a strangled voice trying to keep her laughter at bay.  
  
Professor Dumbledore's lips tried to stay straight. "I see." He said. He didn't say anymore, he was fighting to keep a straight face.  
  
Mrs. Norris didn't see too happy either. Her fur had been turned to a rainbow of colors. Two small bows tied around her ears a small pink skirt around her lower paws.  
  
"My sweet, don't worry." Filch was sobbing.  
  
"Take her to Madam Pomfrey, she will know what to do." Finally said Professor Dumbledore.  
  
Filch nodded and silently went toward the hospital wing.  
  
The moment Filch was out of sight, Professor McGonagall broke into a fit of giggles, Dumbledore chuckled.  
  
"They did leave with young Remus last night, didn't they?" Asked Professor McGonagall.  
  
"According to Madam Pomfrey, they did, Minerva." Answered Professor Dumbledore.  
  
"I see, then who did it?"  
  
"I'm sure we will find out Minerva."  
  
"But Albus, how will we?"  
  
With a shrug Professor Dumbledore looked at his Deputy Headmistress. "I'm the culprits will eventually come to us." He said.  
  
Professor McGonagall gave him a look full of disbelief. Who would ever come forward and say that they had played a trick on Filch? They would be stupid or crazy to do so.  
  
Half an hour later they found out that the unknown pranksters had been busy during the night.  
  
Slytherin was in an uproar. Their paintings had been painted over, their banners and furniture had been changed to Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw colors. Two large stone snakes had been standing at each side of the large fireplace in the common room. Now they were made of rubber and stood limply against the wall. The furniture was placed in odd angles, making it impossible for anybody to make use of it. The old Potions master, Head of the House of Slytherin, had to be taken to the infirmary after he fainted at the sight of his common room.  
  
The house had to be completely cleared and stripped from all decorations and be refurbished once more to have it back as it once was. But the snakes couldn't be helped. They had to be disposed of.  
  
For three days, the Marauders stayed in hiding in the Shack. They had gone out only on the first day to buy food and drinks to keep in the Shack with them. During the night, the four animals played and frolicked around the grounds of Hogwarts. They didn't know about the commotion that the members of the castle had woken to after their visit. Although they could well imagine. They entertained themselves during the day imagining what had happened in Slytherin and with Filch on the following day.  
  
Finally the three nights passed and Remus was free of his illness for one more month.  
  
The young men decided to go to Hogwarts before they left and say goodbye to the Professors. They also wanted to know about what had happened after their efforts.  
  
The gate to the grounds was open as always. Hagrid could be seen working near the Forest. They called and waved to him as they walked up to the castle. The doors to the castle was also open, even in the chilly weather, the day was bright and clear.  
  
They walked up the stairs and through the door. They saw Filch cleaning nearby. Mrs. Norris at his feet. They boys chuckled and continued down the corridor. They didn't meet anybody as they walked down toward Dumbledore's office. The halls were silent.  
  
"They must be in class." Said Remus as they turned a corner toward the statue that covered the entrance to Dumbledore's office.  
  
"Seems like it." Said James.  
  
They finally stopped in front of the statue and said the password they heard Professor McGonagall say the night they had arrived. The statue moved and they entered.  
  
The door to the Professor's office was open and he had turned to look at the four young men as they entered.  
  
"I gather you are feeling much better." He said as he looked down at Remus.  
  
"Yes Professor." Said Remus with a nod.  
  
"Perhaps you will sit." Professor Dumbledore motioned them to the chairs in front of the desk. "I wanted to speak with you before you left."  
  
The four sat and turned expectantly toward Dumbledore.  
  
"I've been wanting to speak with you for some time about this but I thought it was better to wait and see how things progressed.  
  
"Before your father died, James, we had begun working with a group of people that were willing to dedicate their lives to fight Lord Voldemort and keep him from power. We were beginning to develop it when he was killed. Those of us who were left behind decided to wait. For a while after Aliaster's death the deeds of the Death Eaters were few and apart. Voldemort didn't show himself too often and we didn't know how to begin looking for him. But we still met and made plans, waiting for the right time for us to start our work. Some weeks ago we were joined by someone who had great knowledge of Voldemort's recent plans. Some of our members intervened and a lot of people were saved. Voldemort now knows about us and our work."  
  
"How can we join?" Interrupted James. With a ferocious look in his eyes and determination lining his countenance. The other three nodded. They all had the same question.  
  
"You are free to join us if you like, I will owl you when next we meet." Dumbledore responded. "But you must keep this and every information that we deal with confidential. Voldemort would pay highly for the knowledge that we have."  
  
"Of course." They all said.  
  
"I will owl you. You might find it a little hard to understand at first, we use a secret code in order to keep Voldemort and his followers away." Dumbledore said.  
  
"We will figure it out." Said Sirius.  
  
They continued talking for some time. Dumbledore showed them the parchment with the code, let them study it for a bit in order for them to be able to read the notes that they would soon receive.  
  
They decided to leave right afterwards, and declined Professor Dumbledore's invitation for luncheon. He did tell them about the chaos that had reigned in Slytherin house a few days ago. As expected, they laughed at the right places and chuckled without stop. Dumbledore watched as they laughed. He had really missed this group since they left.  
  
The boys left right after their talk with Dumbledore and decided to stop at The Three Broomsticks for a butterbeer before they apparated home.  
  
The four were sitting at what had been their favorite booth while they were still at Hogwarts. They were laughing and congratulating themselves for the trick they had played. They were busy minding their own business when a drawling voice was heard behind them.  
  
"I see that you are all together again. What, missing school Potter? I didn't know you were that pathetic."  
  
"Shut it Malfoy, I have no energy for you today, you aren't worth it." Sneered James as they turned to look at their Nemesis.  
  
"Indeed Potter, your mudblood keeping you busy." Sniggered Snape who was standing right behind Malfoy.  
  
"Say that again and you won't be able to walk for months." Snapped James getting up at once. Sirius and Remus followed suit, Peter cowered behind.  
  
"Think you can do some damage do you, I would like to see you try." Hissed Malfoy as he took his wand from his robes.  
  
What happened next happened so fast that nobody could really say afterwards how it had started.  
  
James used his fist instead of his wand. Malfoy fell back tripping on his robes. Snape snarled and jumped forward but was intercepted by Sirius. The flailing bodies soon bumped into other customers and soon the whole bar was involved in the brawl.  
  
Peter tried without success hiding underneath the table, but it had been ripped from its place and used to hit Malfoy with.  
  
Wizards from the Department of Magical Enforcement were soon apparating all over the room trying to keep the combatants from doing further damage. The brawl was stopped only by arresting and taking all of those present to the Ministry and locked in cells.  
  
"I don't think the girls will be too happy about this." Said Sirius as they waited.  
  
"I shudder to think what mother will say about this." Said James with a sigh.  
  
The four young men had been left without getting medical attention. James was sporting a dark eye, Sirius a bleeding lip, Remus had a bruise on his forehead and Peter was sitting his bleeding hand against his chest.  
  
Half an hour later they heard somebody walking toward them.  
  
"You have visitors boys." Said the enforcing wizard who came into the room.  
  
The four turned to look at each other.  
  
"Uh-uh!" Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
Three women came into the room. Mrs. Potter, Lily and Katie waited by the door.  
  
"I will let you know when we are ready to leave." Said Mrs. Potter to the guard.  
  
"Ma'am." Replied the wizard as he bowed and left the room.  
  
"Hello Mum." Said James in what he thought was his charming smile. It obviously didn't work.  
  
"WHAT DID YOU THINK YOU WERE DOING?" Screamed Mrs. Potter. "Do you know how embarrassing it was to find out that you were locked up like a common criminal? And for a barroom brawl no less."  
  
"But-"  
  
"No buts James. I thought I raised you better than this. I'm glad your father isn't here anymore, this would've broken his heart. To have the Minister and his friends know that his own son was arrested for creating a fight."  
  
"But-"  
  
"And you Sirius, honestly! You are about to get married for goodness sakes. You are too old for these things. Your mother was really upset about this.  
  
"And Remus, really. I thought you were the sanest of the whole group. You are supposed to keep them straight and keep them from trouble, not join them.  
  
"And Peter, what will your mother say about all of this. After all she has gone through to learn that his son was involved in a barroom brawl.  
  
"Honestly, I have a mind to keep you here, let me tell you. I thought you had all become responsible young men. But it seems that it wasn't so. I'm really disappointed in you." She said with a sniff and knocked on the door.  
  
The door opened. Katie and Lily didn't say a word during Mrs. Potter tirade. The looks they threw at the boys were enough to let it be know how displeased they were. The three women walked out without looking back at the boys.  
  
It was late at night when the door to the cell was opened and the boys were free to leave. They had to go through some paperwork and get all their belongings once more, as they were taken from them when they first arrived. It took them a while to finish all the paperwork and finally stepped out to the main entrance of the Ministry. Mrs. Potter, Lily and Katie were there waiting for them.  
  
"Finally! Let's go. I had our house opened, we'll be spending the night here in London. I feel too tired to go to the Manor." Mrs. Potter said  
  
Nobody said anything against the plan. The boys were too tired to argue and the girls were too angry to speak to them.  
  
They left the Ministry and walked across the park toward the Potter's London house. After the incident of the previous month, many of the families that lived in Rowe Square had rebuilt their homes, the Potters being one of them. Others decided to sell and move away from the area that brought so many memories of the tragic event in which many people were killed.  
  
James hadn't been at the house since it had been rebuilt. He looked around the square looking at the empty lots were houses once stood.  
  
It was a quiet night. The park was brightly lit and some fairies could be seen skipping from flower to flower.  
  
They were soon leaving the park behind and walked up toward one of the new buildings. The door opened before any of them knocked.  
  
"Good evening Roberts, everything is readied I assume." Said Mrs. Potter to their butler.  
  
"Yes ma'am. The children have been taken to the nursery and are now sleeping." Roberts replied as he took the cloaks from everybody.  
  
"Thank you Roberts." Said Mrs. Potter as she motioned the group to follow her.  
  
"We have dinner waiting for you ma'am, whenever you are ready for it." Roberts said with a bow as the group entered the parlor room.  
  
"Very well Roberts, have it served in the dinning room, we will go in." Mrs. Potter directed. Roberts bowed once more and walked down the corridor. Mrs. Potter turned to the boys and looked at them warily.  
  
"I hope you have an explanation for all of this." She snapped.  
  
"Really mother, they insulted us." Exclaimed James.  
  
"There are better ways to deal with insults." She snapped back.  
  
"Well, you don't expect us to sit with our arms crossed as they insult Lily do you? Because if you do, I do not agree with you." Replied James.  
  
"Really James, they have been insulting me since I first stepped out of Hogwarts Express when I was 11, what is so different about this time?" Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"Maybe so, but I don't like anybody calling you mudblood." Said James with a pout.  
  
"What? You had better left them unconscious James. The nerve of them." Exclaimed Mrs. Potter.  
  
James laughed. "Don't worry mum, we made sure they regretted it." He said as he put his arms around her and kissed her cheek.  
  
"Humph!" She snorted but didn't say anymore.  
  
"Dinner is served Ma'am." Roberts said from the door that led to the dinning room.  
  
"Thank you Roberts." Said James and led his mother to the next room.  
  
Lily shook her head and followed them. Katie was hissing angrily at Sirius in a low voice and Sirius was trying to calm her. Peter and Remus were the last ones to follow.  
  
For the next few days everything was quiet around the Potter estate. Peter left and returned to his mother three days after their return from Hogwarts. Sirius and Katie returned to London to prepare for the wedding, Sirius still didn't know when it was going to take place. Remus stayed with the Potters for a couple of weeks before leaving on his travels around the country once more.  
  
After the departure of all their visitors, the family at Gryffindor Manor returned to their customary endeavors. James left early every morning to look around the estate and meet with his manager and discuss preparations for the winter. Mrs. Potter joined the ladies group in town and spent several hours during the week doing charitable works. Lily took the twins and started their basic training in magic, as they weren't allowed a wand yet there wasn't much that they could do.  
  
Everything settled down and quietly waited for the snow to fall and the holidays season to approach.  
  
  
  
  
  
A/N: I hope you enjoyed that bit, I actually dreamed the scene with the barroom brawl and I knew I had to write about it. It just seemed something that they would get involved in, and I just wanted to have a scene in which Malfoy and Snape got their right rewards. Lol, I enjoyed writing this chapter, I hope you enjoyed it as well. Don't forget to review, I'm looking forward to your input. 


	31. Part II Chapter 7

A/N: Thank you all for reviewing, I've enjoyed reading all your comments. I'm glad that you all enjoyed seeing the Marauders going to jail, I enjoyed writing that chapter and I'm happy that you liked it as much. Now I must warn you, this chapter is a little sadder than the others but I'm sure that you will like what happens at the end. Enjoy it!  
  
Disclaimer: Do I have to write this again? I don't wanna!  
  
  
  
Chapter 7 ~ A Funeral and A Wedding  
  
  
  
Halloween passed without any news about Emma. James had gone to Hogwarts once each week without the knowledge of Lily and Mrs. Potter. Snow had started to fall and Chistmas shopping had begun.  
  
It was early November and the twins were currently having fun in the snow. Lily and Mrs. Potter sat in one of the benches of the garden watching the little girls playing.  
  
"They seem to be enjoying themselves." Said a voice behind them. Lily and Mrs. Potter turned with a smile.  
  
"Hello Sirius." Said Lily.  
  
"James is checking the cattle Sirius." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"I know, I just came from there." He said before sitting beside Lily on the bench.  
  
"So what brings you here? I thought you would be with Katie in town." Lily replied. The twins squealed and laughed as they played.  
  
"I came to bring you this. I thought it would be better if I did so personally instead of owling it." He said as he took an envelope out of his pocket.  
  
"What is it?" Lily asked.  
  
"Open it and see." He said with a grin.  
  
Mrs. Potter took it and opened it. A cream colored parchment fell out of the envelope. A picture of a couple appeared on it. Suddenly the couple disappeared and golden words started to appear where the couple had stood.  
  
  
  
  
  
"Lyndon and Marie Bennett And Alexander and Helen Black  
  
Would like to invite you to celebrate with them the wedding of their children  
  
Katherine Marie Bennett and Sirius Orion Black  
  
To take place on December 18 of the present year  
  
Place: St. George Church, London Time: 5:00 p.m.  
  
Please join us after the ceremony to celebrate this happy event at The Regency Hotel in Rowe Square. RSVP necessary."  
  
"Oh Sirius!" Exclaimed Lily before hugging him.  
  
"Well done young man." Replied Mrs. Potter with a smile. "We will certainly be there."  
  
"About time you knew when it was going to be." Said James who had arrived without the others noticing and had read above his mother's shoulder.  
  
"How long have you been standing there?" Snapped Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Long enough. Sorry mum, didn't mean to surprise you." He said as he kissed her cheek. She smiled and turned to watch over the twins.  
  
"I wanted to talk to you. I wanted all of you three to be my best men but Peter doesn't want to because he says that he might not be able to get away for too long from his mother, he did promise to go though. Remus says that he might be too temperamental because it's too close to a full moon, so he doesn't want to either. And you better not tell me that you are not going to either because I will knock you over if you do." Said Sirius in a rush.  
  
James laughed. "Don't worry, I'll stand by you." He said.  
  
Sirius released a sigh of relief. "Katie wants you to owl her. Mrs. Bennet wants to discuss gowns and flowers." He said turning to Lily.  
  
Lily nodded. The two young men were soon busy discussing dates and arrangements to go to town and visit Diagon Alley to get robes and accessories that they would need for that special day. Lily looked longingly at the card.  
  
She was happy for Sirius and Katie, she truly was, but she couldn't deny that she was envious as well. She couldn't help thinking that if things had gone differently during their seventh year, it would be James' and Lily's wedding they would be discussing, not Katie's and Sirius'. She excused herself from the others and walked toward the gardens. She went past the walled gardens until she reached the locked garden. Their garden. She took out the key that James had given to her and placed it on the lock. The door opened and she walked in.  
  
Unlike the other gardens, this was different. There were the flowers that she first saw, orchids, roses, lilies, all the flowers that she liked. But there were magical plants there as well. It was the only garden in the whole estate that had magical plants. There were other inhabitants in the garden as well. She laughed as she spied a gnome running to hide underneath a bush. She could hear the faires giggle as they hid in the flowers in which they lived.  
  
With a sigh she sat on the bench next to the pool and watched the fish swim by. She was looking forward to the wedding, couldn't wait to be there, but she also knew that it would bittersweet for her.  
  
  
  
James was in a good mood. Sirius had just left and his manager, Mr. Sanders, had just given him the figures for this year's harvest. His estate couldn't be in a better shape. The crops yielded more than he had imagined and the cattle was large enough to keep them fed for the winter.  
  
Sirius had agreed to go to town in a week. They would go to see about their robes and probably spend some time in Quidditch Supplies. True, there was no need for them to go there as they don't longer play Quidditch, but that didn't mean they had given it up. They thought it would be a good idea to check the list for upcoming games and maybe go to one of them. He was also thinking about Sirius' bachelor party. As the best man, it was his responsibility to organize and put together the party. He had begun to make a list in his mind with the names of the people he could invite. He was also thinking about entertainment. He knew quite well what kind of entertainment was expected, but he also had to think about Katie and Lily. If the girls ever found out of what could happen at the party, they would be in big trouble. He decided to talk to Remus about it, as the brother of a large number of sisters, he might have an idea of what could be done.  
  
He understood why Peter and Remus had declined to be best men. Peter's mother's health was not as good as Peter hoped, and Peter was very attentive of her; he wouldn't like to leave her alone for long, specially since they would have to attend rehearsals and fittings. Remus' health was not the best either and if the wedding fell just days before his transformation he would be feeling out of sorts. Not a good thing when you are the best man.  
  
Life couldn't be better for James, and he knew it. But he also knew that there was something missing and he thought it was probably time for him to do something about it. With steps full of determination, he went toward his office and resolved to go to Gringotts when he went to town with Sirius.  
  
  
  
It was now mid November. The weather had turned colder and snow couldn't be far off. The twins were more excited than ever. Katie and Sirius had decided to make them their flower girls and they couldn't wait to wear the new dresses that their grandmother and Katie had chosen. Sirius was starting to get nervous and James had deemed it his duty to keep him entertained. It just wouldn't do for Sirius to have second thoughts and run away from the wedding. Lily and Katie had been busy deciding on decorations and catering while Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Bennett had been busy with the acceptance notes from those invited and deciding on sitting. The Manor had been decided as the center of all operations, as a result, the Bennetts and Sirius were staying in the Manor for the time being.  
  
"Do you think this is the right color?" Asked Katie as she held a bolt of satin in her hands.  
  
"We could make it lighter if you wish." Said Lily as he turned the beige cloth to a pearl white with a swish of her wand.  
  
"Hmm.it does look better." Katie said as she happily put the bolt aside.  
  
The girls were looking for the cloth to decorate the room with. They had decided on satin to drape around the doors and windows. They also choose a special kind of lace they found in Diagon Alley. It shimmered and sparkled as it moved. It was semitransparent and reflected colors when light shone upon it. They had decided to use it to decorate the walls.  
  
They had trouble deciding on the flowers, but finally decided on white roses. Dozens of vases were ordered, each would stand upon a pedestal along the wall.  
  
"You know, this is more complicated than I had imagined." Said Katie with a sigh.  
  
Lily chuckled. "It certainly looks that way, doesn't it?"  
  
"Maybe I should've listened to Sirius and we should've eloped." Said Katie.  
  
"You wouldn't! You thrive in this sort of thing. You would've regretted it later on." Lilly exclaimed.  
  
"Perhaps, but it would've been much easier. We would be married by now." Katie responded.  
  
Lily laughed. She didn't think of it as onerous. She was enjoying herself.  
  
The girls continued to make notes in silence as they checked and double- checked their lists.  
  
A tapping on the window made them turn from their parchment.  
  
"It's an owl. Wonder who is it from." Said Katie as she went to the window to let it in.  
  
The owl swooped in as soon as the window was opened and dropped a letter in front of Lily before swooping through the window once more.  
  
Lily grabbed the letter and opened, she smiled when she recognized the writing and the signature, but she paled as she read.  
  
"Oh no!" She exclaimed before braking down and cried.  
  
"What happened Lily?" Katie exclaimed as she gathered her sobbing friend in her arms.  
  
Lily couldn't speak, she just shoved the letter in Katie's hand before running off the room.  
  
Katie made to follow but decided against it before finding out what was on the letter to upset her so. She understood why as soon as she read the short note.  
  
"Dear Lily,  
  
I'm sorry that I have to call you back now, but circumstances deem it this way. Your father is ill. The doctor says it's his heart. It seems that your father has been having heart problems for some years now but kept it secret from us. I need you to come. He may not live for long. Please come soon. Love,  
  
Mum."  
  
Katie swore, even if she was raised to believe that it was unladylike. She had to go and look for James, he needed to know; then she would go and look for Lily who probably had run to her room.  
  
"Just when things were looking up for us." She yelled into the empty room and ran out to look for James.  
  
  
  
"Do you honestly think that we could get away with it? I doubt it." James told Sirius as they flew around the Quidditch Pitch.  
  
"Perhaps you are right. Katie would kill me if we did." Sirius laughed. He was feeling much calmer now. The feeling of panic and entrapment that had taken hold of his senses were now gone and he could plan and look forward to his wedding with merriment.  
  
They heard somebody shouting and running toward them. They quickly landed when they saw that it was Katie coming to them and she seemed worried.  
  
"Katie, what happened? What's wrong?" Shouted Sirius jumping down from his broom.  
  
"Lily.it's Lily." She panted. She had come running and could barely inhale enough air.  
  
"What happened to Lily?" Exclaimed James, fear taking hold of his heart.  
  
Katie tried talking but couldn't so she shoved the note she still had in her hand and gave it to James. James looked at her with surprise and read the note.  
  
James groaned. "I need to go see her." He said and ran toward the house.  
  
"She is in her room." Katie yelled behind him.  
  
James walked purposely into the house and took the stairs two at a time toward Lily's room. He knew that his mother would be scandalized if she knew that he was going to barge into Lily's room uninvited. Not that she wouldn't be if he went in invited.  
  
He stopped in front of the door he knew to be Lily's. He could hear her sobbing behind the door. He could also hear another voice with her but he couldn't place it. He supposed it could be his mother, but she didn't seem to have much success.  
  
"Lily." He knocked on the door. "Please let me in." He heard her sob but he could also hear movement. A minute later he heard the knob turn and the door opened. A pair of tennis-ball sized eyes looked out at him.  
  
"Oh Master James, Minnie has tried Master James, but Miss Lily will not stop crying." She said letting James into the room.  
  
"Don't worry Minnie. Why don't you go to the kitchens and make some tea for us? I will take care of Lily." James said.  
  
"Very well Master James, Minnie will do some tea." She said with a bob and promptly left the room.  
  
"Lily." Sighed James as soon as he saw her sobbing on her bed. He approached her and sat beside her, gently gathering her in his arms. "I'm here Lily." He whispered in her ear.  
  
"Oh James, why didn't he say anything? Why didn't he tell us that he was sick?" Lily hiccupped.  
  
"Maybe he didn't want to worry you. Maybe he thought he would find a doctor that could help him without any of you knowing." He said as he dried her tears with his handkerchief.  
  
"But now he is dying and we didn't know. I could've spent more time with him. Now I won't be able to." Lily cried.  
  
"I don't think he would mind Lily, love. You know he wouldn't have liked it to have you all worrying about him. He didn't begrudge you your lifestyle and your time with us. He enjoyed himself earlier this fall, I'm sure he doesn't regret a thing. He is a great man, your father, he lived his life the way he wanted to." James replied.  
  
He held her for a few moments longer. Finally he pulled her away and dried her tears one more time.  
  
"Here, put yourself together, we have to prepare you to go back home. Your mother will need you the most." He said.  
  
Lily nodded and let him clean her face.  
  
"I'll get Minnie to put your things together. Why don't you write to your mother, tell her that we are coming to see her. I will speak to mother." He said. Lily could only nod, she didn't feel like arguing with him at the moment.  
  
Minnie walked in at that moment. A tray with a pot of tea and cups in her arms.  
  
"There you are Minnie. Can you pack for Lily please? We will be leaving for town soon." James ordered the minute he saw her come in.  
  
"Yes Master James." Minnie piped and put the tray in a table before bouncing to the dressing room.  
  
"Here Lily, take this, it will help you calm down." Said James as he poured some tea into a cup and handed it to Lily.  
  
"Thank you." She whispered.  
  
James took her arm and walked her to the desk. He put some parchment and a quill in front of her before leaving the room.  
  
Lily sat behind the desk looking out the window. She was very close to her father and couldn't believe that he would not be there when she was in need of him.  
  
  
  
A subdued group stood in front of the fireplace in the ballroom.  
  
"Be strong my dear." Mrs. Potter whispered in Lily's ear as she hugged her. "I will owl Rose."  
  
Lily nodded but didn't say anything. She didn't dare or she would break down sobbing once more.  
  
"Now James, make sure that you owl me if I'm needed." Mrs. Potter was saying to James.  
  
"Don't worry mother, I will." He answered.  
  
"We'll be there soon." Said Katie to Lily as she hugged her before turning her over to Sirius.  
  
"Just owl us if you need us." He said.  
  
Lily nodded once more. Lily and James would be flooing to Diagon Alley, were they would find transportation and go to the Evans'. Minnie would be going with them to help with the housework. James thought that it was the best he could do to unburden Mrs. Evans and keep her from worrying about the house.  
  
After everybody said goodbye, James led Lily into the glowing flames in the fireplace, and with a swirl, they left.  
  
They came out of the Leaky Cauldron into the bustling streets of London. A black car was waiting for them in front of the pub.  
  
"Come Lily." James said as stood protectively beside her.  
  
They approached the car and the driver pulled the door open for them.  
  
"Thank you Martin. Did mother give you the Evans' address?" James said to the driver.  
  
"Yes sir." Martin responded.  
  
James nodded and settled in the seat beside Lily.  
  
The drive toward the Evans' was quiet. Lily spent the whole time looking out the window. James spent his time looking at her.  
  
Soon they arrived at the elite neighborhood where the Evans had lived for decades. The windows of the house were closed against the reflection of the sun and the chill in the air. Lily stepped out of the car quickly and ran up the stairs to knock on the door.  
  
James stayed near the car giving directions to Martin. Minnie was nowhere in sight. James supposed that she was waiting for them to go into the house before she appeared.  
  
The front door opened after a minute of Lily's knocking. Mrs. Evans appeared, a sad smile at the sight of her daughter.  
  
"Oh Lily!" She exclaimed before hugging her daughter tight.  
  
"How is he?" Lily asked.  
  
"I brought him home this morning. There was nothing else that the hospital could for him. He wanted to be here. He didn't like the hospital at all. The doctors said that all we could do was wait and he would be more comfortable here." Mrs. Evans explained as she led Lily toward the parlor. James was some steps behind. Martin would park in front until James knew what needed to be done.  
  
The house was pretty silent. There were no servants in sight. James looked around the parlor with curiosity as he had never been at the Evans' before. Suddenly, heard a tiny pop behind him. He turned to find Minnie there.  
  
"Minnie is here Master James." She squeaked.  
  
"Good, maybe we should ask Mrs. Evans how you could help around the house." He said.  
  
Minnie was soon dispatched to the kitchen with orders to help the cook and the maids to prepare some tea and snacks while Lily, James and Mrs. Evans talked in the parlor.  
  
"I hired a manservant to help your father with his needs. I knew he wouldn't be comfortable with me helping him." Mrs. Evans was saying.  
  
"I expect you are right. How is he doing now?" Asked Lily.  
  
"He is doing fine at the moment, but his heart is too weak. The doctor said that he has been taking medication for five years now, but it doesn't seem to have done much good and now it's too late for surgery. Unless a donor comes out in the few next days there might be hope but it's very unlikely." Mrs. Evans responded.  
  
"Does he know?" Lily whispered.  
  
Mrs. Evans nodded.  
  
"Oh mum!" Exclaimed Lily and sobbed as Mrs. Evans embraced her and comforted her.  
  
James kept quiet, he knew that this was a conversation that the two women needed to have.  
  
One of the maids soon arrived with a try with sandwiches and tea.  
  
"Where is Petunia?" Asked Lily after she calmed down a bit.  
  
Mrs. Evans pursed her lips. "Don't speak to me about your sister, I'm not happy with her." She exclaimed.  
  
Lily looked at her mother with surprise. "What happened?"  
  
"She had the nerve of saying that she would only come as long as you weren't here. Well! As if I would agree to that. An unnatural daughter, she is. If that is how she will be then I don't think she needs to be here. I will remember this when I do my will." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"I'm sorry mum." Lily whispered looking down at her lap. She never thought that Petunia would hate her so much that she would've thought of asking their parents to keep Lily away. It really hurt to think about it.  
  
"Don't blame yourself, my dear, it's not your fault. Sometimes I wonder if there was a mix-up in the hospital when Petunia was born. You might as well be our only daughter with a child like her." Said Mrs. Evans, she was clearly unhappy with her oldest daughter.  
  
"Does dad know?" Lily asked.  
  
"Of course he doesn't! I didn't want him to worry, but I have a feeling he suspects something." Mrs. Evans said with a sigh. "How is Susan doing young man?" She asked turning to James. "I received her owl, just haven't been able to respond yet."  
  
"Oh that's all right, I think she will understand." James replied. "In fact, she told me to tell you not to hesitate to call her if you need help."  
  
"Thank you dear. Let me take you two to your rooms and you can get settled. James why don't you tell your driver to park in the garage, cook will show him where he can stay." Mrs. Evans said.  
  
James nodded and walked out the house to talk to Martin.  
  
Half an hour later, James and Lily were busy in their respective rooms unpacking. Mrs. Evans had gone to talk to cook about the meal being prepared for Mr. Evans.  
  
Lily quickly finished with her luggage and silently walked toward her parent's bedroom.  
  
The bedroom was the largest in the house. A small sitting room led on to the bedroom. The curtains were closed and small lamps gave off a dim light around the room. Against the center wall was a large bed. Canopy with curtains around the frame. It reminded Lily of the beds in Hogwarts, except that this one was much larger. The curtains were open, and through them Lily spied her father quietly lying on the bed.  
  
She approached the bed silently. She didn't want to wake him up. She then saw his head turn and a pair of emerald green eyes, similar to her own, peered at her.  
  
"Hello Princess." Edward Evans weakly said.  
  
"Hi Daddy." She whispered sitting beside him on the bed. "How are you feeling?"  
  
"Better, now that you are here." He smiled.  
  
Lily smiled back. Mr. Evans' charm seemed to have remained.  
  
"You should've told us Daddy." She said laying in the bed next to him.  
  
Mr. Evans took his daughter's hand and held it tight. "It would've made no difference Princess."  
  
"But we would've been prepared. This took us by surprise Daddy, now we feel like something has been stolen from us." Lily replied.  
  
"Sorry Princess." Mr. Evans whispered.  
  
"I don't want you to die Daddy." Lily whispered.  
  
"I know Princess. I will miss so much. I won't see my Princess walking down the aisle, nor my grandchildren. But remember this Princess. I will always be there for you. Perhaps not in the physical sense, but certainly spiritually. I will always be at your side." He said.  
  
"Oh Daddy!" She exclaimed and sobbed in her father's shoulder.  
  
That is how Mrs. Evans found them some moments later. Father and daughter drawing comfort from each other. Mrs. Evans closed the door silently and left them on their own.  
  
  
  
The next few days were very hard for Lily and Mrs. Evans. Mr. Evans slept for most of the day. James owled constantly to the Manor with news. Friends stayed out of the Evans House to give some room to the family. Everything was silent and dreary. It was on the fourth day of their visit when something finally happened.  
  
The doctor came for a visit. Lily and James stayed in her parents' sitting room while he was in the bedroom with her father and mother.  
  
"Don't worry." James said as Lily leaned against him, waiting.  
  
"Oh James." She whispered. She didn't cry, she thought she had sobbed enough to last her a life time and she needed to be strong for her mother.  
  
Mrs. Evans seemed so strong and resigned but Lily knew that in her heart she was sad and hurt. Hurt, that after twenty five years of marriage, her husband had kept something hidden from her. Sad, that her life partner would soon leave her behind. They had been sweethearts since they first met in school. For thirty years they had been in each other's lives and to see one without the other couldn't be thought of.  
  
Soon, the doctor left. Mrs. Evans sat beside her daughter in silence.  
  
"What did he say mum?" Asked Lily.  
  
"He said that your father is not doing as he should. His heart is too weak and his blood pressure is not good. He says that we should prepare ourselves." Mrs. Evans said.  
  
"Oh Mum!" Lily exclaimed, tears gathering in her eyes.  
  
Both Mrs. Evans and Lily broke down and cried and for the first time in his life, James had two crying women in his hands and he didn't know what to do about them.  
  
Minnie took them and led them to their respective room and consoled them. James breathed in relief. He needed help. Soon after, an owl left he Evans' house, a letter tied to it's leg.  
  
That evening was quiet. Lily and Mrs. Evans sat quietly in the parlor talking while James looked out the window as if he was looking for someone. Suddenly, they heard a knock on the door.  
  
Lily and Mrs. Evans looked at each other with surprise.  
  
"Who could it be?" Mrs. Evans asked as she started to get up from the couch.  
  
"Don't worry Mrs. Evans, Martin will get the door." Said James motioning to Mrs. Evans to sit once more. With a nod, Mrs. Evans did.  
  
The parlor door was opened and Martin stepped in. "Mrs. Potter is here." He announced before stepping aside.  
  
Mrs. Potter glided into the room, closely followed by the twins, Katie and Sirius.  
  
"Rose, my dear, how are you doing?" She asked as she swept Mrs. Evans into a hug.  
  
"Oh Susan, so glad to see you." Exclaimed Mrs. Evans.  
  
"You should've called me. There is no need for you to go through this by yourself." Mrs. Potter chided as she took off her coat and gloves.  
  
"I didn't want to seem a burden." Mrs. Evans was saying while the others greeted each other.  
  
"How are you doing Lily?" Katie whispered in her friend's ear as they hugged.  
  
"We could be doing better." Lily answered with a sad smile.  
  
Soon the room was full of chatter. Tea was brought in and snacks eaten before the room fell silent once more.  
  
James decided to cede his room to his mother while he and Sirius would stay in the Potter's town house, Katie would share Lily's room with Lily. Night had fallen and soon they were off to rest. No one knew what the light of the next day would bring for them, but each hoping that it would be better than the one that just ended.  
  
The next day was slightly cheerier than the previous days. James and Sirius drove over as soon as they woke up and took breakfast with the women at the Evans' House. They had taken the twins to stay with the Bennetts while the family was in town. The sun was shining after a couple of dreary days. Everything was calm and silent.  
  
They should've known that it was too good to be true.  
  
It started with Minnie's report as they were sitting at the table finishing their breakfast.  
  
James was the first to notice the small elf bobbing at the door trying to get the attention of her master.  
  
"What is it Minnie? Is there a problem?" James asked.  
  
Minnie walked into the room and turned to look at James. "Mr. Evans is hurting Master James. Mr. Evans' servant just asked for Mrs. Evans. He has a pain in his chest." Minnie said.  
  
Mrs. Evans gasped and throwing her napkin on the table she ran out of the room closely followed by Lily.  
  
James nodded to Minnie. "Thank you Minnie." He said.  
  
The small elf bobbed and quickly left the room.  
  
"Oh dear, I don't expect this is good." Mrs. Potter sighed.  
  
"What can we do?" Asked Katie with worry.  
  
"There isn't much we can do." Said Sirius. "We can just give them the support they need, it's not like we can give them the cure that he needs."  
  
"But I feel so useless just sitting here and not helping." Said Katie.  
  
"I know dear, I feel the same way, but Sirius is right. There is nothing that we can do for them at the moment. We can only help them to keep house and don't let them worry about anything else besides Edward." Mrs. Potter replied.  
  
"Come Sirius you and I are going to see the Evans' solicitor. Mrs. Evans gave me his name and address and asked me to check if everything was in order and if there were arrangements that needed to be done." Said James getting ready to leave the table.  
  
"Right. Let's go then." Sirius said after he gulped down his cup of tea.  
  
"See you later mum, send an owl if there are any news." Said James as he leaned to kiss her cheek.  
  
"Of course dear. Don't get into any trouble." She called after them. Then heard Sirius' laughter as they left the house. "Come dear." She said to Katie. "Let's see if we need supplies from the store." And led Katie down to the kitchens.  
  
Mrs. Evans and Lily arrived to Mr. Evans side in record time. He was awake and complaining but the pain seemed to have gone. After giving him some medication he promptly fell asleep.  
  
Mrs. Evans and Lily decided to take turns watching over him. They stayed at their post the whole day, taking their meals after the other took over.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Katie visited often to keep them entertained. James had returned from the solicitor with the news that everything was as it should.  
  
It was late afternoon when Mr. Evans woke once more complaining of pain.  
  
Lily was on watch and quickly went to get her mother.  
  
"It hurts." Complained Mr. Evans.  
  
"I know dear, take this." Urged Mrs. Evans as he eased him into her arms to give him his medication.  
  
Lily stood beside the bed, watching her parents. A frown of worry in her brow.  
  
"I feel so tired." He complained.  
  
"Rest dear." Mrs. Evans urged.  
  
Lily was quietly sobbing.  
  
"I love you Rose." He suddenly said.  
  
"I love you too Edward." She whispered in his ear.  
  
"You made me happy." He said. His heavy eyes slowly closing.  
  
"As you did me." She said. "And you gave me our children. I love you more for that gift."  
  
He laughed weakly. "We were lucky with Lily, weren't we? I don't know if I can say the same about Petunia."  
  
"Don't worry about her Edward. Lily is here, she is enough for us." Mrs. Evans replied.  
  
"My Princess. Where is my little Princess?" He asked.  
  
"I'm here daddy." Lily replied.  
  
"I love you Lily, you have made me so proud." He quietly said.  
  
"I love you too Daddy." Lily answered.  
  
He smiled and sighed. Never to breathe again. Lily stifled a sob. Mrs. Evans motioned for her to approach her. They embraced and quietly sobbed for the loss of the special man in their life.  
  
  
  
The day of the funeral was cloudy. A representation of her emotions thought Lily when she woke up that morning and looked out the window.  
  
This was the second day after her father's death and her spirits continued to be low. Petunia had been contacted and told of his death, she had said that she would come for the burial. Her mother was still angry at Petunia for not being here when Edward Evans died, and that he had been aware of it was something that Mrs. Evans would never forgive.  
  
The day following his death was full of preparations and visits. The front door had been draped in black and the curtains in the windows drawn giving the house the feeling of sorrow and death.  
  
In the afternoon several of those who had known Mr. Evans visited the family. The house soon filled with flowers and cards.  
  
The body had been taken to be prepared for the vigil and a memorial mass was scheduled for the day just before the burial. Mrs. Potter and Katie had left the house late that evening, in order to give Lily and Mrs. Evans time for grieving. They were going to spend the time at the Potter's House in Rowe Square.  
  
And now the day to say goodbye had arrived. Lily slowly dressed thinking of all the things that needed to be done before they left for the cemetery.  
  
Food and drinks had to be prepared for the people who would come to their house after the burial.  
  
This was very hard for her. Her father had always been there for her. He had been protective and loving, and she would miss him more than ever.  
  
James, Mrs. Potter, Katie and Sirius would be coming soon to be here before they had to leave to the church. Petunia and her husband Vernon Dursley would also be coming this morning.  
  
She didn't know how she felt about her sister. It had hurt her that Petunia didn't want to see her. But she was angry that she had made stipulations in order to be here at their father's sick bed. How could a daughter ask that of her parents? Lily asked herself. Her parents hadn't deserved a daughter like that and it saddened her that her father had to die with that knowledge.  
  
She heard a car stopping in front of the house. Lily went toward the window and looked out. She saw James, and the others get out. She sighed with relief, at least it wasn't Petunia. She finished dressing and went down to the parlor. She arrived just in time to receive them.  
  
"Hello Lily dear, how are you doing?" Mrs. Potter asked as soon as she spied Lily by the door.  
  
"I'm fine Mrs. Potter." Answered Lily with a small smile.  
  
"Now don't worry dear, we are here to help you." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
They heard steps coming from the stairs. Mrs. Evans soon appeared.  
  
"Oh Rose." Mrs. Potter exclaimed before going to Mrs. Evans and embraced her. "Just cry my friend. I know how hard it is to lose a husband. At least you had the chance to say goodbye."  
  
"Oh Susan." Mrs. Evans sobbed. "I know I shouldn't be a watering pot, Edward wouldn't like it, but I can't help it."  
  
"I know dear. I know." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
The others stayed silent. Lily stood by the window, silent tears running down her face. James gathered her in his arms, not caring that her tears wetted his jackets.  
  
They heard a car stop. James gave Lily his handkerchief while Mrs. Evans tried to pull herself together. There was a knock on the door, one of the servants answered. Voices were heard on the hall before steps could be heard approaching the parlor. The door opened and Petunia and Vernon Dursley came in.  
  
"Mother, Lily." Petunia said ignoring the others in the room. Vernon nodded at his in-laws, but said nothing.  
  
"Petunia." Said Mrs. Evans. "These are our friends. James and Susan Potter, Katie Bennett and Sirius Black."  
  
Petunia only nodded.  
  
"My daughter Petunia and her husband Vernon Dursley." Mrs. Evans said to the others.  
  
The atmosphere in the room cooled the moment Vernon and Petunia had arrived. Lily sat silently with James, Katie and Sirius in one corner while Mrs. Evans and Mrs. Potter talked at another corner of the room. Petunia and Vernon stood by the window looking gloomily into the room with an air of disapproval.  
  
They continued in the same vein for some moments until the grandfather clock chimed.  
  
"Oh, it's time to go." Exclaimed Mrs. Evans.  
  
Nobody said anything else as they prepared to leave the house. They took three cars to the cemetery. Sirius, Katie and James in the first one, Mrs. Potter, Lily and Mrs. Evans in the second, and Petunia and Vernon in the third. The solemn ride seemed long for Lily and Mrs. Evans.  
  
The chapel at one end of the cemetery was small but full of mourners. Friends, coworkers and family were there to say goodbye to a great and loving man.  
  
Lily got through it taking strength from James, who stood beside her the whole time. The day got clearer as it progressed. When the time to lower the coffin arrived, the sun was shining and the birds were singing. Lily thought it a lovely tribute to the father who she had loved so much.  
  
People were starting to leave. James, Lily and Mrs. Evans were the only ones left standing beside the grave. James offered the ladies his arm. Mrs. Evans took it. Lily shook her head.  
  
"I need to be alone for a minute." She whispered. James and Mrs. Evans nodded and left her.  
  
"Why did you have to leave Daddy?" She whispered. "I will miss you so much. I had great plans for us. I wanted to have you beside me when I walked down the aisle. I wanted to have you with me when my children were born. Why did you leave me?" She sobbed. "Oh Daddy. You meant so much to me. Thank you for always being there and for making me feel like the princess you always called me."  
  
She kneeled and placed a white rose on top of the fresh grave. She stood and walked away to where the cars were waiting.  
  
The rest of the day was quiet. Some of those who had been at the burial accompanied them back to the house where the rest of the afternoon was spent with memories and sorrow.  
  
  
  
The next day the remaining member of the Evans family met in the bookroom to hear Mr. Evans' will from his solicitor.  
  
Lily and Mrs. Evans sat together in a couch in front of the desk. Beside them, in a chair, sat Petunia, Vernon standing behind her.  
  
"If we are all here." Said Mr. Reed looking around at those sitting in front of him. He was sitting behind the desk, in the chair that Mr. Evans used to sit.  
  
Nobody said anything, they just sat looking at him.  
  
"Very well." He continued. "I will read the document now." He cleared his throat and read:  
  
"I Edward Harold Evans, being of sane mind, dispose of my material wealth in the following way.  
  
To my darling wife Rose, I leave the house and everything found in the bank accounts. She may dispose of them as she sees fit.  
  
To my daughter Petunia, there is a trust fund in her name with 100,000 pounds.  
  
To my dearest Lily, I leave my art collection besides the trust fund in her name with 100,000 pounds."  
  
The will continued on with some monies left to the servants and friends who had served with him faithfully. Petunia seemed angered, specially after she heard what had been left to her sister.  
  
Mr. Evans had been a great art lover and had become somewhat of a connoisseur in classic art. Over the last twenty years he had collected a great variety of paintings that had been thought to be worth more than fifty million pounds. Petunia was clearly not happy about this.  
  
Mr. Reed finished with the reading and turned to look at the three women. "I must let you know that Mr. Evans had this document drafted before he fell ill. There was only one small change, days before his death. This document was signed before a witness and it's legal. No court on this land could ever overthrow it. Any questions?" He asked.  
  
Mrs. Evans and Lily shook their head. Petunia glowered.  
  
"If that is all, I will leave. I will have my assistant send you the information you need about the bank accounts for you to be able to withdraw the money if you wish. Good day." And with a bow left the room.  
  
Mrs. Evans followed him out, leaving the two sisters and Vernon in the room.  
  
"You did this you - you - freak. You bewitched him to leave you everything." Yelled Petunia the moment the door closed behind their mother.  
  
"What are you going on about Petunia? You make less sense than a bat." Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"How dare you speak to my wife like that! You just stole millions of pounds from her and you dare insult her?" Vernon bellowed.  
  
"I did not steal a thing. If you think that Daddy left me his paintings because I put a spell on him you have less brains than a bird. You brought this on yourself. Do you think Daddy wouldn't be hurt to know that you chose to stay away from his deathbed. Who is the unnatural daughter now, eh?" Screamed Lily.  
  
"It is not my fault. If you had stayed away, I would've been here." Snapped Petunia as she crossed her arms in front of her.  
  
"That shouldn't have been an option. You should've been here no matter what. If Daddy decided to leave you less it was because he saw how little you care for family." Lily snapped back.  
  
"Mr. Evans wouldn't have done it if he had seen what a freak you are. You have this whole household under a spell, we are lucky that we escaped from your clutches." Growled Vernon.  
  
"That is enough." Said Mrs. Evans who had been standing by the door. "How dare you to speak to Lily like that. I'll have you know that Petunia's actions have more to do with Edward's decisions than Lily's. If you two don't apologize right now, you will not be welcomed to this house again, and I'm striking you off my will Petunia."  
  
Petunia and Vernon were clearly fighting to keep control of their temper. That Mrs. Evans would take Lily's side was something that they clearly weren't expecting. As was her ultimatum. They both knew that the bank accounts that Mr. Evans had left to his wife were worth ten times more than the art collection left to Lily, and they clearly didn't want to lose that money.  
  
"I'm sorry Lily." Petunia finally said.  
  
"I hope you will forgive our outburst. Grief obviously frayed our nerves." Vernon said.  
  
Lily said nothing. She just nodded her head and left the room.  
  
Petunia and Vernon left soon after. Lily saw their car drive off from her bedroom window.  
  
A knock on the door made her turn. "Enter." She said.  
  
The door opened and Mrs. Evans came in. "Are you all right Lily?" She asked with a frown.  
  
"Yes mum, there is nothing to worry about." Lily said turning back to look out the window.  
  
"Make no notice of your sister, dear. She will get over it." Mrs. Evans said coming into the room and closing the door behind her.  
  
Lily sighed. "I don't know mum, she has been hating me for years, I don't think she will change any time soon." She replied.  
  
"It's her loss. You are a beautiful, sweet person. Your sister will find out how different her life would've been if her personality had been different. I don't understand where her bigotry came from. Your father and I have always been proud of you Lily, always remember that. We don't think of your talent as a freakish thing of nature. It's obvious that only few special people are born with that talent, that you were born in a family in which this talent was non-existent and you have become one of the most talented and powerful witch, is a great accomplishment. Never think that because you are different you have been treated different by your father and I. The only thing that have made you dear to us was because you are our daughter and you always will be, no matter what." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Oh mum!" Exclaimed Lily and threw her arms around her mother. "I miss Daddy." She sobbed.  
  
"I know dear, I miss him too." Mrs. Evans whispered back.  
  
They stayed like that for a few moments, before a knock on the door brought them back to reality.  
  
"Come in." Called Mrs. Evans as the two women dried their tears.  
  
"You have visitors, ma'am." Said a maid as she opened the door.  
  
"Who is it Daisy? We don't feel like receiving visitors today." Mrs. Evans replied.  
  
"It's Mrs. Potter and her son, ma'am. Should I ask them to leave?"  
  
"Oh no, we are always here for the Potters. We will be down in a moment." Exclaimed Mrs. Evans coming to her feet.  
  
The maid bobbed and closed the door.  
  
"Come Lily." Mrs. Evans said and walked toward the door.  
  
"Coming mum." Said Lily as she looked herself in the mirror to check her face. Her nose was a little pink, her eyes a little puffy and her hair was a mess. She sighed. She didn't have time to fix herself up and she had left her wand in her trunk and her trunk was locked in the closet. She ran to the restroom, took a washcloth and immersed it in cold water. She then placed it over her eyes for a few seconds before cleaning her whole face with it. She grabbed a brush and quickly passed it through her hair. There, good enough, she thought.  
  
James and his mother were waiting in the front parlor. Mrs. Evans soon joined them and Lily did so some minutes later. While the older women talked, James pulled Lily to the other side of the room and looked down at her.  
  
"Are you all right?" He asked.  
  
"I'm fine James." She said with a smile.  
  
James looked at her with skepticism but didn't contradict her. "We are returning to the Manor tomorrow." He said. Lily felt her heart sink, she didn't want him to leave her alone. "Do you want to come with us, or remain here?"  
  
Lily turned to look at her mother who was talking very excitedly with Mrs. Potter.  
  
"I don't want her to leave her alone, James. Petunia would be no help. Not after what happened this morning." She said biting her lower lip. James loved it when she did that, not that Lily knew about it.  
  
"What happened?" James asked.  
  
"She made a scene this morning over the will. Daddy left his art collection to me and she wasn't really happy about it. Mum made her apologize and even threatened to cut her of her will if she didn't do so." Lily replied.  
  
James sadly shook his head.  
  
"So you see, I don't think right now would be a good time to leave her on her own." Lily continued.  
  
"You don't have to. Mother is asking her now if she would like to come and live with us at the Manor, as her companion." James said.  
  
"Really James, you wouldn't mind?" Lily asked looking up at James with a hopeful expression.  
  
"As if I would mind being surrounded by beautiful women." He teased.  
  
Lily laughed. "You never know." She chuckled.  
  
James laughed along with her. "So, what do you say?" He asked.  
  
"Let's see what mum says." She replied and led him back to join the older women.  
  
Mrs. Evans turned to look happily at Lily and James.  
  
"Did James tell you? Susan wants me to go with you to the Manor as her companion. You wouldn't mind do you?" Mrs. Evans exclaimed.  
  
"Of course not mum, if that is what you wish." Lily said.  
  
"I think it's for the best dear. This house would bring me too many sad memories. I think I need to distance myself from all of this. We could lease the house. I could make some calls and find a place for all of our servants, I wouldn't want to leave them out in the street." Mrs. Evans was saying.  
  
Lily and James left the two women to make plans to move. Lily took him to the back garden. As it is in most houses in London, there is no room for large gardens or yards, no matter how wealthy or big the house was. Thus, the garden was nothing compared to the ones adorning Gryffindor Manor, but it was still nice. Orchids, lilies by the small pool, roses, and petunias, flowers that Mr. Evans had commissioned for the garden to celebrate the women in his house. The roses were first brought in when he got married. Roses of every color could be seen along the wall. Petunias and lilies were brought in as the two girls were born. And orchids, for the small child that Mrs. Evans had lost before Petunia's birth.  
  
"Very nice." Said James as he looked around. "I see that your father had a thing for flowers."  
  
Lily laughed. "He always said that we were his garden. That there was no need for a big garden because we brought it inside." She said.  
  
Lily had taken hold of James' hand as she gave him a tour. He didn't mind at all. He just didn't want to let her go.  
  
"Come, let's return to the parlor, our mothers will be wondering where we have gone." Said Lily as she led him back to the house.  
  
James let himself be led. It gave him the freedom to look around and look at Lily without being noticed.  
  
When they neared the parlor, they could hear laughter coming out of it. Lily and James looked at each other, puzzled. With a shrug, James opened the door.  
  
"There you are? Where have you been?" Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"In the garden." Said Lily before she leaned to hug Katie who was sitting beside Mrs. Potter in the couch.  
  
"What were you doing in the garden?" Asked Sirius with a lifted brow.  
  
"Walking around, what else are we going to do in a garden?" Countered James.  
  
A mischievous smile settled in Sirius face. James shook his head. "Don't say it, I can well imagine where your dirty imagination is going." He said.  
  
"I was just telling Katie and Sirius that we were moving to the Manor, Lily dear." Said Mrs. Evans as Sirius left his seat and offered it to Lily before joining James by the mantel.  
  
"Yes, isn't it exciting. I'm sure that it will be no problem." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Are you sure that is wise?" Whispered Sirius to James.  
  
"What do you mean?" Asked James.  
  
"Well, having the mother of your girl in the same house. I mean, that is not very wise, you won't be able to get Lily on your own then." Said Sirius.  
  
"The manor is big enough. We are both intelligent enough to deal with it." James said with a shrug.  
  
"Humph! You would like to think so. Let's see what you say in one month." Sirius said.  
  
"Never mind." Exclaimed James. "How are the plans for the wedding going?"  
  
"Well enough. The women have everything in hand. Katie didn't want to involve me in it." Sirius said with a sigh of relief.  
  
James laughed. "And that is good enough for you." He said. "There are three more weeks left." He reminded Sirius.  
  
"Don't remind me, I'm nervous enough as it is." Sirius said with a shudder.  
  
James laughed again.  
  
In the other side of the room, the women were talking about the same subject as the boys.  
  
"Did she say when it was going to be ready?" Mrs. Potter had asked.  
  
"Madam Malkin said that I could pick it up one week in advance. I never thought that I could get a muggle dress in her shop, I thought that I would have to go to a muggle store to get my bridal gown." Said Katie.  
  
"How did she get muggle clothing?" Asked Mrs. Evans. She was enjoying herself listening to the details of the upcoming wedding.  
  
"Oh, she thought it would be wise to start carrying muggle clothing, especially since many of us have to deal with muggles." Katie said with a shrug.  
  
"I think it very wise, many of us come from muggle families and it would be quite a scare for those muggle relatives to see others in wizard robes and cloaks." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"And since the wedding will take place at Saint George's, which is a muggle church, it is better to dress in muggle clothing." Lily said.  
  
The women continued talking about the gown, the flowers, and the decorations. Lily and Mrs. Evans were fast forgetting their troubles as the evening progressed.  
  
"Perhaps we should go." Said Mrs. Potter some time later. "I'm sure that Susan and Lily have much to do if we are leaving for the Manor."  
  
"You can borrow some of our servants if you need the help." Offered James.  
  
"Thank you James, I'm sure we can manage." Susan Evans replied.  
  
Soon after, James, Mrs. Potter, Katie and Sirius left the Evans' home.  
  
"We have a lot to do Lily. Can you speak with the staff? I have a lot of calls to make." Ordered Mrs. Evans.  
  
Lily nodded and left her mother to do her calls in the parlor.  
  
  
  
The evening was very busy for Mrs. Evans and Lily. While the servants helped pack everything of value and the furniture that they would take (James and Mrs. Potter had told them that they would have a wing to themselves at the Manor and that they could take any furniture they wanted to decorate it with), Mrs. Evans called all her friends to see if she could find employment for her staff. She then called the solicitor and gave him the job to put the house on lease. Lily directed all the packing. They had to go through all the things stored in the attic as well as a thorough examination of every room in the house. By the time they were done, it was already four in the morning and everybody was completely exhausted.  
  
The Potters would be leaving that day to the Manor where they would make preparations for the Evans' arrival. Mrs. Evans and Lily planned to move to the country by the end of the week. That meant that they had only three days to be ready.  
  
The next couple of days were total mayhem in the Evans house. Petunia had been told of the move, not that she had cared too much about it. The solicitor had received calls about leasing the house and every single servant had been placed in good families. Everything was now ready for them to leave the house.  
  
The day of their departure arrived. The servants had left the house the previous day. Mrs. Evans and Lily were the only ones left behind.  
  
"I'm going to miss this place." Said Mrs. Evans with a sigh.  
  
They were both sitting in the entrance hall waiting for the car that the Potters had sent to take them to the Manor. A truck carrying all their belongings had left hours before. They stood waiting with only their luggage at their feet.  
  
The furniture left behind in each room was covered to keep dust from settling. The library had been stripped of all the books and had been sent to the manor along with all the other things they were taking. The gold and silver had been stored in a bank along with the family jewelry. The most important pieces, along with the art collection had been stored in Gringotts', a fact that the goblins had not been happy about. Why would they like to store such things? But James had been there when they went to Gringotts and the goblins didn't want to insult him in any way, especially after they saw how close he was with Lily and Mrs. Evans.  
  
A horn sounded. Lily looked out the window.  
  
"It's here mum." She said.  
  
"Very well." Mrs. Evans said. She looked around the hall once more before walking to the door. Lily followed her out.  
  
Martin, the Potter's driver, was waiting holding the door open.  
  
"Thank you Martin." Lily said before she climbed into the car.  
  
"No problem miss." Martin replied before closing the door and storing the luggage in the trunk.  
  
As the car started to drive off, Lily and Mrs. Evans turned to look out the window watching the house left behind.  
  
They drove for hours. The two women looked out the window watching the streets of the city passing by to soon turn to country lanes and open space. They stopped in a town to get something to eat and stretch their legs before driving off once more.  
  
It was late in the evening when they passed the small town at the base of Gryffindor Manor. The gates were wide open and the house was bright and welcoming.  
  
James and Mrs. Potter stood at the door waiting to welcome the new members of their household.  
  
"Welcome to Gryffindor Manor!" Exclaimed James as soon as the two ladies ascended the steps.  
  
"Thank you James." Said Mrs. Evans before turning to greet Mrs. Potter.  
  
Lily smiled up at James. "I hope you won't regret this." She said.  
  
"Too late to change my mind. Besides, I'll have you here with me." He said with what he thought was his most charming smile.  
  
"Your things have arrived and taken up to the wing we assigned for you. Hope you like it, you can redecorate it if you want." Mrs. Potter was saying.  
  
"I'm sure it will be fine Susan." Mrs. Evans responded. The two women were walking away from the door toward the main staircase.  
  
James looked questioningly at Lily and offered his arm. She smiled as she took it. Together, they followed their mothers to the Evans wing, as it had come to be known to the servants.  
  
  
  
During the following days, things settled down in the Manor. Mrs. Evans became accustomed to the big house and didn't get lost anymore. Lily was busy with the twins, who at seven were as adventurous as when they were three years old. Needless to say, Lily had her hands full.  
  
There were now two weeks left for Sirius' and Katie's wedding. Both had come to stay in the Manor to escape the madness that their families were going through in preparation for the big day.  
  
"Nervous?" James asked one morning as both he and Sirius rode around the estate. Snow had fallen during the night. The estate was completely blanketed with snow. A white paradise.  
  
"Very." Said Sirius with a self conscious smile.  
  
"It will be over soon." James said.  
  
Sirius took a deep breath. "I hope so. The waiting is killing me."  
  
James laughed. He had never seen Sirius like this before.  
  
"It's not funny! Let's see how you react when it's your turn to marry." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
James shrugged. "We'll see." He said.  
  
Sirius gave him a suspicious glance. James just rode on with a smile on his face.  
  
"Humph!" Snorted Sirius but didn't say a word.  
  
James laughed and let his horse trot through the snow.  
  
  
  
Lily was trying to calm Katie in the parlor as the two young men rode.  
  
".And of course mum had to send everything back. Can you imagine! Lord, this wedding is turning out to be a veritable circus." Katie was saying.  
  
"I'm sure is not as bad as that." Lily said.  
  
"It is. You will not believe what we were sent. Father's aunt sent a set of biting cups. Sirius liked it of course, he would. I think I will store it somewhere in the attics." Katie was saying as she talked about the gifts that had been sent to her parent's house.  
  
"Have you thought of where you will live?" Asked Lily. She hadn't heard the couple speak of where they would make their home and she was very curious about it.  
  
"Oh, didn't I tell you? Sirius bought a house last week. It's about the same size as your mother's, in Rowe Square of course. It's quite darling. We went shopping for furniture before we came. Not everything of course. We will go shopping once more once all this madness is over." Katie gushed. She was clearly happy about the house Sirius had bought.  
  
Lily was quite surprised that he had thought of it. But then again, with Katie as his wife to be, there was nothing else for him to do.  
  
Katie talked and talked about the small house in Rowe Square. Lily nodded and smiled as her friend spoke excitedly about it. Jealousy rose through her and she fought to keep it from showing. It wasn't Katie's fault, after all, that she was getting married first. Lily breathed deeply. Counted until ten. Finally her envy receded and she could smile calmly as her friend talked.  
  
  
  
During the next two weeks, a sort of routine was settled. James and Sirius left the house before the women awoke and roamed the estate until time for luncheon. Then, they would leave the house once more, not returning until it was time for dinner, after which, they would retire to the game room for a game of billiards before going up to bed.  
  
The women didn't mind not having them around at all. It was now December and time for decorating the house for the holidays was at hand. Katie and Lily took the girls to skate around the frozen lake or to play around the snow every day.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans took the attics by storm and went through all the decorations that had accumulated throughout the years. It took them a week to choose the decorations they wanted to use for this year. On the second week, they spent their mornings with the girls shopping for ribbon and the afternoons going up to London and helping with the wedding plans.  
  
Katie and Lily had their final fittings while James and Sirius had theirs.  
  
Soon, the final day before the wedding was upon them and they all had plans for it.  
  
"What are we doing?" Asked a drowsy Sirius after James pulled him out of his bed at the ungodly hour of ten on a Saturday!  
  
"Will you shut up and come along? If you don't, you are not having a bachelor's party." James said as he led him to the garage just next to the kitchens.  
  
"A bachelor's party eh? What are we doing?" Asked Sirius, sleep forgotten.  
  
"I'm not telling you." Said James with a chuckle.  
  
"Well, all right. But this better not get me into any trouble." Said Sirius as he eagerly walked beside James.  
  
"Oh don't worry, we won't say a thing." James replied.  
  
"Who is coming?"  
  
"Will you stop asking questions, you will find out soon enough." Exclaimed James.  
  
"Oh fine!"  
  
James threw the doors of the garage open. There were three black cars in the front. Two belonged to the Potters, the other to the Blacks, Katie and Sirius had driven it over in case it was needed.  
  
James walked past the cars toward the very back. A pair of large motorcycles stood against the wall.  
  
"Now you are talking." Said Sirius rubbing his hands.  
  
"I thought you would enjoy this." Laughed James.  
  
The two young men mounted their bikes, took the helmets hanging from a couple of nails on the wooden wall and put them on.  
  
"Ready?" James asked.  
  
"Let's hit the road." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
There was a side door open in front of them. The two bikes roared and a couple of minutes later two bikes were seen driving down the road.  
  
Lily stood in front of her window looking down the estate. A smile on her lips. "I hope those two don't get in trouble, the last time they were together they got locked in jail." She said out loud. She then turned to make plans on her own.  
  
An hour later, Lily and Katie were silently eating when Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans walked in. Both women were giggling like schoolgirls. Lily and Katie looked at each other with surprise.  
  
"Well Katie, looking forward to tomorrow?" Asked Mrs. Evans as she sat and waited for Roberts to serve.  
  
"Oh yes, but I can't help feeling a little apprehensive." Said Katie with honesty.  
  
"Oh don't worry dear, we all get these prenuptial jitters before a wedding." Said Mrs. Evans as a plate with food was placed in front of her.  
  
"Oh I remember the day Aliaster and I got married. I was so nervous I nearly fainted when the doors to the chapel opened and I was supposed to start walking down the aisle. Mother had to pinch me in order to get me to start walking. But the moment I saw him standing there, in front of the altar, all my worries just flew out of my mind." Mrs. Potter said with a sigh.  
  
"Oh, I was nervous as well when Edward and I married. I kept thinking that I was going to be sick in front of everybody, but it soon passed and I could enjoy the rest of the day." Mrs. Evans said.  
  
"Any plans for today?" Asked Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Not really, we just thought to go down to London." Said Lily with a shrug.  
  
"What just the two of you?" Asked Mrs. Evans with surprise.  
  
"Pretty much, we didn't bother to think about inviting others." Said Katie.  
  
When the two young women had talked about a party for this day, they both remembered Emma, and somehow, it felt wrong to celebrate without her. They both decided that perhaps it was best if they were just on their own.  
  
"Oh we won't hear of it. You are lucky that we made plans then." Exclaimed Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Mum, what have you two done?" Asked Lily turning to look at her mother.  
  
"Don't you worry dear, we will have fun today." Mrs. Evans patting her daughter's hand.  
  
Katie turned a scared look at Lily. Lily just shrugged. If the older ladies had made plans they didn't have a chance to stop them.  
  
Lily sighed, perhaps it would had been better if they had gone early as the boys had done, she thought.  
  
Later that afternoon, the largest parlor was filled with women. Drinks were being passed around and a table laden with snacks stood against a wall. Next to it stood another table, this was laden with gifts.  
  
"Come girls, it's time for our guest of honor to start opening the gifts." Called Mrs. Potter.  
  
Cheers arose and Katie was marched to sit upon a chair placed in the center of the room. The gifts were brought in front of her and everybody waited for her to start.  
  
Katie laughed and grabbed one of the gifts piled in front of her. "Very well." She said and started to unwrap the gift.  
  
She slowly opened the box. It was full of tissue paper and she slowly parted it, much to the consternation of the others who were waiting to find out what she had gotten.  
  
"Oh no." Katie gasped and started to giggle.  
  
"Well come on, we want to see it." Exclaimed one of the women. The others nodded in agreement.  
  
Katie giggled some more and held up a nightdress, if you could call it that. It was really small, and she wagered it would only reach down to her hips, it was also rather transparent and she blushed to think what Sirius would make of it. In the box was a pair of small satin shorts. The women cheered and laughed as she held up the garment.  
  
"That should keep him up during his wedding night." Said an old woman sitting nearby. The other women laughed while Katie blushed some more.  
  
  
  
In London, two motorcycles parked in front of this obscure pub.  
  
"Are we meeting everybody here?" Sirius asked as he dismounted from the bike.  
  
"Will you stop asking so many questions?" James exclaimed.  
  
"Fine! But you could tell me more of what is going to happen." Sirius complained.  
  
"You'll find out soon enough." James said.  
  
Both were standing in front of the shabby establishment. People were passing by, paying no attention to the young men.  
  
"Come then, you don't want to stay out here the whole day." James said and pulled Sirius into the pub.  
  
The Leaky Cauldron was full as it always was on the weekends. Several people greeted them as they walked toward the back where a parlor had been set aside for them. Tom, the Cauldron's owner, was waiting for them.  
  
"Had a nice trip Mr. Potter, Mr. Black?" He asked as the two young men stopped in front of him.  
  
"Really nice." Said James as Sirius tried to look beyond Tom and get a glance at what was inside the room. "Stop." James said as he hit Sirius on his arm.  
  
"Hey!"  
  
Tom laughed. He had known these two young men since they had first come to the Leaky Cauldron to visit Diagon Alley when they were really young. As both boys came from old wizard families, they had come down with their parents very often before they received their letter from Hogwarts. They never seem to be apart from each other and he guessed that they would always be the very best of friends.  
  
"Everything is ready Mr. Potter." Tom said with a chuckle as he noticed Sirius frown. "Just call if you need anything else."  
  
"Of course Tom, thank you." James replied. "Ready?" He asked, turning to look at Sirius.  
  
"Been since we left the Manor this morning." Sirius complained.  
  
James laughed and opened the door to the parlor. A cheer greeted their entrance.  
  
"CONGRATULATIONS!" Those inside screamed.  
  
"I don't think that is right, a shame really, to get married." Said a young man sprawled on one of the couches.  
  
"That is a cynical view of marriage Jason." Said Remus, who was standing by the windows, clearly looking out for James' and Sirius' arrival.  
  
The man named Jason shrugged.  
  
"Jason is just too afraid to be burned twice." Laughed Frank Longbottom who was sitting on a chair beside the windows.  
  
There were several young men around the room. A table laden with food stood against a wall and with full decanters. All those in the room had a glass in their hand, joking and laughing as Sirius and James went around the room greeting everyone.  
  
"When is the entertainment going to start?" Somebody asked.  
  
"Ooh, entertainment! What kind of entertainment do you have planned for me Prongs, old friend?" Sirius asked.  
  
"You'll see." James laughed.  
  
Remus, who was standing beside them, laughed and shook his head.  
  
"Where is Peter?" Asked Sirius as he looked around for their short friend.  
  
"Not here yet. He did say he might be a little late." Remus said.  
  
"Oh well." Sirius said with a shrug. A glass was shoved into his hand and he drank thankfully. "Aaahhh! That was good. That ride made me thirsty." He said.  
  
"Humph! More like all that screaming made you thirsty." Said James.  
  
Remus laughed. "Sirius Black screaming?"  
  
James nodded. "Kept trying to keep a conversation going. How he thought we were going to converse in the middle of the road is beyond me."  
  
"I was trying to be friendly." Sirius replied.  
  
The lights were getting darker, silence was falling over the crowd.  
  
"It seems that the entertainment is about to start." Somebody said.  
  
"About time too." Someone else said.  
  
"I hope Katie doesn't find out about this Sirius, or your wedding night will not turn out as you wish it will." Somebody said with a laugh.  
  
"As long as you lot keep your mouths shut, there is no need for her to find out." Sirius said before sitting at a chair placed in the middle of the room. Soon after a slow melody started to play.  
  
Somebody standing outside the room would've been extremely curious about the noise coming from inside. Catcalls and cheers could be heard as well as a lot of laughter.  
  
  
  
It was late that same evening when the guests started to leave the manor. Lily was helping Katie pack all the gifts she had received. Most would be sent to the new house to await their arrival from the honeymoon. Only a few chosen pieces were packed with the luggage that Katie would take with her. Both girls were giggling as they looked over the garments choosing which to pack and which to keep.  
  
"I think you should take this." Said Lily holding up a flimsy lacy garment that upon closer inspection showed to be a robe.  
  
"Doesn't cover much does it?" Giggled Katie.  
  
Lily smiled. "I'm sure Sirius would like it." She said.  
  
"Oh, I'm sure he will." Katie replied.  
  
"What about this one?" Lily asked holding a floor length gown. Made of satin and lace, the surface of the emerald gown sparkled in the candlelight.  
  
"It is beautiful isn't it?" Katie said as both girls gazed upon the garment. Lily nodded. "I wished it would look good on me, but emerald is not my color." Said Katie with a sigh.  
  
"What are you going to do with it?" Lily asked as she spread the gown on the bed. The semitransparent satin blending with the satin sheets on the bed.  
  
"Why don't you keep it, it would look perfect on you." Said Katie with excitement. "I'm sure James would like it." She added with a sly smile.  
  
"Katie!" Lily exclaimed reaching for her friend who skipped away from her, giggling as she went.  
  
The door opened before Lily could reach Katie. Mrs. Potter stood on the door looking at the two young women having fun in the room.  
  
"Everything ready for tomorrow dear?" Mrs. Potter asked.  
  
"Oh yes, almost packed." Katie said. "When is Sirius coming back?"  
  
"Oh he is not dear, it wouldn't do for the groom to see the bride before the wedding, now would it? It would bring you bad luck. James and Sirius will spend the night in London." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"Oh." Was all Katie said. She had been looking forward to seeing Sirius and tell him about her afternoon, but she supposed it was better this way.  
  
"How are we getting to London tomorrow Mrs. Potter?" Asked Lily as the trunk was shut and locked.  
  
"You'll Floo to the Bennett house where you will change. We have the whole morning to get ready, so I encourage you to into bed. You will need all the rest you can get. Especially you Katie." Mrs. Potter said and left the room, closing the door behind her.  
  
"Oh yes Katie, you will need your rest, especially since Sirius will keep you up the whole night." Lily giggled.  
  
"Lily!" It was Lily's turn to skip away from Katie.  
  
An impromptu pillow fight ensued before both girls fell exhausted on their respective beds.  
  
  
  
Snow had fallen throughout the night. The white snow sparkled in the dim sunlight.  
  
"Oh, it's perfect." Gushed Katie as she and Lily stood in front of the windows looking out.  
  
Both were waiting for Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans in the family parlor. Trunks and luggage waited in front of the fireplace.  
  
"Oh Lily! This looks great." Exclaimed Katie twirling around the room.  
  
Lily laughed, she was so glad to see her friend so happy.  
  
"I gather you two are ready." Said Mrs. Evans coming into the room closely followed by Mrs. Potter.  
  
"We are." Said both girls.  
  
"Good. Here we go then." Mrs. Potter said. With a flick of her wand the luggage disappeared into thin air. Another flick and fired roared in the grate. She then took some powder from the vase on the mantel and threw it into the fire.  
  
"You go first Katie dear." She said.  
  
Katie nodded and walked into the fire. "Bennett House!" She yelled and with a swooshing sound she disappeared from sight.  
  
"You next Lily." Mrs. Potter said. Lily nodded, kissed her mother goodbye and stepped into the grate.  
  
"We'll see you later dear." Said Mrs. Evans, waving to her daughter.  
  
Lily waved back and yelling "Bennett House!" She disappeared.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans were going to London in the car. As Mrs. Evans couldn't travel by Floo, they decided to get dressed and would then drive down to town.  
  
  
  
In a room of the Leaky Cauldron a young man was frantically looking through his pockets.  
  
"I've lost it I tell you! Oh Lord, Katie is going to kill me." Moaned Sirius.  
  
"Are you sure you looked everywhere?" Asked Peter as he kneeled beside the bed and looked under it.  
  
"Yes, I can't remember when I saw it last." Said a distraught Sirius running his fingers through his hair.  
  
"Where did you have it?" Asked Remus as he looked into the vase full of flowers on the bedside table.  
  
"I don't remember." Moaned Sirius.  
  
"What is going on? Sirius, what are you doing? You have to get ready, Katie is going to kill us if we are late." Exclaimed James coming into the room.  
  
"He lost the ring." Peter said from underneath the bed.  
  
"He doesn't remember where he put it." Said Remus turning to look at James.  
  
"What are you doing under there Peter?" Asked James with a frown.  
  
"I'm helping looking for it. But we can't find it." Wheezed Peter as he tried to slide out from underneath the bed.  
  
"Of course you can't find it. I have the rings." James said.  
  
Peter, Remus and Sirius turned to look at him. "What did you say?" Croaked Sirius.  
  
"I have the rings. You gave them to me two days ago." Said James.  
  
The others sighed with relief.  
  
"Oh, I thought I was in big trouble." Said Sirius.  
  
James laughed. "I can't believe you didn't remember that you gave me your rings. Oh lord! You are not going to be my best man, you might lose my rings."  
  
"Speaking of weddings, there is one we have to get ready for." Said Remus. He motioned Peter to leave with him.  
  
James stayed in the room a while longer. "Are you ready?" He asked.  
  
"I think so. If I'm not, then Katie will make sure to let me know how ready I am." Laughed Sirius.  
  
James smiled. "Get dressed then." He said and with a nod left his friend to prepare.  
  
  
  
There were two more hours left for the ceremony to begin. Katie was standing in front of the mirror in her undergarments waiting for her mother to return with her gown. Lily was sitting on the bed, wearing a dressing gown. Both girls had their hair made up and their makeup done.  
  
"What is taking her so long?" Exclaimed Katie in an exasperated tone.  
  
Lily shrugged. "She won't be long." She said.  
  
"Easy for you to say, you are not a mass of nerves trembling from head to toes." Katie said.  
  
Lily smiled. "Don't worry, everything will be fine." She said.  
  
"Do you think so?" Katie asked somewhat worried.  
  
"I know so." Lily said.  
  
At that moment the door opened. Mrs. Bennett walked in with Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans. They were carrying Katie's gown.  
  
"Let's get you ready my dear." Said Mrs. Bennett.  
  
Forty-five minutes later, Katie stood in front of the mirror in her gown. Mrs. Bennett was noisily sobbing into a handkerchief. "Oh my baby girl is so gorgeous." She sobbed.  
  
"Oh mum. Don't cry, you are going to make me cry as well." Katie said giving her mother a hug.  
  
"Come Lily, let's finish you off." Said Mrs. Evans taking Lily and leaving the room. Mrs. Potter left right behind them, leaving daughter and mother together one last time.  
  
"You do know what is going to happen tonight, right dear?" Asked Mrs. Bennett drying her tears.  
  
"Mum, you are not going to give me the talk are you? You gave it to me before I left for my fourth year at Hogwarts remember?" Said Katie in a laughing tone.  
  
Mrs. Bennett smiled kindly at her daughter. "You are not afraid about it?" She asked.  
  
"No mum, don't worry." Katie said hugging her mother once more. They separated when a knock sounded on the door.  
  
The door opened and Mrs. Potter stepped in.  
  
"Marie, dear. There is something that you need to know." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
Mrs. Bennett frowned with worry but smiled at her daughter before leaving the room. "Now rest dear, you still have half an hour before we have to leave." She said.  
  
Katie nodded and sat on her bed, patiently waiting for someone to come and keep her company.  
  
  
  
Oh the hall, Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Bennett were talking in whispers as they hurried from the room.  
  
"A messenger from the Ministry just arrived for Lyndon." Mrs. Potter said as soon as they retreated from the bedchamber. "It doesn't seem like good news."  
  
"What do those old biddies want? It's our daughter's wedding day for goodness sake, can't they do things on their own for a day?" Exclaimed Mrs. Bennett.  
  
"We'll soon find out what they want." Mrs. Potter said as the two women arrived to the main entrance.  
  
The entrance hall was full of tables all laden with gifts and flowers. The women didn't stop to look around, they walked up to the bookroom, where they heard people talking.  
  
Before they reached the door it opened and a cloaked person left the room in a hurry.  
  
"What happened Lyndon, why did he come?" Asked Mrs. Bennett as she entered the room.  
  
"An attack, there was an attack in Hogsmeade." Lyndon Bennett said in a hallow voice. Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans gasped.  
  
"Was anybody hurt?" Asked Mrs. Potter.  
  
"A family was killed, others were injured. Thank the gods it wasn't a Hogsmeade weekend at Hogwarts, otherwise it could have been worse. I'm sorry Marie, I have to go." Mr. Bennett said.  
  
"But it's Katie's wedding Lyndon. You can't run off for that." Exclaimed Mrs. Bennett.  
  
"Believe me Marie, nobody regrets this more than I do, but it is my job. As an Auror, I have to take care of this." Mr. Bennett said. "I will speak with Katie, I'm sure she will understand."  
  
"Understand? Lyndon, who is going to walk our daughter down the aisle?" Screamed Mrs. Bennett.  
  
"Maybe Peter or Remus will do so." Said Mrs. Potter trying to calm Mrs. Bennett.  
  
"But it's almost time to go, we can't ask them on time." Mrs. Bennett wailed.  
  
"Maybe Miriam can help, she arrived before the messenger and we were speaking when he arrived, she might have an idea." Mr. Bennett said.  
  
Mrs. Bennett seemed to be thinking hard. "Did your sister bring her son with her?" She asked.  
  
Mr. Bennett nodded.  
  
"It will be fine then, I'll ask him to walk Katie. I'll go talk to them now." Said Mrs. Bennett leaving the room in a hurried pace.  
  
"I'll go talk to Katie." Mr. Bennett called after her.  
  
  
  
Sirius was a nervous wreck. He paced back and forth in the chamber put aside for him and his friends beside the chapel. Half an hour for the ceremony to start and Katie had not arrived.  
  
"What if she changed her mind? What if she doesn't want to marry me anymore?" Said Sirius as he paced.  
  
"She'll be here, don't worry, the traffic might have delayed them." Said James as he sat on a chair watching his best friend pace.  
  
"Sit down Sirius, you are making me dizzy." Said Remus.  
  
"Why isn't she here?" Sirius exclaimed taking no notice of the others.  
  
James shook his head, Remus rolled his eyes and Peter just stood by the windows looking bored.  
  
"She'll be here, now sit." Commanded James.  
  
Sirius sighed and sat on one of the chairs found in the room.  
  
"You still have half an hour." Said Peter. "There is still time for her to arrive."  
  
The room fell silent, nobody said a thing for the next minutes. Sirius kept glancing toward the clock against a wall. Twenty-five minutes until the ceremony began. Twenty. Sirius groaned and ran his finger through his hair.  
  
"Will you stop, you ruined your hair now." Exclaimed James and with a swish of his wand, which he had hidden in his breast pocket, he rearranged Sirius hair.  
  
"It's almost time and she is not here." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"Will you relax?" Remus said. "She must be on her way."  
  
"Here she comes." Suddenly said Peter. The boys ran to the windows and looked out. A horse-drawn carriage stopped in front of the church. They saw a footman jump from beside the driver and let down some steps. Mrs. Bennett climbed down, closely followed by Lily.  
  
"There you see, she is here." Said James pulling Sirius from the window and leading the others to the other side of the room. There was knock on the door and Sirius' mother came in.  
  
"They are here dear, it's time for you to get ready." She said.  
  
"Thanks mum." Sirius said and kissed her cheek, walking out the room.  
  
Mrs. Black followed with tears filling her eyes.  
  
They arrived at the entrance of the chapel. Mrs. Black quickly went to find her seat. The doors opened and people started to pile into the chapel.  
  
"What are you doing here?" Asked Sirius enraged at the sight of the person who had just come into the church.  
  
"I'm not here because of you." The person in front of them said.  
  
"Then why are you here?" Asked James standing beside Sirius. Remus stood on Sirius' other side. Peter stood behind the three of them.  
  
"Not that it is any of your concern, but my cousin wished me to be here and help her through this trying time." Severus Snape said to the three young men in front of him.  
  
"Your cousin?" Asked Remus with a frown. "What cousin?"  
  
Snape smiled and leered at the three boys. "My mother's brother's daughter of course, Katherine Bennett."  
  
The four boys gaped. "Katie is your cousin?" Asked Peter, finally coming out from behind his friends.  
  
"Yes, she is." Snape said.  
  
"Why didn't she tell us?" James asked.  
  
"Because it's none of your concern. And she knew I wasn't too happy with her because of her friendship with you." Snape growled.  
  
"You have no say on who she can be friends with." Sirius said.  
  
"Obviously, otherwise we would not be here now would we? But no matter, if she wishes to marry you, so be it. But make no mistake Black, if anything happens to her because of you, you will regret it." Snape warned.  
  
Nothing more was said. The church door was opened once more and the bridal party started to come in.  
  
"What are you doing here Sirius, this is no time to chat, go on, go to the front." Said Mrs. Bennett motioning at the boys to walk to the front.  
  
With a last glower at Snape, Sirius led his friends to the front of the church.  
  
"Ready dear?" Asked Mrs. Bennett to Katie who had just come through the door.  
  
Katie nodded. Suddenly, the organ started to play, the twins started down the aisle with their baskets full of petals. Severus Snape turned to smile down at his cousin and offered his arm. Katie smiled. Lily started to walk down the aisle, and the song soon changed to a wedding march. People stood from their seats and turned to look at the vision in white that had just entered. Some people smiled, others sobbed. Katie didn't notice anyone other than the man standing in the front waiting for her.  
  
  
  
When the ceremony was over, it was starting to get dark. Nobody wanted to stay long upon the steps of the church and soon departed toward Rowe Square where they planned to enjoy the festivities.  
  
A small band played on a balcony above the ballroom. The place was decorated with white roses and vines against all the walls. Tables were spread through out the room, leaving a large empty space in the middle for dancing.  
  
Mrs. Bennett and Severus Snape stood by the door along with Mr. and Mrs. Black, welcoming the guests as soon as they arrived. Katie and Sirius went for a ride around the park to wait until the very last minute to arrive. Lily and James had gone along with them.  
  
An hour after the ceremony had ended, a white carriage was seen arriving the Regency Hotel in Rowe Square.  
  
The guests were waiting anxiously to greet the newly weds. Applause and cheers filled the room when the doors of the ballroom opened and the new Mr. and Mrs. Sirius Black walked into the room.  
  
They sat at the main table in front of the room, Lily and James close behind them. Waiters soon walked among the tables serving champagne and getting the orders of the guests.  
  
James stood up and motioned the room to be silent.  
  
"I have known Sirius and Katie since they first met at Hogwarts ten years ago. If anybody would've told us that these two were going to get married someday, we would've laughed in his face. To anybody that knows Sirius well enough knows this to be true, none of us expected him to be the first one to take the plunge. But I must say, that a relationship like theirs is hard to come upon. For the four years that they had been together, they have brought happiness to each other, and I hope that they will continue to do so. My friends, let's raise our glasses and wish them the best. To Happiness." James said.  
  
"Happiness!" Everybody said and sipped from their goblets.  
  
That was the beginning of a string of toasts given to the couple. Some were sweet and full of advise, while others were rather humorous. Soon, dinner was over and it was time for Katie and Sirius to open the dance.  
  
A waltz started from the balcony. Sirius took his wife into his arms and twirled her around the floor. People cheered and applauded before finally joining them on the floor. Their friends and family joined them. Soon the dance was in full swing. People were having fun dancing and drinking.  
  
Even though it was winter, people were glad that the windows were thrown open, allowing some cool air to enter the room. The body heat coming from the many people packed into the room was enough to keep the food on the tables heated.  
  
People started to leave the dance floor to cool off with drink and cool air. But even so, the floor was packed with dancing couples.  
  
It was late into the evening when a young couple detached themselves from the dance floor. Nobody said anything against it, and nobody saw them leaving the room.  
  
James led Lily through the lobby of the hotel. It seemed quite empty. Only a few people were around, whom James instantly recognized as Aurors from the Ministry. Most he knew from sight, people he had met when he visited his father at the Ministry offices. It seemed that Mr. Bennett wanted to make sure of his daughter's safety.  
  
They collected their cloaks and walked out of the Hotel. The night was clear, even if a little chilly.  
  
The snow that had fallen the previous night had been removed from the ground, only the treetops and the roofs of the buildings around the square glistened with the moonlight.  
  
"I gather Remus left right after the ceremony." Lily said as they walked toward the park in the middle of Rowe Square.  
  
"Yes, it is rather unlucky that it happened to be a full moon." James replied.  
  
The park was quiet. Lampposts lighted every inch of the park. The lanes were well lit and the fairies could be seem skipping among the plants, hoping to find a good place to hide. The pool in the middle of the park sparkled in the moonlight.  
  
"This is new." Said Lily looking down at the clear waters of the pool. Fish swam by.  
  
"Yes, it replaced the fountain that used to stand here. After the incident with the Death Eaters they decided to make some changes." James said looking down at Lily, resplendent in her emerald gown.  
  
Lily nodded but said nothing more, she was enjoying the silence and the company of the young man beside her.  
  
"Lily, you know that I love you right?" James suddenly said.  
  
"Of course I do, I love you as well. Is something wrong?" Lily asked somewhat concerned. What was this all about, she asked herself.  
  
James shook his head. He seemed a bit nervous but a deep breath seemed to make him stronger.  
  
"You have always been the joy of my life Lily. During all those years we were apart I couldn't help but think that it was wrong, I couldn't handle being away from you, and I don't intend of doing so again. Lily?" He kneeled in front of her, holding a small box in his hand. Lily gasped, a silent sob escaping from her. "Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"  
  
He opened the box, a golden ring with a solitaire diamond nestled in the satin. Silent tears of happiness ran down Lily's face.  
  
"Of course I will, there is nothing else I wish to be but your wife." She whispered.  
  
James gave a "whoop" making Lily laugh. He stood and slid the ring in her finger before taking her in his arms and sealing their engagement with a passionate kiss.  
  
  
  
  
  
A/N: I know, it's a rather long chapter, hope you enjoyed it. James, finally proposed, and Lily has gone through a very grieving period. I just want to mention The Regency Hotel where the party took place, when I wrote this a few weeks ago I thought I was inventing a name for the hotel. Well, I recently found out that there is a Regency Hotel in London, England. What a coincidence isn't it? But it's not the same hotel, this one is of my own imagination, I've never been to London so I really don't know what that hotel actually looks like, but if any of my readers are from England and had been to that hotel, what is it like? Anyhoo, don't forget to review, and check the doll site for the story characters if you haven't seen it yet. http://community.webshots.com/album/45028991uBnciM See you soon! 


	32. Part II Chapter 8

A/N: I hope you liked the last chapter. I didn't really go too much into Sirius' and Katie's wedding because, let's face it, they are secondary characters and I wanted to use it as a way to get James to propose, Lily's and James's wedding will be more descriptive, I hope. Anyways, here is more for you and I hope you enjoy it.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own anything that you might recognize.  
  
  
  
Chapter 8 ~ Wedding Bells  
  
  
  
The wedding lasted until the early hours of the morning. Katie and Sirius left at midnight, guests waving and cheering as the car drove away. In all the excitement nobody noticed the young couple that sneaked back into the room, nor the exchange of amorous glances that they threw to each other. But a handful of people did, and they couldn't be any happier.  
  
Most of the guests had come from far to take part on the festivities, some of them made reservations in the hotel, those who could not afford it stayed with the Potters, the Bennetts and the Blacks in their London houses.  
  
It was very late the next afternoon when all the guests left. Everybody was rather late in getting up.  
  
It was during afternoon tea (which was more like a late lunch) when James, Lily, Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans, sat together to discuss the previous day.  
  
"Oh and I loved the way she looked." Mrs. Evans exclaimed.  
  
"She did look wonderful." Agreed Mrs. Potter.  
  
Lily nodded enthusiastically as she sipped from her tea.  
  
"I did notice that you two were missing for a while from the party." Said Mrs. Potter lifting her eyebrows in a questioning manner.  
  
James choked on his tea while Lily blushingly looked down at her lap.  
  
"What makes you say that?" Asked James after he stopped coughing.  
  
"We looked for you. Katie was going to throw her bouquet and you were nowhere to be found." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Oh, it must have been while we were walking on the park, it was rather stuffy in the room." James explained.  
  
"Indeed." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Yes, and it was such a nice evening, we went for a stroll." James said.  
  
"I see. You needed to stretch your legs." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
James nodded. Lily just played with the food she had left on her plate.  
  
"Humph!" Snorted Mrs. Potter. "I expect you can explain why Lily is wearing the family engagement ring."  
  
"Well that is because we are engaged." Said James.  
  
"And when were you going to tell us?" Asked Mrs. Potter crossing her arms.  
  
"When everything calmed down. You didn't expect us to announce it during Katie's and Sirius' especial day did you? Wouldn't do at all." James exclaimed.  
  
"Well, that is certainly true. But you could've said something before we sat down to eat." Mrs. Evans said. "I would like to know when my daughter gets engaged to be married."  
  
"I'm sorry mum, we just wanted to let you know at the right time." Said Lily hugging her mother.  
  
"Well, in that case." Mrs. Evans said with a smile. "Now let me have a look at that ring." She said as she took hold of her daughter's hand and looked at the piece of jewelry adorning her finger. "Oh, it's wonderful isn't it?" She exclaimed.  
  
"It is. It has been in the family for ages. I remember when Aliaster gave it to me twenty-eight years ago." Sighed Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Oh, did James asked it from you?" Asked Mrs. Evans letting go of her daughter's hand.  
  
"Oh no, it is customary for the ring to be given to the first born son when he comes of age. I gave it to James when Aliaster died." Mrs. Potter said. "I expect you put it in the Gringotts' vault then?" She asked turning to look at her son, who had resumed eating as the women talked.  
  
James nodded. "Yes, I took it from the vault some weeks ago." He said.  
  
His mother nodded in satisfaction.  
  
"Have you two decided on the date?" Mrs. Evans asked.  
  
"No, we haven't discussed a thing mum, we barely got engaged yesterday." Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"The sooner the better, my dear." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Well, I do fancy having a summer wedding." Said Lily with a thoughtful expression.  
  
"Oh, a June Bride, that would be perfect." Exclaimed Mrs. Evans.  
  
"And we have six months to prepare, enough time." Said Mrs. Potter with excitement.  
  
James groaned as the three women started to discuss wedding plans.  
  
  
  
The days went by and the Manor was once more inhabited. Everybody who worked in the estate now knew of their master's impeding wedding and couldn't be any happier. A notice had been sent to the Daily Prophet announcing the engagement. Mrs. Potter cut it and started a scrapbook she planned to give them on the eve of their wedding.  
  
This is what the notice said:  
  
"Mrs. Susan Potter, wife of the former Ministry advisor, Aliaster Potter, gladly announces the engagement of her only son and heir, James H. Potter to Ms. Lily Marie Evans, daughter of Edward Evans (deceased) and Mrs. Rose Evans. The couple met while they attended Hogwarts School of Wizardry and Witchcraft. A summer wedding is planned."  
  
  
  
After the announcement appeared in the Prophet, several owls with congratulations arrived at the Manor. The neighbors found excuses to go to the Manor and see the young couple.  
  
The gardeners started to plan the flowers wanted to use for decorating the chapel. Mrs. Nichols, the housekeeper, along with a battalion of maids and house elves scrubbed and waxed every inch of the chapel. It didn't matter that both James and Lily reminded them that there were still several months to do so, they wanted to be prepared.  
  
Christmas had arrived and the landscape was covered in snow. The pond had frozen and the gnomes found in Lily's and James' garden were hidden deep in the ground to keep warm. Things couldn't be better for the young couple, and they wished things could stay the same.  
  
  
  
In a pub, far away from any major city, sat a young man in a booth near the fire. The place was empty, it was too cold and too icy for anybody willing to leave the warmth of their houses.  
  
"I must be insane." He muttered as the door of the pub opened and a freezing breeze cooled the room.  
  
A cloaked person sat in front of him. "Glad to see you made it." A sarcastic voice said. Peter turned to look at the leering face of Lucius Malfoy. "What do you want? I did what you wanted and they didn't know where Emma is." He said.  
  
"Oh we know that, but my master believes that you will come in useful in the future." Luciius said. He clearly felt insulted that his master thought that Peter, a not so talented wizard, could be more useful than himself.  
  
"Useful?" Asked Peter with fear in his eyes.  
  
Lucius nodded looking around the pub with a disgusted expression. "He seems to think that the upcoming wedding of Potter and Evans will be something especial." He said.  
  
"I will not spy on Lily and James." Peter said with bravado, even though in his heart he was quaking.  
  
"You will do what you are told. We know where you live Pettigrew, the only reason you and your mother are alive is because my master thinks you might be useful, but if you go against us, you will regret it. Decide Pettigrew, your friends or your mother's safety." He said in a menacing tone.  
  
Peter swallowed hard. He seemed to be struggling with himself. For years he had done all he could to keep his mother safe, and he knew he would do anything to keep doing so. But at the same time, he didn't want to betray his friends. Finally, he came to a decision. His friends could take care of themselves, his mother needed him. He slowly nodded.  
  
"Good. Be here in two weeks, don't make us wait." Lucius said as he passed a piece of parchment to Peter.  
  
Malfoy rose and quietly left the room. Peter looked down to the folded parchment; he opened it and read.  
  
Green Moor, 8 p.m.  
  
Peter refolded it and put it in one of his pockets. He finished his drink, placed some money on the table and taking his hat and cloak left the pub.  
  
  
  
Christmas was a happy occasion at Gryffindor Manor. Everybody woke early, thanks to the twins, and congregated in the family parlor. A large pine tree stood in front of the windows decorated with ribbons and a colorful array of crystal balls. Each glittered and changed color as the light hit them.  
  
The twins squealed and laughed as they opened their gifts, James looked indulgently as he stood by the mantel with a cup of tea in his hands. Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans clapped as they laughed along with the young girls. And Lily smiled as she looked down on them.  
  
James liked the family scene that was in front of him. He turned to look at Lily as she giggled along with the twins as they showed her the gifts they had gotten. James smiled. He couldn't wait until next Christmas, their first as a married couple, and those that would follow, when, he was sure, there would be a new generation of Potters to make their Christmas more merry.  
  
During the day, visitors came and went with Christmas greetings and small gifts for the family.  
  
Before luncheon, Lily and Mrs. Potter went around the estate with baskets full of fruits and preserves for the tenants. In the afternoon, James and Lily drove around town visiting the merchants and neighbors with small gifts.  
  
Dinner was more sumptuous than usual. A large baked ham stood in the center of the table, ready to be carved, Cornish hens in marinated sauce, baked potatoes and green salad, bowls of fruit and pudding, and an endless amount of sweets.  
  
The evening ended with the family convening in the parlor once more where they sang carols and drank hot chocolate.  
  
James never thought he had spend a better Christmas. Except maybe for the one on his seventh year, when all his friends were around him.  
  
  
  
The new year arrived and Sirius and Katie came along with it. For the first few weeks, family and friends left them on their own. They shopped and put things in order in their own house. Katie asked for the Magical Employment Agency for recommendations as well as the Potters while Sirius went shopping for a car and furniture. But after they had settled, it was time for open house and they were inundated with visitors.  
  
Their house was one of the smaller houses built on Rowe Square after the incident on the last fall. Only a few of the original families stayed and rebuilt while others decided to sell and leave for a less known area. Smaller houses were built, especially made for small families or like Katie and Sirius, newly wed couples.  
  
After the first week of their arrival they decided to have a small party, only for close family and friends. Everybody who was invited arrived to welcome them back, except for one person.  
  
Peter was shivering as he stood in the porch of a small inn. The note he had received from Lucius Malfoy two weeks ago was hidden in his pocket.  
  
It was starting to get dark and the moor beyond the road looked forbidding and dangerous. Peter shivered, but didn't know if it was caused by his fear or the cold.  
  
Suddenly, he saw a light flashing on the moor. It looked as if a fire had been lit. He squinted his eyes, trying to get a better look, but it was of no use.  
  
He continued to look toward the light and it was with big surprise that he noticed a cloaked figure coming toward him.  
  
"I'm glad you are here on time Pettigrew. Follow me." Said the cloaked figure.  
  
Peter didn't say anything, just followed him out to the moor.  
  
Peter walked cautiously behind. He noticed that they walked toward the fire, the cloaked figure walked with no fear of stumbling or getting hurt in the marshy ground in the dark.  
  
Peter looked around as they walked. They were getting deeper and deeper into the moor, if anybody noticed the light from the road they wouldn't bother to investigate in such a dangerous ground. There were pits all around, Peter had to keep his eyes on the ground to make sure he wouldn't fall into one.  
  
Finally, they were near the bonfire. There were cloaked people around it, standing tall against the flames. He quickly noticed that they were all masked and that a tall figure stood in the center fearless of the flames dancing nearby.  
  
Peter shivered once more, he had a feeling that this night would change his life, and he didn't like that, not at all.  
  
The person leading him stopped in front of a section of the circle that had left open and motioned Peter to enter.  
  
Peter breathed deeply and with a straight face walked into the circle.  
  
The cloaked man who had brought him stood in the opening, closing the surrounding circle. Peter looked around, and saw that he had nowhere to go; he was trapped.  
  
The figure in the center turned and Peter gasped. Unlike the others, he had no mask and his face was clearly lit by the flames. His skin was pale, dark, large snake-like-eyes looked down on him, and a cruel mouth leered at him.  
  
"Welcome Mr. Pettigrew." He said.  
  
Peter whimpered with fear. "Wh-wh-who are you?" He stammered.  
  
The other man chuckled and approached Peter.  
  
"You know me Peter, or at least you have heard of me." He said. "I am Lord Voldemort."  
  
Peter gasped. His eyes were round and full of fear. "What do you want?" He managed to say in a breathless voice.  
  
"I want your knowledge." Voldemort said.  
  
Peter gave a nervous laugh. He instantly stopped when Voldemort's brows lifted and looked questioningly down at him. "Well - I meant to say - I'm not very adept at magic. You cannot get much knowledge out of me." He finally said.  
  
Voldemort laughed. "That is true enough, but you have knowledge that might become precious to me. You have knowledge about the Potters and their relationship to Dumbledore." Peter noticed that there was a slight hesitation when Voldemort said the name of his former Headmaster.  
  
"What kind of information? Everybody knows about Dumbledore's close relationship to James and Lily." Peter said.  
  
"They do, but they cannot get close enough to either of them. I know that Dumbledore is planning to stop me, I need to know what he plans." Voldemort said.  
  
Peter looked horrified at Voldemort. He wants him to spy on his friends? He instantly remembered the last time he had been at Hogwarts with the others. Dumbledore had spoken of a way to fight Voldemort, of stopping him from taking control.  
  
"I see that you are familiar with this plan." Voldemort said with triumph in his voice.  
  
Peter shook his head. "No, I'm not!" He exclaimed. Instantly unbearable pain ran through his body. He fell to the ground writhing and shaking in pain. Then, just as suddenly as it had started, it stopped. He stood. Voldemort was putting his wand back in his robes.  
  
"You were saying? Don't lie to me Peter, I can see what is inside your head." Voldemort hissed. "Remember that I can kill you right now, no one the wiser. And tell me, who would take care of your mother then? My friends here could apparate in an instant at your house and make sure she is not a liability."  
  
"But there is nothing, only plans, nothing more." Peter whimpered.  
  
"They are enough. I know Dumbledore, I know he will not stop until he does what he means to do. If he plans to stop me, he will try, even if he dies doing so. And there are people fond of him that would be willing to stand beside him." Voldemort said.  
  
Peter stood whimpering. Looking fearfully up at Voldemort.  
  
Voldemort smiled cruelly down at Peter. "You will be of use to me Peter, very useful." He then grabbed Peter's left arm and held it in a tight grip. Peter didn't try to get lose, he was too scared to fight. Voldemort retrieved his wand and pointed to Peter's forearm. "Mortis Corpius." He whispered and pain started to burn through Peter's arm.  
  
He screamed in agony. It felt as if he was being branded by heated iron. His flesh burning. It finally stopped and he looked down at his arm. A skull with a protruding snake from his mouth was now imprinted on his flesh.  
  
"You will come to me every time you feel it burning Peter. Remember, if you want your mother to live, you will come to me and do what I say." Voldemort said.  
  
"What guarantee do I have that you won't hurt her if I do." Peter whimpered.  
  
"You have my word Peter. As long as you are with us, your mother will be safe." Voldemort said.  
  
Peter looked up at Voldemort and knew that he was speaking the true. Voldemort might be a killer and power-hungry, but he was no liar. At least Peter thought so.  
  
  
  
It was at the end of February when Peter, Remus, Sirius and James got a similar owl. Remus had gone out of the country right after Sirius and Katie's wedding. Sirius had spent the last months with his new wife in their small house taking care of putting things in order. Peter had gone back to his mother who had been feeling ill. And James had spent the last months in a house full of women making plans for a wedding that he thought was getting out of control.  
  
On this cloudy day, James was sitting in the breakfast table. Lily, Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans had left early to spend the day on town looking for caterers and decorations for the wedding.  
  
James was regretting not telling Lily to just elope to get this business over with. Now it was too late, the three women were too involved in the arrangements to think of anything else.  
  
Just as he was about to leave the table, he saw an owl flying in front of the window. He looked around to see if Roberts was still in the room. He wasn't. James stood and walked toward the flying owl. He opened the window and the owl soared into the room. It dropped an envelop on the table, right in front of where he had been sitting and then flew out of the window.  
  
James saw it leave, a frown on his face. He had recognized the seal on the envelope. It belonged to Dumbledore.  
  
James had seen Dumbledore's seal many times, only used in personal notes, Dumbledore rarely made use of it. James had first seen the seal as a young boy, as he sat on his father's knee reading over the mail. He had received notes from Dumbledore after his father's death, but not many with the seal. It was an imposing seal. A flying phoenix, with a sword at its feet. James had never seen any like it.  
  
James reached for the envelope and slowly opened it. A yellowed parchment falls into his hands.  
  
He looked grim as he read the note. It was short, but to the point. They must unite, they must fight against Voldemort.  
  
James sighed. There is no question on his mind. He will join Dumbledore against Voldemort.  
  
James takes the parchment and throws it into the fire, crackling in the grate of the dinning room fireplace. It wouldn't do for anybody to find that note, he didn't want his mother nor Lily involved.  
  
He quickly left the table and went out of the room.  
  
Three other young men read the same message, all with different emotions. Two were determined to do what was required to succeed, one was afraid of what might be. Four notes were soon destroyed after they were read.  
  
  
  
Spring had now arrived. The orchards were beginning to bloom, the gardens were beginning to flower, and the lawns were finally turning green.  
  
James and Lily were sitting on one of the gardens watching the twins as they played before them.  
  
"They are growing so fast." Lily said.  
  
"Indeed. I shudder to think how it will be when they reached Hogwarts." James replied.  
  
Lily chuckled. "Perhaps it won't be as bad."  
  
"I hope so."  
  
"Where did you go last night? Your mother and I looked for you but couldn't find you." Lily said looking down at her lap.  
  
James quickly looked at her. "Just gone with Sirius, Remus and Peter, they were going to be in town and I wanted to be there." He finally said.  
  
The real reason for James' absence was because he was with Dumbledore and his team. The Order of the Phoenix, as they called themselves, had met for the first time. For the safety of those present, no introductions were made. James still didn't want his mother and Lily to find out anything about it, and he would keep it that way.  
  
"Oh." Said Lily. "Why didn't you tell us that Remus was in town? I thought that he was still out of the country."  
  
"I thought so too." James said with a shrug. "I was surprised to see him there, I thought I was just meeting Sirius."  
  
"Hmmm.Your mother and I were discussing the guest list and we wanted to know the names of those you want to invite, apart from Sirius, Remus and Peter of course, they are a given." Lily said.  
  
James sighed with relief that Lily had believed his story. "I will have to think about it of course, but I guess you can add the Longbottoms, did you know that Frank married that Hufflepuff girlfriend he had? They eloped you know." He said.  
  
"Did he really? I never thought that he would do such a thing. But wasn't she a little.hmm.dim?" Lily replied.  
  
James laughed. "Rather nice way to put, but yes, she was, at least at Hogwarts, I don't know about now."  
  
"Oh, well. Ok, Frank and his wife, who else?" Lily asked.  
  
They continued discussing the list as the twins played and laughed. It was a nice day to be outside.  
  
  
  
The next couple of weeks were very busy around Gryffindor Manor. James preferred to leave early each morning to ride across his estate than stay behind and get caught by Lily and their mothers as they planned for the wedding. Who would've thought that planning a wedding could be so exhausting?  
  
He was sitting atop a wooden rail eating an apple, which he had stolen from the orchards, and sat watching the shepherds leading their charges up the field.  
  
"In hiding are you?" Asked somebody from behind.  
  
James turned and laughed. "In a matter of speaking. What about you?"  
  
"Same. The moment we arrived Katie was brought into the planning." Sirius said as he leapt to join James on the rail.  
  
James chuckled. "Think she would mind?"  
  
"I doubt it." Sirius said as he reached into James' pockets.  
  
"Hey, what are you doing?" James exclaimed.  
  
"Looking for one of those apples you have hidden in here somewhere." Sirius said.  
  
James pushed Sirius off, making him slip and fall on his back. Sirius groaned while James laughed.  
  
"What did you do that for?" Sirius said as he stood up.  
  
"Stop searching my pockets then, all you have to do is ask." James replied.  
  
Sirius crossed his arms looking mutinous at James. "Oh fine." James said and threw an apple to his friend. "There, stop acting like a child."  
  
Sirius didn't say anything more, just leapt up and sat by James.  
  
"What are you doing now?" Sirius asked as both watched the herds of sheep running around the fields.  
  
"Trying to think of something else to do, so I can keep away from the house." James answered.  
  
"Hmmm.good luck then." Sirius said.  
  
"Well, you are here, help me then."  
  
"What for?"  
  
"Because if you don't you will have to accompany me and deal with the women as they plan." James said.  
  
"Very well then." Said Sirius with a shudder.  
  
  
  
It was true, the women in the Manor had become rather involved with the planning of the wedding. Lists and more lists were created of everything that would be needed. Mrs. Nichols, the Potters' housekeeper, met with the women often to speak about menus, decorations, and the arrangement of the chapel.  
  
By the end of May, everything was ready. The gown was made and waiting for delivery. Otty and the house elves had a menu planned to work on, the gardeners were ready to cut the flowers that would be needed for the day, Sirius had James' Stag Party all planned, and the invitations had gone out.  
  
  
  
"Mrs. Rose Evans, widow of Mr. Edward Evans and Mrs. Susan Potter, widow of Mr. Aliaster Potter  
  
  
  
Invite you to the wedding of their children  
  
Lily Marie Evans and James Harold Potter  
  
To take place the 15th of June At Gryffindor Manor Chapel  
  
A three day event is planned. The first day, June 13 will begin with the opening of the town's Summer Feast, the family has planned many entertainments for the guests to conclude on the third day with the wedding. If you wish to participate in the three days of celebration please RSVP. If not, and only will come to the wedding, the ceremony will take place at 11:00 the morning of the 15th."  
  
Everybody was excited about the upcoming celebration, even the town seemed festive and that their Summer Feast would be included in the wedding celebration was a great honor for them. There was only one thing missing for Lily, and she knew what she must do.  
  
  
  
It was the night before the guests would start to arrive, four before the wedding. Lily and James were walking about the gardens holding hands.  
  
"Nervous?" Asked Lily as they walked into their garden. The starts were shinning, the fairies where happily dancing on the flowers and the pool was shining in the moonlight.  
  
"A little, you?" James asked as he led her to the bench beside the pool.  
  
"A little." Lily replied as they sat on the bench. "But I'm also very happy."  
  
"So am I." James smiled as he pulled her into his arms and held her against him.  
  
"I asked Dumbledore to come early, maybe before the other guests start to arrive." Said Lily as she settled her face against his chest and leaned into him.  
  
"Hmmm.why?"  
  
Lily shrugged. "Just wanted him to be here early." She said.  
  
"If you wish. Is mother driving you crazy?" He asked as he kissed her hair.  
  
"She is not too bad, not compared to my mother." Laughed Lily.  
  
James laughed. The older ladies had certainly been on tender hooks and frayed nerves since the invitations had gone out. On the last week they had received the owls and post of those who would be staying for the three days of celebrations. Muggles and wizards would be coming, for that reason, those wizards who were coming had been warned to dress as muggles and to behave as muggles while they stayed at the Manor. Some had not been too happy about that, but if they didn't want to miss the wedding that the Daily Prophet had dubbed the Wedding of the Year, then they would do whatever was needed to be present. Everybody who was anybody in the wizarding world had been invited, that many of them were relatives or close friends of the Potters was a plus. Lily and Mrs. Evans had only invited close friends and family to the wedding. Both were unhappy that Petunia had been the only one to decline the invitation.  
  
The Ministry had sent Aurors to check the security of the town and the Manor. The Minister himself was arriving on the following day. He would never miss the most important day of his good friend's son, he had said, no matter that it had been four years since the death of Aliaster Potter.  
  
Mrs. Nichols and Mr. Roberts were busy though out the house, making sure that all the guest rooms were ready and that there were enough provisions to feed everybody. Mr. Sanders, the estate manager, was also busy checking with the gardeners and the tenants, making sure that all was ready for the Feast as well as the other entertainments planned for the next days.  
  
  
  
The next morning was chaos in Gryffindor Manor. Elves and servants alike ran from one wing of the house to the other making sure all was in order. Mrs. Nichols was in the kitchen checking with Otty that the food was ready and that the platters were piled high with food. Mr. Roberts was in his pantry with his footmen making sure that the bottles of wine and champagne were chilled and ready to serve and that the silver was shinned.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans awoke early to check on the household, while Lily and Katie were in Lily's room talking. The only ones who rose at the same time they always did were James and Sirius. But then again, they had nothing to worry about.  
  
Everybody was sitting in the family dinning room finishing breakfast when the first guest arrived.  
  
Roberts appeared on the door, and cleared his throat.  
  
"Yes Roberts." Said Mrs. Potter as she helped the twins with buttering their toast.  
  
"You have a guest ma'am." Roberts said.  
  
"Oh dear." Exclaimed Mrs. Potter while Mrs. Evans dropped the toast she was holding.  
  
"It's Professor Dumbledore Ma'am." Roberts replied.  
  
"Oh and we are still eating. We should've eaten earlier." Groaned Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Not to worry dear lady, I do not mind." Said a voice from behind Mr. Roberts. Roberts stood aside and Professor Dumbledore walked into the room.  
  
"Oh Albus, welcome." Said Mrs. Potter coming to her feet and approaching the older gentleman.  
  
"Thank you for having me my dear." Albus Dumbledore said as he greeted Mrs. Potter and turned to look smiling at the others. "I believe congratulations are in order." He said as he spied Lily and James sitting at one end of the table.  
  
"Welcome Professor, glad you could make it." James said stretching out his hand to the Professor.  
  
"Oh I'm glad you are here Professor." Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"I wouldn't miss this for the world." Dumbledore said.  
  
He then noticed a pair of giggling girls sitting beside him. "Ah, hello there my dears." He said. The girls giggled some more.  
  
"You are going to have to keep an eye on them in a couple of years Professor. A handful, these two are." Said Sirius as they all made room for Professor Dumbledore.  
  
"You mean they are more troublesome than you and Mr. Potter were, Mr. Black?" Asked Dumbledore with laughing eyes.  
  
"Indeed sir, much worse." Sirius said with a laugh.  
  
"I'm going to have to warn Minerva then, she might have to deal with them more often that I will." Dumbledore chuckled.  
  
"Poor Professor McGonagall, I don't think she will survive another generation of Potters." Laughed Katie.  
  
"And to think that as soon as Hogwarts survives these two James' and Sirius' children will be ready to go." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Oh dear, I hope you are retired by then Professor." Said Lily.  
  
Professor Dumbledore laughed. "Indeed, it seems like a wise plan."  
  
  
  
The rest of the morning was spent in getting ready for the guests that would soon follow.  
  
As soon as the luncheon was done Lily took Professor Dumbledore for a tour of the gardens.  
  
"I wanted to ask you something Professor." Lily began as they came to Lily and James' garden.  
  
"Of course my dear. Ask away." Said Professor Dumbledore with a chuckle.  
  
Lily smiled. "Well I was wondering if you could do me a favor." Said Lily.  
  
"Anything I can do for you, my dear." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"Well, I was wondering, - that is, - if you were willing." Lily tried to find the correct words but they didn't seem to come out.  
  
"Something wrong Lily?" Dumbledore asked with a frown.  
  
"Oh no, it's just that." Lily sighed deeply. "Could you walk me down the aisle? My father is not here anymore and if it can't be him, I would like it to be you." She finally said.  
  
Dumbledore smiled kindly down at Lily. "It would be my pleasure."  
  
Lily smiled. "Thank you." She said, and both continued on their way through the gardens.  
  
  
  
The guests started to arrive. Cars drove up to the Manor full of luggage and people waiting to spend the best time of their lives.  
  
Roberts and his footmen stood by the door ready to unload the luggage and lead the guests to their quarters. Mrs. Potter, Mrs. Evans, Lily and James waited for their guest to be brought to them in the front parlor.  
  
"Anne, welcome, I hope you had a wonderful trip." Said Mrs. Potter as a middle aged lady was brought into the room, closely followed by two girls who seemed to be in their late teens.  
  
"Oh Rose darling, you would not believe the state of the roads, I think the roads really need a quick fix, or driver just drove over every pothole he could find." The lady commented as soon as she reached Mrs. Potter. "And look at this young man, who would've thought that he would marry some day. I was sure he would end up in Azkaban sooner or later." She said getting hold of James and pinching his cheek.  
  
"Hello Aunt Anne." James finally managed to say somewhat reluctantly.  
  
"Oh, and is this the young lady who managed to bring him under control? Welcome to the family my dear." Aunt Anne said when James pulled Lily from her seat. His objective was to give his Aunt Anne a new target so she would leave him alone.  
  
"Good afternoon ma'am." Said Lily with a curtsey.  
  
"Oh there is no need to be so formal my dear. I might be old but not that old. Let me introduce you to my daughters, this is Elizabeth and this is Serenity." The two young women stepped forward and curtseyed to the others.  
  
"Hello." Lily managed to say.  
  
No sooner had she said that, when the doors opened and Roberts led another group in.  
  
The whole afternoon continued in like manner, Potter connections and Evans relatives continued to arrive throughout the evening. It was late by the time all were reunited in the parlor to await dinner, and guests continued to arrive. The latecomers ate in their quarters while those who had arrived earlier joined the family at the table. The room seemed to have been expanded to accommodate all the guests, only those who were good at charms were able to see that a spell had been used to stretch the room and the table to allow everybody to seat at the table.  
  
The dinner was sumptuous and of numerous servings. First the salads were brought in, all arranged differently and with many dressings to chose from. The butler, Roberts, and his army of footmen went around the table serving the guests as they made their choices. The appetizers followed along with the soups. Finally the courses followed. Dressed partridge, grilled venison, roasted turkey, pork chops, lamb chops, marinated chicken, and there were some courses for those who preferred to skip the meats.  
  
Everything seemed delicious and several people sent their congratulations to the kitchens for such a great dinner. As the food was eaten, Roberts and the footmen surrounded the table with bottles of wine and cider offering drinks to the guests.  
  
The homemade wines and cider were a great favorite among the guests, as a result, several bottles were opened and discarded during the course of the evening.  
  
After dinner, everybody reunited in the parlor. The doors to the music room were opened and the young people were encouraged to make use of the exquisite instruments waiting within for the entertainment of everybody. Many agreed to do so, and the evening ended with music and laughter.  
  
It was very late when guests started to retire and still more guests continued to arrive. They did so through out the night. The footmen had to take turns relieving each group so that they could have some sleep throughout the night.  
  
  
  
The day was bright and the sun was shinning. The full moon had passed and the Summer Feast was about to begin in town.  
  
The Feast first started with a service in the town church. A blessing for the crops that had been planted during the spring and ending with a special blessing for the upcoming wedding. After the service the town became a kaleidoscope of color and merriment. The shops were richly decorated and the town square became a place for dancing and eating out of doors.  
  
A small stage had been placed by the fountain in the center of the square and a small band played as people danced and laughed around them.  
  
It seemed more crowded this year than it had been on previous years. Maybe it was because those at the Manor had walked on droves down to the town to participate in the fun.  
  
Lily and James walked hand in hand, stopping periodically to receive the congratulations of those around them. They visited all the shops, and James bought flowers and small trinkets for Lily from the flower booths and the shops. Lily smiled up at him and allowed him to spoil her as much as he wanted to.  
  
She had been in rather low spirits during the last days. The memory of her father intruded on her every waking hour and sadness filled her heart whenever the thought of him not being with her during the most important day of her life intruded. She was happy that she was marrying James, it felt right and meant to be, but she had always thought that her father would be the one walking down the aisle with her. She knew that he would want her to be happy. "Be happy Lily, I'll always be with you." That was something that he had always said to her. For that reason she had asked Professor Dumbledore to give her away. He was the closest thing she had to a father and she knew her father would agree.  
  
James knew what had been going on in Lily's mind. He understood her sadness. He had also missed his father during the last weeks, but he had had time to deal with the grief much longer than Lily had. But he knew that both their fathers were sitting on a cloud (at least, he hoped it was a cloud and not a fiery pit) and smiled down at them blessing their union.  
  
The twins were everywhere at once. Nurse and the grooms accompanying them couldn't keep up with them.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans had stayed behind on the Manor to wait for any guests who still had to arrive.  
  
As a whole, it was a wonderful day, and everybody enjoyed themselves. When the evening arrived they retired to their quarters right after dinner in exhaustion.  
  
  
  
The second day of the festivities was bright and warm. Most of those invited had already arrived and only those who would only attend the wedding were expected to arrive later in the evening. Guests had arrived at all hours during the last couple of days. The servants had been kept busy trying to make everybody comfortable. Because the elves couldn't be used since there were muggles present, extra people were hired, all from the town, to help out. The servants could be seen hurrying from one place to the other very early each morning. Most guests didn't bother to go down to breakfast until very late, for which reason, luncheon was pushed back to late afternoon, and a late dinner later that evening.  
  
Mrs. Potter, Mrs. Evans and Lily had decided to serve luncheon outdoors on this warm day. As guests started to leave their rooms and go to the dinning room to get some breakfasts, servants took tables, chairs, pillows and rugs and spread them through the lawn near the lake. Boats were also brought out and settled in the shore of the lake ready for those guests who would like to have a row around the lake.  
  
Covered tables with chairs stood waiting for the guests, the rugs were piled with pillows and spread underneath the shadow of the large trees around the lawn. A large table was placed underneath a tent where all the food and drinks would be placed.  
  
Guests stood by the windows and balconies, sipping their teas and coffee, watching the arrangements being made for their entertainment.  
  
Some guests took advantage of the open stables and rode out early. Others decided to tour the gardens and many groups had fun trying to find their way around the mazes. By mid afternoon everybody walked down to the lawn, ready to have a good time.  
  
James had been able to convince the town band to come and play for them. The greenhouses and orchards where ransacked for the best fruit available and Otty and the elves were able to produce a large meal.  
  
Bowls of exotic fruit, platters filled with juicy meats and marinated birds, salads, pastries and puddings, all spread through the tables underneath the tent. People were awed and pleased at the arrangement and eagerly served themselves before going to choose a table or a rug on which to seat.  
  
Lily, James, Sirius, Katie, Remus and Peter (both had arrived late the previous evening) sat on a spread rug near the food tent.  
  
Lily had laughed and shaken her head as she followed Katie to the boys chosen stop.  
  
"Only you would want to be near the food." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"Oh just because we are old married men doesn't mean we will go hungry." Said Sirius.  
  
"You are the only one who is married." Said Remus.  
  
"And we are not old. Speak for yourself." Said Peter.  
  
"Honestly, I think poor Professor McGonagall must be shaking her head and hoping that you four have matured just a little to not cause any problems." Said Katie.  
  
"Oh is she here?" Asked Peter dropping a piece of chicken he had in his hand. He had always been a little scared of Professor McGonagall and it seemed that he hadn't grown out of it.  
  
Lily nodded. "She and the rest of Hogwarts staff arrived just before you did last night." She said.  
  
"Dumbledore has been here for a couple of days." Said James.  
  
"Are you two nervous about tomorrow?" Remus asked after a moment.  
  
"Not really." Said James with a shrug.  
  
"Everything is in order." Lily said.  
  
"Aren't you supposed to be apart from each other? I thought the groom was supposed to see the bride for twenty four hours before the wedding or it would be bad luck." Said Peter.  
  
"No it's supposed to be on the day of the wedding. The groom can't see the bride before the wedding." Said Sirius.  
  
"I don't actually know." Exclaimed James with surprise. "Is it twenty four hours or on the day of the wedding?"  
  
"Well, if it is twenty four hours it's too late because you have seen each other." Said Katie.  
  
"We are not going to see each other before the wedding, that should count for something." Said Lily.  
  
"Oh well, let's not worry about that, what could go wrong?" Said Remus.  
  
"They could die before they return from their honeymoon?" Whispered Peter.  
  
"Don't say that!" Said Katie as she hit him on the head.  
  
"I'm just saying." Protested Peter.  
  
James shrugged. "I don't believe in such things anyways, you are what you make of yourself." He said.  
  
"I agree." Said Lily in a final tone.  
  
Nobody said any more about it, they just discussed about other things.  
  
".can you actually believe it? I never would've thought it of her." Katie was saying as she gossiped with Lily.  
  
The boys had returned several times to the food tent for food and were not paying much attention to what the girls were talking about.  
  
"Neither would I. In Hogwarts she was so nasty, and then her constant flirting with James was so annoying." Lily responded.  
  
"Well, I supposed that her father had something to say to her about her behavior, I don't think Jack Robinson would've been too happy to see his only daughter acting that way." Katie said.  
  
"Well, I hope she doesn't do anything to put his work in danger. Jezebel always seemed to be very fond of her father." Lily said.  
  
"Humph! Rather surprising wasn't it?" Katie snorted.  
  
Lily smiled.  
  
The boys were back with more food and were rather engrossed discussing Quidditch and the national team's chances of winning the World Cup.  
  
Lily and Katie groaned, they could talk about this for hours!  
  
"Come, hurry up, finish with your food." Katie urged them.  
  
"What's your hurry?" Sirius said turning to his wife.  
  
"I want you to row me in a boat around the lake." She said.  
  
Sirius sighed. "All right." He said and quickly swallowed the food he had left. Once he finished, he put the plates aside and reached for her. "Come then." He said and pulled her to her feet.  
  
Lily could hear Katie giggling as the two ran toward the boat.  
  
"Want a ride around the lake?" James said in her ear.  
  
Lily turned to smile at him. "Sure." She said. James helped her up and slowly walked toward the lake.  
  
They weren't the only ones walking to the lake. There were several couples and groups around the lake, waiting for a turn around the lakes. Some couples decided to walk around the lake as they waited, others sat on the shore skipping stones. Most of those around the lake were married or dating couples, most of the young people were by the band dancing and drinking the wines and cider that had been served with the luncheon. The older guests sat in their tables looking indulgently at their children.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans were sitting in a table surrounded by the Dumbledore and his staff.  
  
"I'm glad Minerva that you could make it. It has been a while since I last saw you." Mrs. Potter said at the stern woman sitting with them.  
  
"Oh, I would never miss this for the world. I never had imagined that a young lady existed that would keep James under control." Professor McGonagall had replied with one of her rare smiled.  
  
Mrs. Potter laughed. "I was afraid that the young lady didn't exist. But I'm happy with his choice, Lily is such a sweet child." Mrs. Potter said looking at Mrs. Evans.  
  
"She always was. Petunia was fussy and mean-spirited at times. Lily couldn't be any different, her father just doted on her and I was afraid that it would spoil her, but it didn't." Mrs. Evans said with a pleased smile.  
  
"Oh, I don't think there is a self-conscious bone in her body. I was quite please with her at school, I haven't had a student with half the talent she has." Squeaked Professor Flitwick.  
  
"They make a wonderful pair. I can't think of anyone who will be any more happier." Said Madam Hooch as she watched the young people walking around.  
  
"Indeed. They will have a lot to overcome, life couldn't be more complicated for our young people than at present. But I have great confidence in them and I'm sure that both will one day be great. I wouldn't be surprised if everybody in our world would one day know the names of James and Lily Potter." Said Professor Dumbledore.  
  
Those around him nodded and turned their attention to the young couple, who had given up waiting for a boat and were now dancing as the band played a slow melody. Such radiance and happiness surrounded them and those watching couldn't doubt the love that they had for each other.  
  
  
  
Twilight had arrived and the guests had returned to the house. Only a few stayed behind in the lawns. Some were rowing around the lake, others were touring the gardens. The band had long gone and the servants were breaking down the tables and chairs to get it all inside. It was now time to prepare for dinner.  
  
Some of the last guests had finally arrived, only those who lived around the town were not present, they would meet the others during the ceremony.  
  
It was late that evening when the guests started to congregate in the parlor. It was immediately obvious that something was missing.  
  
"Where are they?" Somebody asked.  
  
"I don't know."  
  
"Where could they have gone?"  
  
"I hope nothing has gone wrong."  
  
People whispered as they sat waiting for dinner. Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans sat frowning at one corner of the room.  
  
All the young people had disappeared, and the happy couple along with them.  
  
"Did Lily tell you anything?" Mrs. Potter asked.  
  
"No, she said nothing to me. I gather James mentioned nothing either." Mrs. Evans replied.  
  
"Those four are up to something. I thought that with Sirius married and James soon to follow, the four boys would settle down and behave themselves." Groaned Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Are you sure they are involved in this?" Mrs. Evans asked.  
  
"Oh I'm sure." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
At that moment a footman came in a presented a note to Mrs. Potter. She opened it promptly and read it.  
  
"I told you. It seems that the young men have taken James to town for a stag party." She said.  
  
Some people around them heard and soon the news had spread throughout the room. Soon another note was brought in. This time Mrs. Evans read it.  
  
"The girls have take Lily to town." She said, laughter in her voice.  
  
"Why were we not invited?" Somebody asked.  
  
"I wouldn't have minded a stag party." An older man said.  
  
"You wouldn't!" Snorted his wife.  
  
"Well, it seems that it would be just us, older people." Mrs. Potter laughed. "Really, they should've said something."  
  
"Perhaps they wanted it to be a surprise." Mrs. Evans said.  
  
Dinner was soon announced. Everybody made their way to the dinning room speculating on the entertainment that the young people were taking advantage of.  
  
  
  
The Three Broomsticks was host to a group of wild young men, eager to have fun the whole night. Rosmetta had been told, fortunately, about the party days in advance. Thus, the place was closed to customers and was open to only those who had come with the groom. The place was packed with young men, merrily drinking and singing as the night wore off. Rosmetta and her staff, wisely, stayed behind the bar and kept a wary eye on the boisterous group.  
  
"Are you sure you told my mother that we were coming? We stole half of the men from dinner." James said.  
  
"Don't worry, Prongs old friend, old pal. Everything is taken care of." Said Sirius.  
  
"Sirius, I think you have drank a little too much." Laughed Remus.  
  
"Not enough. Peter has though." Sirius said motioning at their friend who had fallen asleep underneath the table, an empty glass in his hand.  
  
James shook his head. "He really never learned how to hold his drinks." He said.  
  
"Should we leave him there?" Asked Remus.  
  
Sirius shook his head. "What would we move him for? Nothing he can do really."  
  
Remus and James shrugged.  
  
"So tell us Sirius, what kind of entertainment do you have planned for us?" Somebody from the crowd called.  
  
"Oh you will see, should be starting any minute." Sirius called with a laugh.  
  
The others clapped and whistled.  
  
"Just make sure mother and Lily don't hear about this." James whispered to Sirius.  
  
"Not to worry Prongsy, my boy. They won't have anything to complain about." Sirius said. Some scantly dress females walked into the room. Drinks were served to the guests, many of whom where watching speechless as the girls made their way around the room walking toward James.  
  
"Oh boy, I'm going to be in trouble if Lily finds out about this." James said before the room was swallowed by darkness and music floated through the room.  
  
The rest of the group seemed to snap out of their stupor as they clapped and laughed.  
  
  
  
The girls had taken Lily to Diagon Alley. A room was reserved in an elite restaurant. The girls were all surrounding Lily as they gossiped and laughed.  
  
They had just finished playing some games and were now sitting eating before the presents were opened.  
  
"I just hope I don't get any gifts similar to those given to Katie." Lily said.  
  
Several of those who had been present at that particular party laughed or giggled.  
  
"But Sirius sure liked them." Katie said.  
  
Everybody laughed at this comment.  
  
"Of course he would, all those gifts were bought with Sirius in mind." One girl said.  
  
"Where are you going for your honeymoon Lily?" Another girl asked.  
  
"Oh, I'm not sure yet, James says it's a secret." Lily said.  
  
"Ooooh! Do you think he will take you to a nudist colony?" Another girl said.  
  
"Honestly, do you see these two in a nudist colony? That wouldn't do at all." Katie exclaimed as Lily blushed.  
  
"No they are going to the beach, it's perfect weather for it." Another girl called.  
  
"Maybe he is taking her for a tour in the Mediterranean, that would be really romantic."  
  
"Maybe he is taking her to Godric's Hollow."  
  
"I don't think so. He is definitely taking her out of the country."  
  
"Maybe he is taking her in a tour around the continent where all the Quidditch games are being played this summer."  
  
"That I can see him doing." Laughed Katie, Lily along with her.  
  
"Come Lily open the gifts." Somebody called.  
  
"Oh yes, we want to see."  
  
"Yes!" All cheered.  
  
Lily smiled and reached for one of the boxes that was floating in front of her. Everybody seemed to have used the Levitating Charm to summon the gifts to her.  
  
"Very well, let's see what we got here." She said as she started to unwrap the box. Everybody leaned in eagerly to see what was inside.  
  
The box was opened and the tissue paper put aside. Slowly a lacy garment was revealed. Those around her started to giggle while Lily took in her hand and bikini top and bottom.  
  
"What - what is this supposed to be?" She gasped.  
  
"Don't be silly, you know what it is." Katie squealed with laughter.  
  
"I can't wear this, this is transparent for goodness sake!" Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"That's the whole point Lily, I'm sure James will like it." One of the girls said.  
  
"Oh, James will like it all right!" Another girl said.  
  
"It seems that it won't matter where he is taking you for your honeymoon Lily, you two won't be out of the bedroom at all." The girls laughed at this comment while Lily blushed.  
  
"Come, open mine now." Said Katie putting a box onto Lily's lap.  
  
Lily eagerly put the lacy underwear aside and opened the box. Underneath all the tissue paper an emerald satin garment appeared. Lily looked at it in awe as she took it out.  
  
It was a nightgown, made in the style of a Greco-Roman dress. The shoulders were held together by a pair of clasps and long slits at each side of the skirt.  
  
"Oooh!"  
  
"Aaaah!" The girls sighed.  
  
"I thought it would look perfect on you on your wedding night." Said Katie.  
  
"Oh, thank you. It's gorgeous." Lily said hugging her friend.  
  
"That settles it Lily, you are definitely staying in the bedroom during your honeymoon." One of the girls said breaking the silence.  
  
The others laughed, Lily along with them.  
  
"Come Lily, open the rest, we want to go to that club around the corner from the Leaky Cauldron." Katie urged.  
  
"But, that is a strip-tease club." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"WE KNOW!" Everybody squealed with anticipation.  
  
  
  
It was late after midnight when both groups finally arrived to the Manor, amongst laughter and cheers Lily and James were led to their respective rooms, much to the consternation of those trying to sleep.  
  
An hour later the Manor was finally silent. Everybody had fallen asleep, except for one couple. Lily and James lay in their respective beds thinking of the same thing. Morning would bring their wedding day.  
  
  
  
It was early morning when James was woken by Lotty.  
  
"Master James must wake up. It's Master James' wedding day." Lotty was saying as he shook James awake.  
  
"Oh Lord!" James exclaimed jumping out from the bed. "Am I late Lotty? How long do I have?" James said, frantically running around the room.  
  
"It's early still Master James. Master James has four hours to prepare." Lotty said, his tennis-ball sized eyes following James, pacing the room.  
  
"Thank God! For a moment there I thought I had overslept." James sighed sitting at one of the chairs in the room.  
  
"Lotty has prepared Master James' bath. Will Master James prefer breakfast before the bath?" Lotty asked.  
  
"I think I will have the bath first Lotty." Said James. He slowly made his way to the bathroom. Lotty stood by the door with James' robe and towels in his tiny arms.  
  
"Lotty will have breakfast ready for Master James." Lotty squealed a minute before James closed the door.  
  
  
  
Lily had woken early that morning. She stood by the windows looking out to the gardens as she waited for Minnie to come and help her.  
  
As James' wife, Minnie would be her personal elf until their first son was born, when Minnie would magically become the child's personal elf. From that moment on James and Lily will share Lotty as their personal elf. It had always been so since the Potters had become one of the most important family in the magical world and it would continue to be so.  
  
The door slowly opened behind her. Lily turned and smiled.  
  
"Hello dear, how are you feeling?" Mrs. Evans asked coming into the room.  
  
"A little nervous." Lily said.  
  
"Oh that is to be expected. Don't worry, everything is under control. Just have fun and enjoy your special day." Mrs. Evans said hugging her daughter. "Oh, I can't believe my baby is getting married."  
  
"Oh, mum. I miss Daddy." Lily said, tears starting to fill her eyes.  
  
"I know darling, I miss him too. He would be so proud of you today, even if he didn't show it. He was a little strict but he always wanted the best for his daughters." Mrs. Evans replied.  
  
"Why is Petunia not here? I thought that at least she would be here, if not because she wanted to be here at least for show." Lily said.  
  
"Humph!" Mrs. Evans snorted. "Don't talk to me about your sister, I'm not very happy with her at the moment."  
  
Lily smiled sadly. The door opened once more, and Minnie walked in the room. A box levitated behind her.  
  
"Your dress is ready Miss Lily." Minnie squealed.  
  
"Thank you Minnie, put it on the bed." Lily ordered.  
  
Mrs. Evans stayed in the room as Minnie helped Lily prepare.  
  
  
  
In the chapel, everything was in order. Lilies and white orchids had been arranged in the vases at the altar and in small bundles placed along the aisle. The red carpet had been set out and cleaned and now covered the aisle leading to the altar. Tall candles were placed in pedestals along the walls, the aisle and the altar, making them the only source of light for the ceremony. The glass stained windows sparkled in the sunshine and the pews shined after the thorough scrub the servants had given them on the previous days.  
  
People from the town and those around the estate were starting to line up the entrance to the chapel. Because the chapel was not big enough to hold everybody, the guests in the house and the elderly of the town and estate tenants would sit inside during the ceremony, the rest will stand outside listening to every word.  
  
Excitement permeated the air. Everybody was looking forward to the ceremony, especially those who had know James since he was a child. Many of them were thinking of the former Mr. Potter and how proud he would've been of his son on this day.  
  
  
  
It was almost time for the ceremony to begin. James paced around the vestry with Remus, Sirius, and Peter. The vicar sat beside the door chuckling to himself as he saw the nervous groom pacing in front of him.  
  
"What if she changed her mind?" James was saying.  
  
"She didn't change her mind. When it comes to weddings, women do not change their minds." Sirius said.  
  
"Oh, and you are the expert on the subject." Peter said.  
  
"Well, as the only married man among us, yes, I am." Sirius preened.  
  
The others groaned and shook their heads.  
  
"Do you have the ring? You didn't lose it did you?" James snapped at Sirius.  
  
"Will you relax, yes, I have it." Sirius said.  
  
"Let me see it." James commanded.  
  
"Why? Don't you trust me?" Sirius asked in with mock hurt.  
  
"No I don't, you almost lost your own." James said.  
  
"I was drunk then." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"Doesn't matter, let me see it." James ordered.  
  
Sirius sighed and reached into his breast pocket and brought out a small box.  
  
"Here they are." Sirius said as he opened the box and a set of matching wedding bands glistened in the light. "Now, will you relax?"  
  
James nodded and continued pacing.  
  
The other three looked at each other and chuckled.  
  
  
  
Lily stood by the entrance of the Manor, waiting for the carriage to be brought to take her to the chapel. The chapel wasn't very far, they could easily walk down the lane toward it, but it was customary for the bride to arrive by carriage, drawn by four white horses.  
  
Mrs. Potter, Mrs. Evans and Dumbledore would accompany her to the chapel. Everybody else, the servants the guests, even the elves (although they were made invisible by Professor Flitwick before they left) had gone to the chapel. Bells started to ring and minutes later a carriage stood in front of them.  
  
"Ready dear?" Asked Mrs. Potter.  
  
Lily nodded. Slowly, the four climbed into the carriage and drove toward the chapel.  
  
  
  
The chapel was full. People stood around the lane of the chapel, craning their necks hoping to catch a glimpse of the happy bride. James stood by the altar, Sirius, Peter and Remus stood beside him. The vicar, smilingly, stood in front of the altar as they waited for the bridal party to arrive.  
  
Suddenly, applause filled the air. Everybody in the chapel turned around hoping to get a sight of the bride as she arrived. Many wished that they had stayed behind and stood upon the lane to get a better sight.  
  
Lily waved from the window of the carriage as the townspeople and tenants applauded and cheered as the carriage slowly made its way to the chapel.  
  
They finally stopped. Dumbledore stepped down and helped Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans down. Finally he turned to help Lily down.  
  
"Ready my dear?" He asked offering his hand.  
  
Lily nodded and grasped his hand and slowly emerged from the carriage.  
  
Those standing by the door cheered and applauded. As the carriage pulled and drove beside the chapel, Lily turned and waved before stepping into the chapel.  
  
The organ had commenced to play. Katie and the other bridesmaids walked slowly to the altar. The twins before them, spreading their petals along the way.  
  
Finally, the wedding march started to play. James gulped loudly and turned to look down the aisle and smiled.  
  
Lily stood by the door. Dumblodore beside her.  
  
Dumbledore smiled down at Lily. "Shall we go?"  
  
Lily nodded and slowly the pair started to walk down the aisle.  
  
People stood looking at her and smiling. She saw several older women with their handkerchiefs in their hands and sobbing quietly. Lily finally looked to the front. She saw her mother and Mrs. Potter smiling at her and then she saw him. James. He stood looking at her with pride and love in his eyes. All the nervousness she was feeling evaporated at the sight.  
  
She smiled brightly. This is what she wanted, this is how it was meant to be.  
  
They arrived at the front. Dumbledore kissed her cheek and shook James' hand before taking his seat. James took her hand and smiling, they turned to look at the vicar.  
  
"We are gathered here today to join this man and this woman in holy matrimony."  
  
Lily and James turned to look at each other as the vicar continued with the ceremony. Both were smiling as they caught each other's eyes. 'You look beautiful.' James mouthed. 'Thank you.' Lily mouthed back. They both turned to the front to hear the vicar.  
  
".if anybody knows of a reason why these two cannot be joined, speak now, or forever hold your peace." The vicar said.  
  
Lily and James stood looking toward the front waiting for the silence to be over. Sirius had turned to look back and glowered at the audience daring them to say anything to stop the wedding.  
  
The vicar nodded and turned to the couple. "I understand that Miss Evans and Mr. Potter wish to speak their own vows." James nodded and turned to look at Lily.  
  
Lily was smiling with teary eyes as James pressed her hand and put it on his chest.  
  
"Lily, you are the light of my life, the vessel of my strength and the joy of my heart. I cannot imagine spending another minute without you. I promise to relish you, protect you and love you for the rest of my life." James said.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans were quietly sobbing into their handkerchiefs. And they weren't the only ones to do so.  
  
"James, you have brought laughter and pleasure to my life. You have been there in sadness and joy, I cannot think of a better person to spend the rest of my life with. I vow to respect you, laugh at your jokes even if they are not funny." She chuckled, many laughed along with her, including James. "And to love you for the rest of my life." Lily finished.  
  
The vicar nodded. "Do you James Harold Potter, accept this woman, Lily Marie Evans as your wedded wife?"  
  
"I do." James responded.  
  
"Do you Lily Marie Evans, take this man, James Harold Potter, as your lawful wedded husband?" The vicar asked turning to Lily.  
  
"I do." Lily replied.  
  
The vicar smiled and turned to Sirius. "The rings please."  
  
Sirius nodded and reached for the box in his breast pocket. The matching rings were promptly given to the vicar, who blessed them before turning back to Lily and James.  
  
"Mr. Potter, repeat after me." He said giving James one of the rings. "With this rings I thee wed."  
  
"With this ring, I thee wed." James repeated starting to slide the ring down Lily's finger.  
  
"With my body, I thee worship." The vicar continued.  
  
"With my body, I thee worship." James repeated.  
  
The vicar then turned to Lily, giving her the other ring he said: "Ms. Evans please repeat after me. With this ring, I thee wed."  
  
"With this ring, I thee wed." Lily repeated sliding the ring down James' finger.  
  
"With my body, I thee worship." "With my body, I thee worship."  
  
"By the power invested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. Let this union be blessed and unbreakable. You may now kiss the bride." The vicar said with a huge smile.  
  
James promptly turned to Lily and lifted the veil before taking her in his arms and kissing her.  
  
"Ladies and gentleman let me introduce you to Mr. and Mrs. James Potter." The vicar announced before the chapel broke into applause and cheers.  
  
Sirius spun James around and hugged him, closely followed by Remus and Peter as Lily was being hugged and sobbed over by her mother and Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Come, we need to walk down the aisle or everybody will come and surround us here." James said to Lily after Mrs. Evans and Mrs. Potter had hugged him.  
  
"Oh yes dears, go on ahead." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
The organ played and people shouted around them as they walked down the aisle. They were met at the door by the people from town and the estate, who were cheering loudly as they welcomed the new mistress of Gryffindor Manor.  
  
They were soon joined by those who had been inside the chapel. They were pressed as people tried to hug them and congratulate them.  
  
The bells of the carriage sounded around them. Lily and James slowly made their way to the carriage. People applauded and cheered as they climbed up the carriage. They were going to tour the town and the estate, a custom that had been in the Potter family for centuries, and give time for the guests to return to the Manor and await for the dance.  
  
Lily settled into the seat and as soon as James sat beside her and the door had been closed she turned to him and leaned against his chest.  
  
"Happy?" James asked, putting his arms around her.  
  
"Very." Lily sighed happily.  
  
James chuckled and kissed the top of her head as the carriage started to move.  
  
"Wave to the people Lily, they all want to see the happy bride." James said as the faces of his servants, tenants and neighbors passed by.  
  
Lily sat up and turned to wave to those around the carriage, waving and wishing them happy.  
  
  
  
The ballroom was full, as guests walked and chatted in groups, waiting for the happy couple to arrive.  
  
The music room had been opened and tables brought in to hold refreshments for the guests. A small orchestra stood on a balcony overlooking the ballroom, tuning their instruments. And the dining room was readied to hold the massive number of guests that it would hold.  
  
Finally, the bells of the carriage were heard and people queued around the doors ready to greet the newly weds.  
  
The door was opened and Roberts walked in. "Mr. and Mrs. James Potter." He announced. The room exploded into cheers and applause as Lily and James walked into the room.  
  
They were promptly surrounded by people congratulating them, and a few with pieces of advice, that made Lily blush and James chuckle.  
  
Soon, the clamor was left behind and the festive atmosphere stayed. Dinner was announced and slowly people filed out behind Lily and James.  
  
The large dinning table had been taken out, in its place, small round tables were spread throughout the room. At the very front, a large table was set apart for Lily and James and the guests of honor.  
  
People readily looked for their seats, marked with white cards and the names written in golden letters.  
  
As soon as everybody had found their seats, Roberts directed the footmen to serve the food and the drinks.  
  
People chatted as they ate. The footmen, directed by Roberts as he served the main table, went around the room, serving the guests and filling glasses with wine, cider, water or any other drink they preferred.  
  
When all the food had been served and most of the guests had cleaned their plates, the bottles of champagne was brought in and poured into glasses which were promptly served to the guests.  
  
Somebody signaled from the main table for silence. The guests turned and saw Sirius waiting for them to be silent.  
  
As soon as the room fell silent, Sirius held up his glass.  
  
"I would like to say a few words. I've known James since we were two bundles of unspent energy." People laughed while those who knew both boys since they were children nodded and said 'too true'. "I met Lily when we were eleven in our first day of September on our way to school. It is no secret that our lot liked to tease and prank her and her friends. Of course they were not the only ones. But in retrospect we might have been only trying to get their attention, if you consider that I married one of her friends, James here married Lily and although the last member of their group could not be here, I believe wedding bells would be in her near future as well. It was very clear on our last year in school that Lily and James meant to be together. They are so right and perfect for each other. Lily was always the foil to James' high spirits as if she was the missing part of him, and I'm glad that once he found her he refused to let go. Let's raise our glasses and toast to Lily and James' happiness."  
  
Everybody raised their champagne and said: "To their happiness." And drank.  
  
Several toasts were said. Some more appropriate than others as among laughter and cheers, Lily blushed and James smiled.  
  
Soon after, the dinning room was emptied and the ballroom started to fill. The band was getting ready in the balcony and the guests found chairs in which to seat around the wall, the dance floor was cleared and the music started to flow.  
  
James took Lily's hand and led her to the middle of the floor. A waltz started to play, Lily swayed along with the rhythm as James twirled and led her through the dance. Others soon joined them and the dance floor was full of swaying and spinning couples.  
  
Lily dance the whole night. After their first dance was over, James turned her over to Professor Dumbledore and Lily was surprised to find that the older gentleman still possessed a lot of energy to dance gracefully. Sirius soon followed, then Remus took his place. Peter came to her after Remus; and he was closely followed by friends and family members. It was hours later when she found herself into her new husband's arms once more. The small orchestra were taking a break and James took her out the room for a stroll.  
  
"I love you." Said James as he held her in his arms. Her head was leaning against his chest, her arms around his waist.  
  
"I love you too." Lily whispered.  
  
"Perhaps it's time for you to make your escape, I'm sure you would like to change before we leave." James said kissing the top of her head.  
  
"Are we leaving soon?" Lily felt James' nod.  
  
"I'll get Roberts to get the car to the front. We should leave now so we won't be too late on the road." James said.  
  
"Where are we going?" Lily asked turning her face up to watch her husband's face.  
  
"It's a surprise, you don't want me to spoil it for you, do you?" James chuckled and gave her lips a swift peck with his own.  
  
"Very well, I hope Minnie packed the correct clothes then." Lily murmured.  
  
"Oh, she did, I told her what to pack." James said smugly.  
  
"Oh you!" Lily exclaimed pushing him off from her. "You told her and not me?"  
  
"I didn't tell her where we are going, just what to pack." James laughed.  
  
"Hmmm.I don't trust you. But you are right, I need to change. See you in a bit." Said Lily kissing his cheek before she disappeared into the kitchen gardens so not to go back to the dance.  
  
James smiled and turned back to the ballroom. He would look for his mother and Mrs. Evans and tell them that they would be leaving soon and make his escape to his bedchamber to change. Hopefully, Sirius and the others won't be in his way and make him late.  
  
The guests soon noticed that the couple was missing and knew instantly that their departure was imminent.  
  
Mrs. Evans and Mrs. Potter joined Lily in her bedchamber minutes after James had made them aware that they would be leaving soon. Both ladies helped Lily dispose of her gown and change.  
  
"Now dear, I know I don't need to talk to you about the birds and the bees." Mrs. Evans started to say but was interrupted by Lily's "Mum!" " Now dear, hear me out." Mrs. Evans continued. Lily grudgingly nodded. "I know that I don't need to talk to you about it. You are old enough to know. And I'm aware that this generation is more active than mine was at your age. I'm not naïve to think that you are my virginal little girl I once had. But make sure that you enjoy yourself Lily. Have fun. Bring lots of pictures, we will want to see them."  
  
"And don't let James persuade you to miss anything just because he wants to do something else. Potter men can be very persuasive for their own good." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Oh, I know how persuasive James can be when he wishes something. Don't worry, I know how to deal with him. I'm stubborn as well." Said Lily with a laugh.  
  
"Oh, my dear. You look so beautiful. I wish your father could've seen you today." Mrs. Evans sobbed looking at her daughter.  
  
"I missed him too mum, but I know he is watching me in heaven." Lily said kissing her mother and hugging her.  
  
"Oh I know he is. He wouldn't have missed this for the world. And I'm sure Aliaster was sitting there with him." Mrs. Evans said turning to Mrs. Potter who was also sobbing quietly in her handkerchief.  
  
"Of course he was. He and Elizabeth were sitting there with Edward watching from above. After all the years I bothered James about a wife they would've like to see my triumph." Mrs. Potter said drying her tears.  
  
Lily turned to hug her as the three ladies laughed.  
  
"Come my dear, I'm sure the guests have figured out that you two are leaving and must be waiting by the entrance to see you off." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
There was a knock on the door and some footmen entered to take the luggage to the car. Lily and Mrs. Evans made to follow.  
  
"Dear, don't forget your bouquet. I'm sure there are several single ladies waiting for this moment." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
Lily laughed. "I'm sure you are right. Lets go then." She said and grabbing the bouquet of white water lilies, with fern leaves and tied with lace, as she left the room.  
  
The guests were indeed waiting at the entrance hall, ready to see them off. James was standing at the bottom of the stairs waiting for Lily to join him. He was speaking with Sirius, Remus and Peter but turned when Remus nudged him and motioned him to turn. James turned and saw his wife stepping off the stairs toward him. His mother and Mrs. Evans closely behind her.  
  
Lily smiled brightly at the sight of her husband. His face brightly lit the moment he saw her and waited patiently for her to join them.  
  
"You look wonderful." He whispered kissing her the moment she was beside him.  
  
"Thank you." Lily whispered back.  
  
The guests cheered and applauded as they pressed to the sides and left a lane in the middle for them to pass. James smiled down at Lily, and taking her hand, started to pull her through the crowd. The guests quickly filled the space behind them and followed them out to the car.  
  
Lily laughed as the group of single ladies pressed behind her. She turned and threw the bouquet over her head. She heard squeals and laughter followed by cheers and applause. She didn't turn to look, she was too engrossed in getting into the car and making room for James.  
  
Soon after, they were waving out the windows, the guests pressed against each other waiting to see the car leave.  
  
Lily leaned against James as soon as the car started down the road. "Mmmm.this is nice." She sighed.  
  
James chuckled as he put his arms around her. "Yes it is." He said.  
  
"Where are we going?" Lily asked.  
  
"I'm not telling you." James replied.  
  
"Oh, why not?" She turned in her seat to look at him.  
  
"Because it's a surprise." James said looking down at his wife's face.  
  
"But I want to know." Lily said.  
  
"You'll soon find out. We should be on the coast before it's too late." James sighed.  
  
"Oh so we are going to the beach." Squealed Lily.  
  
"But not for long." Said James. He stopped any further questions by kissing her deeply.  
  
Lily sighed and settled into her husband's arms. Any thoughts about where they were going soon left her mind and she concentrated on the emotions that James' kiss evoked.  
  
  
  
  
  
A/N: They finally married. I'm happy with how this chapter came out, I hope you like it as well. You will find out where James is taking Lily for their honeymoon on the next chapter. Enjoy, and don't forget to review. 


	33. Part II Chapter 9

A/N: Sorry it's taking a while, time has not been enough for me lately. Anyways, here is the next chapter, there are only two more chapters left for this part, I will start the next one as soon as this one is over. I'm working on the next chapter now, so it might take a while for it to be ready. Thank you all for reading.  
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing, but the plot and some minor characters.  
  
  
  
Chapter 9 ~ Happily Ever After?  
  
  
  
James and Lily finally arrived at the coast of Dorset earlier than they had expected. It had been twilight when they left the party. It was now very dark and the inn the car parked in front of was brightly lit.  
  
"Mr. Potter, I presume." Said a round man standing on the door. He had a kind face, and a huge smile as he watched James helping Lily out of the car.  
  
"Indeed." Said James turning to look at him. "And you are Mr. Edwards."  
  
"Yes, sir. Everything is ready and I have dinner waiting for you." Mr. Edwards said as he led the couple through the barroom and into a private room.  
  
"Thank you Mr. Edwards. Our luggage should be ready to take them to where they belong." James said.  
  
"Of course Sir. Enjoy your meal." Mr. Edwards bowed and closed the door behind him.  
  
Lily had been looking around the room as James and Mr. Edwards talked. The room was richly decorated with paintings of country scenery. There were lush arrangements of flowers around the room. A table was set in the middle of the room with several servings of food waiting for them. Bottles of champagne, wine and water were set among the platters. The sound of the waves hitting the cliffs further off the coast could be heard through the open windows. She turned to look back at James when the door closed.  
  
"This is where we are going to stay?" She asked. She was expecting something else. Even though the countryside was calm and nice, she had expected to go somewhere exotic and special. Now, even Majorca would be good enough.  
  
"We are only eating here, we still have a little way to go." James said with a smile. He knew what was going on his wife's mind and even though she was trying to hide it, he knew she was a little disappointed.  
  
Now she was curious. "How much more do we have to go?" She asked.  
  
"Just a couple of miles." He answered with a shrug. He motioned Lily to sit and soon both were partaking of the delicious meal Mr. Edwards had reserved for them.  
  
They talked and laughed as they reminisced about the party and their friends. They wonder if the party was still on or if the guests had started to leave.  
  
Lily also tried to get James to tell her where they were going for the honeymoon, but James turned to be as stubborn as she and didn't say a word about it.  
  
After dinner was done and they had said goodbye, they climbed back into the car and drove off. Lily noticed that the luggage was no longer in the car and wondered where it had been taken to.  
  
It didn't take very long. After driving for a few minutes they had arrived at a small port. Private yachts and small boats bobbed above the water. Hotels and small inns lined the street across the pier.  
  
James stepped out of the car, looked around the pier before turning to help Lily out.  
  
"Now, where are we?" Lily asked as she looked around.  
  
"We are still in Dorset." James said.  
  
"Are we staying here?" Lily asked looking questioningly up at James.  
  
"Yes." Said James with a smile.  
  
Lily looked around again. It didn't seem too especial to her. She sighed. She might as well make the most of it.  
  
"Come let me show you our quarters." James said as he pulled her along with him.  
  
Surprised Lily followed him as he pulled her toward the piers instead of the hotels. She didn't say much as he slowly passed several boats until he finally stopped in front of a large private yacht.  
  
"Oh." Exclaimed Lily in awe. The large sails fluttered gently in the breeze and the hull bobbed gently above the waves.  
  
"This is it." James said excitedly.  
  
"It is?" Asked Lily a little surprised.  
  
"Yes. I hired this boat to take us all over the Mediterranean. We can go to Monte Carlo and stay there for as long as we please. Then I thought a visit to Venice and Rome would be nice. We could also stop in Greece or even Egypt. Doesn't matter, we can stop wherever you want to." James said with a boyish smile.  
  
"Oh James, that sounds wonderful. When do we leave?" Lily asked getting excited at the thought of sailing through the Sea.  
  
"First thing in the morning. We'll spend the night here, thought it would be nice to see the sunrise above the sea." James said.  
  
"Well then, what are we waiting for?" Lily asked, and laughing both climbed into the boat.  
  
The boat was large compared to the others bobbing along side it. The wood in the hull was waxed and shining in the candlelight as Lily and James stepped on board. An area was designed for the comfort of the passengers. A small pool stood embedded in the hull, surrounded by chairs and a couple of covered tables. Perfect for a relaxing afternoon. Right behind the tables was a cabin. The dinning room and small kitchen was here, along with a small living room with the latest technology for entertainment.  
  
A small door by the side of the cabin led to the lower deck. A large bedroom was found here. A king size bed stood in the middle of the room, a table and chairs stood on one side of the room, right underneath a set of portholes. The room was lit by candles, set all around the room. Plush rugs muffled their steps as they looked at every corner and cranny in the room.  
  
Next to the bedroom were two small cabins. One for the captain and the other for the two men crew he would need. Above the cabins was the steering room. A small ladder by the captain's cabin led to the steering room.  
  
"Where is the crew?" Lily asked as she looked around. "Don't tell me that you plan to steer this thing by yourself." She turned to look sternly at James.  
  
"Oh no. I have to idea how to make this thing work. They will be joining us a little after four, tomorrow morning. I wanted to spend this night alone with you." He said as he approached her.  
  
"Mmm.I'd like that." She smiled as he took her in his arms. "Should I change into something more comfortable?" She asked with a sly look in her eyes.  
  
James' brows arched, what kind of delectable confection did she planned to change into? He'd better find out, he decided. "I urge you to." He whispered before sweeping down and taking her lips in a deep kiss.  
  
"Mmm.I'll see you in a few minutes." She said and slid out of his arms. Took one of the bags that were placed near the door and slipped into the restroom at one end of the cabin.  
  
James smiled and grabbing his bag decided to change as well while he waited for his wife to join him.  
  
Half an hour later, he sat sipping from a glass. He had found a small bar, hidden behind the table. The door to the restroom opened and he almost chocked at the sight that met his eyes.  
  
"Oh Lord. You look gorgeous Lily." He exclaimed.  
  
Lily had decided to wear the nightgown that Katie had given him on her party. A lace, clear robe covered her, but the light coming from the behind her showed James every single curve in her body. He swallowed loudly. Lily smiled. "Thank you." She said before stepping into her husband's arms.  
  
  
  
As James had said, the crew arrived before sunrise next morning. Lily barely heard them walk on the deck as she settled against the warm body next to her. James awoke by the sound and slowly rose from the bed, trying to be quiet about it so not to wake Lily up. He dressed and went up to the deck, where he met the captain and his two sailors, one of which was a woman, but James didn't say anything about it, if the captain thought she was good, so be it.  
  
The boat started to wobble and roll as the waves started to drift into the sea.  
  
"Almos' 'ime." The captain said. "Better go and join the wife." He motioned to James. James nodded and went down to the chamber and saw Lily by the table looking out the portholes.  
  
"Are we going to sail soon?" She asked turning to look at him.  
  
James noticed that she had put her gown and robe back on. "Yes. The tide has turned, we should be sailing in a few minutes." He said.  
  
"Oh good, I want to see the sunrise." Said Lily as she skipped into the restroom.  
  
James laughed. There was a knock on the door and he turned to answer.  
  
Mrs. Reynolds, the only woman in the crew stood in front of him. "I'm sorry to bother you Mr. Potter, but I wanted to know when do you want breakfast ready." She said.  
  
"That's all right Mrs. Reynolds, my wife wants to see the sunrise so I suppose we will have breakfast early." James said.  
  
Mrs. Reynolds nodded. "I'll tell Henry then, he is the best cook in the seven seas, you'll see." She said happily before she turned to back to the deck.  
  
Lily soon emerged from the restroom looking resplendent in her cotton emerald gown with lace sleeves.  
  
"Ready?" James asked.  
  
"Oh yes." She exclaimed.  
  
An hour later, the boat was sailing through the waters. Lily stood by the rails, her back pressed to James' chest and his arms holding her tight against him. The sky was crimson and the bright sun was slowly rising from the waves.  
  
"This is beautiful." Lily whispered.  
  
"No more beautiful than you." James said.  
  
Lily giggled and kissed him before turning back to watch the scenery.  
  
  
  
The next weeks were rather pleasurable for James and Lily. They spent three days in Monte Carlo, it was the first time either of them had gambled and they seemed to be quite lucky. They continued down the Mediterranean stopping in islands and the big ports for a little sightseeing. Lily quite enjoyed her trip down the Grand Canal of Venice on a gondola, rowed by a gondolier named Giuseppe.  
  
They took pictures as they stood by the Greek shore. They ate at an exclusive restaurant in Alexandria. But most of their time, they spend it on the yacht. Just them and the sea, that's how they liked it.  
  
July had finally arrived when Lily and James found themselves driving down the lane back to Gryffindor Manor.  
  
"Hmmm.How much longer do we have to travel?" Asked Lily as she groggily looked around. She had fallen asleep hours earlier and as James had been just as tired he didn't wake her.  
  
"Only a couple of hours." Said James trying to fight a yawn.  
  
"Mmm.Wake me up when we get there." Lily said and settled once more into James' arms.  
  
James chuckled. "You'll have to wake me first." He said. Minutes later, both were deeply asleep.  
  
Neither saw as they drove through the town, nor the sight of the Manor as the sun set behind it, lending it a peaceful and colorful atmosphere. It looked as a landscape done in the rich colors of oils.  
  
James was the first to wake as he felt the car stopping. He looked around and sat abruptly as he saw Martin turning to open the door. In his hurry, he almost unseated Lily.  
  
"James!" She exclaimed.  
  
"Sorry sweetheart. We are here." He said.  
  
"Oh." Lily said as she sat up. She patted her hair and her tried to sweep the wrinkles in her gown with her hands. It wouldn't do to look like a mess when she first sees her mother and mother-in-law.  
  
"You look fine dear." James said kissing her cheek. "Come." He stepped out of the car and turned to help Lily out.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans along with the twins, who were craning their necks in order to get a look of their uncle, were standing by the door. Behind them stood Roberts and Mrs. Nichols, accompanied by the rest of the staff, including the elves, ready to welcome their masters home.  
  
Lily smiled brightly at the group standing before her. As much as she enjoyed her time with James, she had missed this place. She had missed the camaraderie of its people and the merriment that lived in within its walls. She was glad to be back.  
  
"Oh my dear, you look wonderful." Exclaimed her mother as soon as Lily and James had approached them.  
  
"Thank you mum." Said Lily, kissing her cheek and hugging her tightly.  
  
James was getting a similar welcome from his own mother, who was mistily looking up at him and saying how proud his father would be of him if he had been here.  
  
"I know mum, he would be enjoying himself immensely." James said as he hugged his mother once more.  
  
"And Lily dear, did you enjoy yourself? You didn't let James keep you away from having fun, did you?" Mrs. Potter asked turning to Lily.  
  
"No, I didn't. We had lots of fun." Answered Lily as Mrs. Potter hugged her tightly.  
  
"Uncle James."  
  
"Uncle James." The little girls jumped beside their grandmother.  
  
"Hello girls, miss me much?" James asked as he hugged each of his nieces.  
  
"Uh-ha." They nodded.  
  
"Uncle James." One of them whispered, but not low enough to keep the others from listening.  
  
"Yes, Francie." James whispered back.  
  
"What is a honeymoon?" She asked.  
  
"Is the moon made of honey?" Cassie whispered.  
  
"How did you got there?" Francie asked.  
  
"What do you do there?" Cassie wanted to know.  
  
James laughed. "I'll explain it to you when you are older."  
  
"Uncle James!" Francie frowned  
  
"We just turned eight." Cassie crossed her arms.  
  
"We aren't babies." Francie said.  
  
"Never the less, you will find out about it later." James said.  
  
The girls pouted but soon forgot all about it when Lily, chuckling, turned to greet them and gave them a couple of bags with souvenirs. The girls squealed and soon ran off to the nursery to see what their new aunt had brought them.  
  
James and Lily slowly walked down the line of servants, smiling as they were welcomed and congratulated.  
  
It started to get dark. The line of servants had now disappeared, Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans had elected to retire to the family parlor room while James and Lily went up to their quarters.  
  
Lily's things had been taken to the Master's rooms. Mrs. Potter had moved to the wing where Mrs. Evans and Lily had inhabited in order to give the young couple more privacy.  
  
Lily looked around the huge room. It was the largest bedroom in the house. Huge, wall-sized windows stood on one side of the room, leading off to a large balcony. These windows gave a perfect view of the mazes and the lake on one side and the formal gardens leading off to the orchards in the other.  
  
On the wall opposite to the windows stood a large bed. It was the biggest bed that Lily had ever seen. Curtains made of velvet surrounded the woodwork. It seemed old and ancient, and Lily was quite sure that it had seen generations of Potter marriages sleeping on it.  
  
There were plush sofas and chairs around the room. Tables decorated with flowers. On two walls, opposite each other, was a door. The one on the left was James' dressing room, with a large bathroom at one end and a door that led to the hall. The door on the right of the bedroom led to Lily's dressing room. A large vanity table stood on one side, wardrobe, and dressing tables stood around the room. At one end of the room was a large bathroom. The bathtub was big enough for five people. A door on this room also led to the hall. There was no entrance to the bedroom except from the dressing rooms.  
  
"Like it?" Asked James coming from behind her as she looked out the windows. He put his arms around her shoulders and pressed her against him.  
  
"Very." She said, leaning back to look up at her husband with a smile.  
  
"Good. We have a lifetime to spend in this bedroom." He chuckled.  
  
"And I'm looking forward to every year we are together." She said.  
  
  
  
Their first month of their marriage passed with no problems. Life at the Manor eventually fell into a routine. Mrs. Potter had now left all the household issues to Lily and she had taken over the twins, helped by Mrs. Evans. Both ladies enjoyed taking the girls under their wings. As James had said one evening to Lily, it seemed that the older ladies just missed having little girls around the house. Lily had agreed with him. She was happy to see her mother so enthused about working with the little girls.  
  
Fall was now near, time for the gathering of the harvest was only a couple of months away and the Harvest Festival would soon follow. As the preparations for both events started to take place, Lily could only smile. It was some weeks before those events that she had come to Gryffindor Manor as a tutor for two twin girls. Who would've thought that one year later, she would be married? So many things had happened since then and she wondered about the things yet to come.  
  
Lily and James were eating one morning in early August when an owl came flying through the window. It circled the room for a couple of minutes before landing in front of James. Roberts made to take the owl but James motioned him to stay where he was.  
  
"I'll get it." James had said.  
  
He reached for the note attached to the owl's leg. The owl stayed motionless watching as James untied the note. The moment James took the note, the owl spread its wings and flew out the window.  
  
Lily had watched all of this in silence. Usually, the owls flew to a hidden tower on the north wing of the Manor. The notes would then be presented to its recipient at the table. But only urgent messages flew to the recipient. At least, that had been the case while Lily had been here. She looked at James as he read the note. He was silent and of what she could see, worried.  
  
"Is something wrong?" Lily asked.  
  
"I don't know. It's from Dumbledore. He wants us at Hogwarts as soon as can be." He said.  
  
A sense of foreboding slid through her body. What had happened now?  
  
  
  
A small group sat around Dumbledore's desk that evening at Hogwarts. The castle was silent and dark. The corridors quietly waited for the students that were yet to come in the fall.  
  
"I'm sorry my friends to have called you, but this is of the most urgency." Dumbledore began.  
  
The room was lighted. Even though the faces of all of those around were clearly lit, everybody just looked at Dumbledore taking no notice of anybody else.  
  
"Are any of you acquainted with Jack Robinson?" Dumbledore asked abruptly.  
  
Many blinked in surprise, what did Mr. Robinson had to do with this? A few nodded.  
  
"He is the Head of the Department of Experimental Charms and Potions." James answered. Only a few turned to look at him. Many just kept their eyes on Dumbledore.  
  
"He was. He was killed this morning." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Was it him? Was it Voldemort?" A witch asked from inside her cloak. She wasn't the only one who had kept her cloak on in order to remain incognito.  
  
"That is the problem, according to the media, a group of Aurors went to his house this morning due to an anonymous note saying he was a death eater. According to the Prophet, there was a fight. Jack Robinson was killed along with everybody in the house." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Well, that is good isn't it? A Death Eater was killed." Somebody said.  
  
"But according to the Ministry, no such note existed and all Aurors were accounted for, none were directed to go to the Robinson's house." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Are you saying that somebody staged his death?" Sirius asked. James turned to look surprised at his friend. He hadn't even noticed that he was there.  
  
"That seems to be the case. The Ministry and I have a theory. In order for you to understand it, you must know about some other things as well.  
  
"A couple of years ago, a secret plan was developed. Experiments were done with potions and charms in order to find a way to defeat Voldemort. Information about that work was kept secret, but somehow it leaked to Voldemort. The attack last year on the Ministry was the first time Voldemort and his followers tried to get their hands on the research that had been completed. A few days later a Ministry worker was kidnapped for that information. Both didn't work. The Ministry thought that they had given up after no more incidents occurred. Jack Robinson was in charge of the research, his daughter worked along with him, the next stage of the project was about to commence." Dumbledore spoke as those around him kept silent and listened with care.  
  
"Our theory of this morning's attack is that Voldemort's followers were the ones to kill him." Dumbledore was saying.  
  
"But that doesn't make sense Professor, they would've sent the Dark Mark above the house if they did." Somebody said.  
  
"Indeed, they would, but if they had then that would ruin their plans. You see, they knew that Jack Robinson would be hard to break, if they couldn't get Jack then they would try his daughter. Jezebel Robinson knows as much as her father about the project. She wasn't in the house at the time, they knew they had another chance. But if it was widely known that the Death Eaters had killed her family, she would work harder to protect the work that her father was killed for. They need her and that information. If it was known that Jack was killed by Ministry agents then she would have every right to feel anger and betrayed by the office that her father had worked for, she would seek revenge." Dumbledore said.  
  
"And Voldemort would have a dedicated follower that also possessed the knowledge of the Ministry secrets." Remus finished.  
  
He and the others understood what Jezebel Robinson would feel. They were all together in this room because of a common bond. All had been influenced one way or another by the cruelty of Voldemort. Some had lost their family to him, others had sent loved ones to be hidden to keep them safe. All of them wanted to stop Voldemort, and in some way avenge, those that he had killed.  
  
"It is of the outmost importance that she is found before Voldemort does. This is our chance to keep him from gaining more power, without the work of Jack Robinson, Voldemort might never be destroyed." Dumbledore said.  
  
Those around him nodded, now they understood what was the importance of their mission.  
  
"Where was she seen last?" Lily asked.  
  
"She was in the Ministry last night. We don't know where she might have gone this morning, only her family knew, and they cannot tell us now." Dumbledore said.  
  
"We are going to have to look separately. London seems the best place to start." Sirius said.  
  
Dumbledore nodded. "The Ministry is also looking for her. I'm afraid that it would only make her more hostile if the Ministry agents find her first and might not be too amendable. Be careful. Voldemort is also looking for her." He said before everybody nodded and silently walked out of the room.  
  
Dumbledore stayed in his desk, worriedly looking out the window. "Where are you Jezebel?" He silently asked.  
  
  
  
For the next two weeks Lily and James, along with many others, tracked every step of Jezebel Robinson. Every time there was a reported sight of her, many flocked to that spot only to find her gone by the time they got there. The only good thing about this cat and mouse game was that Voldemort and his followers were playing it along with them.  
  
"I would never have thought that I would be encouraging you to look for Jezebel Robinson." Said Lily one morning as Lily and James sat on their table eating a late breakfast. James smiled. "I never would have thought that I would be looking for her." He replied. "Why didn't you tell me that you were part of Dumbledore's group?" He suddenly asked.  
  
"Why didn't you tell me that you were part of his group?" Lily countered.  
  
It was a question asked every day for the last two weeks. Even though the answer had always been the same.  
  
"I didn't want you to worry." James had replied.  
  
"Neither did I." Lily answered.  
  
On this morning, neither had the opportunity to answer as Sirius walked into the room looking exhausted.  
  
"Well that's that." He exclaimed as he sat heavily into a chair.  
  
"What happened Sirius, you look horrible." Said Lily pouring a cup of tea for him.  
  
"Night shift?" James asked. He was glad that it had not been his turn to look for Jezebel last night, he had enjoyed some time with his wife for a change.  
  
Sirius nodded as he tried to gulp down his tea. "We don't need to continue looking for her anymore." He finally said.  
  
"You found her?" Lily asked.  
  
"Where was she?" James queried.  
  
"We didn't, Voldemort did." Sirius said sounding defeated.  
  
"Oh no!" Gasped Lily as James swore.  
  
"Now what?" Asked James.  
  
Sirius shrugged. "Dumbledore hasn't said a word, I think he knew because he wasn't surprised that she was finally sighted with the Death Eaters."  
  
"He must be saddened that our mission failed." Lily said.  
  
"If he is, he hasn't shown it." Sirius said. "I expect he will owl us later."  
  
"Go home Sirius. Rest. There is nothing more we can do at the moment. Let's wait and see what happens." Said James.  
  
Sirius nodded and promptly left the room.  
  
"What do you think will happen now?" Lily asked turning to look at James.  
  
"I don't know." James said worriedly.  
  
  
  
The couple read the Daily Prophet constantly during the following weeks, so far, nothing had seemed to have had occurred and slowly both started to relax.  
  
The weather started to get colder. James started to go around the estate making sure that everything was in readiness and the crops had began to be collected.  
  
Lily spent her morning with Mrs. Nichols as they planned the chores and the menus for the week.  
  
It was at the end of August when Lily and her mother finally received news from Petunia.  
  
"There is a post for you ma'am." Roberts bowed to Mrs. Evans one morning.  
  
"Thank you Roberts." She smiled and looked at the sender. Her brows shot up in surprise.  
  
"Something wrong mum?" Lily asked.  
  
"No dear, at least I don't think so. I'm just surprised that's all. This is from your sister." Mrs. Evans said.  
  
"Petunia? What does she has to say?" Lily asked as she turned back to her meal.  
  
"Well, it seems that a new member of the family it's on its way. She is pregnant." Mrs. Evans said.  
  
"Well, I hope she is happy." Lily said sincerely, deep inside, she still held hope that one day her sister would get over her bigotry and they could be a family once more.  
  
"She seems so. She expects the baby for the end of spring or early summer." Mrs. Evans said as she continued reading the letter.  
  
"She isn't sure?" Lily asked.  
  
"She doesn't seem to." Mrs. Evans laughed.  
  
Lily laughed along with her. "Do you think she would come for the Harvest Festival if I invite her?" Lily asked hopefully.  
  
"I doubt it dear, but give it a try." Mrs. Evans had quickly added at the sight of her daughter's crestfallen face.  
  
"I'll send her a letter then." Lily said happily. "I don't dare sending an owl, she might not like it."  
  
"I'm sure she wouldn't." Mrs. Evans smiled. She was saddened for Lily's sake that her older daughter had turned out the way she did. Her constant denial of Lily's existence or of her talent grabbed at Mrs. Evans heartstrings, and that she had married a man like Vernon did not sit well with her. She was still angry at Petunia for what had happened at her husband's death. She had hoped that with time things would change, but that didn't seem to be the case. The letter was only addressed to her, and no mention of Lily had been made.  
  
  
  
The end of September was upon them and time for the Harvest Festival along with it. Lily was glad that the Potters had hosted the Ball the previous year, it meant that she wouldn't have to worry about it for a few years more. Even the hunt was being taken care of by another estate. The only thing that they had to do was help with the town festival and the Quidditch match, and that she didn't have to worry about, James would take care of it.  
  
The twins kept the older ladies happily busy in the mornings and the afternoons were busy with meetings with all the ladies around the town and the neighboring states making plans for the upcoming festival.  
  
On this sunny fall day, Lily sat on the parlor with her mother, talking about the upcoming festival.  
  
"I sent an invitation to Petunia today. I invited her to come for the Festival." Lily said.  
  
"Hmmm.I'm sure she will get it soon." Mrs. Evans said. She didn't want to give hope to Lily that Petunia would show up. If she didn't deign to be present for her sister's wedding, what would make her come for a visit?  
  
"James and I are planning on going to London next week." Lily continued when she noticed her mother wasn't going to continue on about Petunia. "I'm going to have some of the paintings father left me brought here to the estate and the rest I will keep in a secured vault at Gringotts."  
  
"That is wise dear, those painting are worth a small fortune. Which ones are you planning to bring?" Mrs. Evans asked, happy to talk about something besides her oldest daughter.  
  
"I'm not sure yet. Do you want to come with us? Maybe you could help me choose." Lily asked.  
  
"I was planning in helping Susan with her garden, but I'll see. It would be good to go to London for a day, I could go and talk to my solicitor and see how the lease of the house goes on." Mrs. Evans said.  
  
Lily nodded.  
  
"Did you invite anyone else for the Festival?" Mrs. Evans wanted to know.  
  
"Katie and Sirius. And I think James sent an owl to Remus and Peter as well." Lily said with a smile.  
  
"You are not planning to have a house party then?" Mrs. Evans said. Most families living in large estates in the area had house parties during the Festival, the year before the Potters hosted the annual ball, this year it would be their turn to have a house party if they wished.  
  
"No. James and I were discussing it the other night and we decided it that it was too soon for us to try to have a house party. He is so busy now with the crops and the harvest, he wouldn't be here all the time and he says he doesn't want to leave everything to me. So we decided that if we are going to have a house party we will have it for Christmas." Lily said.  
  
"Oh, that sounds like fun." Mrs. Evans said remembering clearly the last Christmas House Party the Potters had.  
  
"I thought so. It's not clear yet if we are going to do so or not, but what do you think? Can we have a house party this Christmas?" Lily asked somewhat concerned. It would not be the first house party that she planned. She had helped her mother and Mrs. Potter in the past, but there was always someone to lead her. Planning a party on her own was something completely different and she wanted James to be proud of her and show him that she could do it.  
  
"Of course you can dear, this is your house now, you can do whatever you wish. You know Susan and I will be here to help you if you need us." Mrs. Evans said looking proudly at her daughter.  
  
"Oh mum, thanks. I'll talk to James about it then." Said Lily hugging her mother. She skipped out of the room soon after.  
  
Mrs. Evans watched her go with a smile. "You would be so proud of her Edward." She whispered. With a sigh she returned to her knitting, which had been laying on her lap as she talked to Lily.  
  
  
  
The weather was getting colder in the coast as well. Peter stood by the door of the house he shared with his mother. The note he had received from James was clasped in his hand. He was filled with sadness and shame. How could he be truthful and happy with his friends when the knowledge he gathered from them could be used for evil?  
  
The choices he had made had been done for the safety of his mother, he didn't regret that, but would his friends understand that?  
  
"They can take care of themselves." Peter kept telling himself. "They are more talented than I am. They know how to take care. Nothing will happen to them." Peter whispered. "Nothing will happen."  
  
  
  
The servants were happily working in the orchards. Lily and James had come, along with the twins and their mothers to help gather the ripe apples.  
  
Ladders stood against the trunks of the trees. One person pulled the apples from the branches and threw it down for those below him to gather and place in baskets. Lily and James had appropriated a tree to themselves. James climbed the ladder and sat on the branches pulling apples. Lily and the twins stood below gathering them as he threw them down.  
  
"Be careful James." Lily said for the tenth time.  
  
James laughed. "Not to worry Lily, I've done this often." Throwing an apple, trying to make it go into the basked that the girls had placed some feet away from the tree.  
  
The twins were happily running around the tree trying to catch each other. Lily smiled indulgently at them, trying to keep an eye on her husband.  
  
"Are you sure you should be doing that. Wouldn't it be better if one of the footmen did it?" Lily asked once more.  
  
"No. They are busy with their own trees." James said.  
  
"Don't worry Lily dear, James has been doing that for years, and he has been lucky enough from breaking any bones." Mrs. Potter said as she sat on a rug nearby. She and Mrs. Evans were putting the apples into boxes. Preparing them for the servants to take them for storage.  
  
"Well, I still think it's dangerous." Lily said as she started to gather the apples from the ground.  
  
They continued to work. Some of the servants had started to sing as they worked. Lily hummed along as James sang at the top of his voice. Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans laughed at the antics of the twins as they twirled and danced to the songs.  
  
"Are you ready dears, for the Festival tomorrow?" Asked Mrs. Potter as the twins sat beside her.  
  
"Oh yes."  
  
"We like the Festival."  
  
"When are we going?"  
  
"We'll go first thing in the afternoon. The morning they will spend in getting things ready." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"We'll join you." Said James, finally climbing down, much to the relief of Lily.  
  
"I'm sure it will be fun." Lily said.  
  
  
  
The sun had set, darkness had fallen and the stars had began to appear in the velvety sky. All the ripe apples had been collected, the baskets had been stored and the servants were back in the house finishing their evening chores.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans were in the family parlor knitting and chatting after putting the girls to sleep.  
  
James and Lily stood by the pool in their garden, watching the stars shinning above them. Lily was leaning against James, her back to his chest. His arms were around her, warding off the chill from her.  
  
"Why isn't she coming James? Why does she hate me so much?" Lily asked sadly.  
  
"Don't worry about your sister Lily, you are better off without her." James said, kissing her hair.  
  
"But she is my sister James, I thought family was supposed to stick together, be there for each other." Lily replied.  
  
"We all wish that Lily, but it's not always like that. There is always someone we don't get along with in our family. In your case, it's your sister. Don't worry about her sweetheart, you don't need her." He said.  
  
"I wish things would be easier with her. We don't know when we might need each other's help." Lily said turning her head to look at her husband.  
  
"Humph! I doubt it. No offense Lily, but your sister is a nosey, mean- spirited git and that husband of hers in no better. I shudder to think what that kid of theirs is going to be like. It's better this way, the less our children have to deal with them, the better we all will be." James said.  
  
"But they will be cousins, they need to know each other." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"They won't need to. Our children will be better off, you will see. Now stop worrying, we have a fun day ahead of us." James said as he started pulling her out of the garden.  
  
"I don't know James, I still think that it would be better if they developed a kind of relationship." Said Lily as they approached the house.  
  
"I don't think your sister would look forward to that Lily." Said James.  
  
The house was now dark, only some light flickered in the halls to light the way. Lily and James slowly made their way to their chamber; all thoughts about Petunia and their future children out of their minds at the moment.  
  
  
  
The first day of the Harvest Festival arrived. The sun shone, the birds chirped and a cool breeze blew through the open window of Lily and James' room.  
  
Lily snuggled against the warm body beside her. Heavy arms clasped her around the waist. She smiled.  
  
"Good morning!" Her husband whispered in her ear.  
  
"Morning." She answered before giving him a peck on his cheek.  
  
"I suppose it's time to get up." Groaned James as Lily moved his arm and sat up on the bed, ready to be up and about and enjoy the day.  
  
"Yes. We have Sirius and Katie coming this morning, and you know the twins will be up soon waiting to go down to the village." Lily said as she gathered her robes.  
  
Lotty was quietly walking around the room, cleaning and putting things in order.  
  
"Good morning Lotty!" Lily exclaimed.  
  
"Good morning Mistress Lily. The bath is ready for you." He said with a bow.  
  
"Thank you Lotty." Lily called closing the door to her dressing room behind her.  
  
"Is Master James rising?" Lotty asked. His tennis-ball-sized eyes and bat like ears straining toward James.  
  
"Might as well." Sighed James. "Is my bath ready?" He asked.  
  
"Yes Master James. Lotty will bring breakfast while Mistress Lily and Master James bathe." Lotty said and with a bow disappeared from the room.  
  
James dragged his feet toward his dressing room. The first time for a while since he didn't have to be up and about the estate and he couldn't stay in bed!  
  
When Lily emerged from her bath she found a robed James eating in a table set by the large windows. The aroma of hot chocolate and tea permeated the room. The cook had also sent some buttered bread, eggs and warm porridge.  
  
James smiled at the sight of his wife. "When I left Hogwarts I thought I wouldn't have to have any more porridge every morning. Otty doesn't seem to agree with me. You'll have to see how to get him to change his menu dear." James chuckled as he raised his spoon full of porridge to his mouth.  
  
Lily laughed. "I'll see what I can do, but I like his porridge." She said.  
  
"You can have the porridge then, I want chicken and ham on my plate." Said James.  
  
"Really James, that's too heavy to eat in the morning." Lily exclaimed as she poured some chocolate on her cup.  
  
"No it's not. Just the thing to get me up in the morning." James said with a smile.  
  
Lily shook her head. Only James would say such a thing.  
  
Squeals and laughter soon filled the corridors of the Manor. The twins were up and eager to join the festivities.  
  
"We better finish here and help nurse with the twins, they must be excited." Lily laughed as she heard tiny footsteps running past the room; heavy steps followed.  
  
James nodded. "Yes, poor nurse, I think I will have to give her a raise. At least we just have three more years to wait for them to get their letters from Hogwarts." He sighed.  
  
"Nurse will bless the day those letters arrive." Laughed Lily. She threw her napkin on her plate and stood. "I'm getting ready, you should do the same James. We have a long day ahead of us." She said kissing his cheek before walking toward her dressing room once more.  
  
  
  
  
  
The whole household was in good spirits that day. The twins were hidden in the kitchen, Otty was sneaking sweets and pastries to the girls, the maids happily went around doing their chores, the footmen eagerly followed to help, even Roberts and Mrs. Nichols could be seen around the house, humming as they worked.  
  
James entered the breakfast room looking for his mother.  
  
"There you are, we wondered if you had found the warmth of your bed to good to leave it." Said Sirius as he sat sprawled on a chair buttering some rolls and a steaming cup of tea in front of him.  
  
"Don't you ever eat at your own house?" Laughed James as he took a seat across from his friend.  
  
"I do, but somehow I get hungry once I get here." Said Sirius with a smile.  
  
"How long have you been waiting?" James asked, shaking his head when Sirius offered some rolls.  
  
"Hmmm.about half an hour. Katie was eager to arrive. She woke me up at an ungodly hour James! Let me tell you, once a woman is up, there is no way a man can go back to sleep." Sirius complained.  
  
James laughed. "Well, I won't say anything about that, I don't want to get in trouble with my own wife, and living in a house full of women doesn't help." He said.  
  
"Poor chap. You really have a hard time here don't you?" Chuckled Sirius.  
  
"What is so amusing?" Asked Katie as she and Lily walked in the room.  
  
"Nothing. Just thinking of what we might do today." Said Sirius. "Oh James, I wanted to ask, are you hosting the Quidditch Game again?" He asked turning quickly to James.  
  
"As I am the only one with a Quidditch Pitch in the estate, yes, I am." Said James after rolling his eyes.  
  
"Oh, that's right." Sirius said.  
  
"Do you want to referee this time? As far as I know, we don't have one yet." James urged.  
  
"All right. It would be fun. I don't enjoy losing to you anyways." Sirius said popping a buttered roll into his mouth.  
  
Lily laughed. Katie just shook her head. "He moped for hours last year." She said.  
  
"But you took care of it dear." Sirius said with a sly smile.  
  
"Oh you! Here eat this." Katie said as she shoved another roll into his mouth.  
  
James and Lily laughed and turned to look at each other with merriment.  
  
"Ready for the Festival?" James asked.  
  
"Yes. The twins are so excited, they cannot wait." She said.  
  
"I imagine so. Where is mother, I was looking for her but I stumbled into Sirius here and I got distracted." James said.  
  
"She is in the parlor with mum. They wanted to work on this project both of them are planning." Lily said.  
  
"What kind of project?" James asked curious.  
  
"Don't know, they wouldn't tell me, I think they are planning it as a surprise for us." Lily answered.  
  
"Really? I wonder what they are working on." James said.  
  
"Never mind. Let them have their fun. When are we going down to the village?" Katie asked keeping an eye on her husband who so far had stayed busy enough with his rolls.  
  
"After luncheon. The crowd is larger and there should be enough to see by then." James said.  
  
"Good. I want to try some of those pies I smelled on our way here." Sirius said.  
  
"How can you eat so much?" Asked Lily. "When are you going to outgrow it?"  
  
"Only if I have to go to Azkaban for murder." Sirius said.  
  
"I think he would eat the dementors if he's ever thrown into Azkaban." Katie said  
  
The others had no time to respond as Francesca and Cassandra ran into the room.  
  
"Uncle James."  
  
"Aunt Lily."  
  
They yelled as they stumbled into the room.  
  
Lily and James turned to look at them with huge smiles.  
  
"Good morning girls." James said as the two girls stopped in front of them.  
  
"Look what Otty gave us."  
  
"To put all our purchases into."  
  
They said as they showed them a large wicker basket.  
  
"That is nice dears, what are you planning to buy?" Lily asked.  
  
"Candy."  
  
"Cakes."  
  
"Bracelets."  
  
"Flowers."  
  
"Lace."  
  
"Ribbons."  
  
James laughed. "Are you sure that basket will be large enough to carry all of your things?" He asked.  
  
The girls looked worried.  
  
"Should we ask-"  
  
"-For a larger basket?"  
  
"Don't worry dears, I think that basket will be enough." Lily said with a smile.  
  
The girls smiled brightly once more.  
  
"Why don't you go and show your grandmother. I'm sure she will want to see it as well." James urged.  
  
"Luncheon should be ready in a couple of hours so don't go far." Lily called after them as the two girls ran out of the room.  
  
"I seriously think that Hogwarts will not survive those two." Katie said.  
  
"Oh, I think it will. They cannot be worse than these two were." Lily said motioning at James and Sirius.  
  
"Hey!" They exclaimed while Lily and Katie laughed.  
  
  
  
  
  
Booths full of merchandise, aromas, music and color, all this and more met the eyes of every visitor in the village that afternoon. It looked as if everyone around the town had decided to visit. People bumped against each other as they walked from one booth to another, but nobody seemed to mind.  
  
"James, please keep an eye on the girls for me, I don't want to lose them." Called Mrs. Potter as the group from the Manor arrived to town.  
  
"Why don't you and Mrs. Evans take them to the square? There should be more space there because of the dancing. And there are chairs around the place so you could rest. Lily and Katie want to see around the booths." Said James.  
  
"You are probably right. Come Rose, let's get out of this crowd." Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans took hold of the twins and led them through the crowd, bumping and stopping to greet neighbors as they walked.  
  
"Shouldn't we go with them?" Asked Lily as she watched the crowd close behind her mother.  
  
"Not to worry Lily, I'm sure they'll enjoy watching the couples dance." Said Katie.  
  
"Come, there are those pastries I want to try." Urged Sirius pulling Katie along.  
  
"But Sirius!" Katie exclaimed.  
  
"You just ate!" Lily sounded surprised.  
  
James laughed. "You should know by now that Sirius is always hungry." He said.  
  
"Well, I for one, do not man to stand by watching him eat." Said Katie.  
  
"Neither do I. James, stay with him, Katie and I will look around." Lily said. With a nod, Katie followed Lily into the crowd.  
  
James and Sirius didn't seem to notice, they had arrived at the pastry booth and they were busy choosing the pastries they wanted to taste. The baker's wife smiled brightly once she saw them approach, she was sure that her best customers had just arrived.  
  
The group was in high spirits, enjoying their time and absorbing all the sights. A major contrast from the previous year.  
  
It was one year ago when the Ministry was attacked by Voldemort and his Death Eaters. The Potters' town house was destroyed along with several members of their household. Emma had been injured and kidnapped on the day she left the hospital. Those were dark times for the small group.  
  
Lily had remembered these events that morning, and along with Mrs. Nichols, the housekeeper, and some of the maids, had gone to the chapel. They had taken pictures of all of those lost in the attack and placed them before the altar, flowers and candles were placed around them.  
  
She had also remembered Emma, and that it had been close to one year since they last saw each other. After being kidnapped by the Death Eaters, Emma escaped and was found near Hogsmeade. The Ministry and Professor Dumbledore agreed to keep her at Gryffindor Manor as they made arrangements for her. Emma stayed in the Manor for less than a week. Dumbledore had then taken her to somewhere safe. Nobody knew where she was or how long she would be gone. Lily had hoped that with the murder of Jack Robinson and Jezebel's escape to the Death Eaters, Emma would be brought back, with the knowledge she possessed about the project Mr. Robinson had worked on she could easily counterattack any problems Jezebel's defection would've caused. But that had not been the case and Emma stayed in hiding.  
  
Lily thought about her lost friend as she and Katie looked at the crafts displayed in the booths around them.  
  
"Emma would've liked this." Lily said as she held up a handmade brass bracelet.  
  
"She would. She liked everything that was handmade. Have you heard from her?" Katie asked looking at Lily with worry in her eyes.  
  
"No. I sent an owl to Dumbledore and enclosed a note for her, I'm hoping that he would be able to send it to her." Lily said.  
  
"I miss her." Katie said. "She missed so much. She should've been there when we got married."  
  
"I know. I wish she was here now." Lily whispered.  
  
"Oh come, let's not get moody. Let's go find those husbands of ours, hopefully they haven't caused any trouble." Katie said pulling Lily from the booth.  
  
Lily smiled. Emma is fine, she thought, Dumbledore would keep her safe.  
  
Sad memories were soon put aside and happy moments were taking their place. Lily and Katie met James and Sirius by the dance floor, and soon both couples were twirling through out the floor.  
  
  
  
Night had fallen and the tired group was making its way to the Manor. James had called Martin to drive the car to town and pick up his mother along with Mrs. Evans and the twins. Lily and Katie walked beside their husbands, laughing and joking as they walked down the lane.  
  
The weather had turned cold. The leaves in the trees had turned golden and crimson. The breeze made the falling leaves dance. The sky had turned scarlet and the stars had started to appear, but the music and noise from the Feast was still in the air.  
  
Katie was pulling Sirius down a slope toward a hill. She wanted to see the lights as they appeared on the horizon.  
  
James kept a tight hold on Lily's hand. Lily smiled at him happily.  
  
"I love you." He whispered.  
  
"I know. I love you too." She said kissing his cheek before leaning her head on his shoulder.  
  
"Are you happy?"  
  
"Of course I am, I couldn't be any happier." She answered.  
  
James smiled.  
  
"You won't mind if I plan the Christmas house party?" She asked turning to look at him.  
  
"I don't mind, all I have is yours now sweetheart, you can do whatever you wish." He answered kissing her nose.  
  
She laughed. "You shouldn't have said that, now you won't have reason to complain if I do something you don't like."  
  
"Oh, I'm sure that whatever you do will be perfection." He replied with a smile.  
  
"Flatterer. I'm sure your mum and mine will be happy to help me, I don't like the idea of doing all the planning on my own." She said.  
  
"I'm sure they will be happy to help." James replied.  
  
The Manor came into sight. The lights shone through the windows. The door stood open as servants arrived from their time off in town. The squeals and laughter of the twins could be heard around them. Lily smiled. This was home now, and she couldn't be happier anywhere else.  
  
  
  
The Festival was now over, Sirius and Katie had returned home and the Manor was settling to its normal routine.  
  
The fields were covered with fallen leaves and the weather had turned chilly, Halloween was soon approaching and the year was almost over.  
  
"Have you heard from Remus?" Asked Lily one morning.  
  
"Not lately. The last time I heard from him he was in Africa." James said looking up from his Daily Prophet.  
  
"I wonder if he is all right." Said Lily with a frown.  
  
"Don't worry my dear, he can take care of himself." James said. "I got an owl from Peter last night, it seemed that his mother was sick but she is now much better."  
  
"Oh, that's nice to hear." Lily said.  
  
Lily was busily scrawling on a piece of parchment. James put aside his paper to look at his wife as the quill looked to be flying off the parchment.  
  
"Lily?" He said tentatively.  
  
"Hmmm?"  
  
"What are you doing?" He asked, curious of what was keeping his wife preoccupied.  
  
"I'm writing a list." She said, barely paying him any attention.  
  
"A list? A list for what?"  
  
"For the Christmas House Party. I'm doing the guest list now, do you have somebody that you want to invite?" She asked finally turning to look at James.  
  
"Well, now that you mention it, just Sirius, Remus and Peter, there is nobody else I want here for Christmas." James said.  
  
"Very well. I plan to have a small party anyways, I don't think I'm up to something big." Lily replied.  
  
"Whatever you want dear." James said once again turning to his paper.  
  
Lily smiled at her husband before turning back to her list.  
  
Lily was really excited, she was looking forward to having people in the house once more. Both Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans had agreed to help and they were happy to be able to be doing something to help.  
  
And if everything went as expected, thought Lily, she would have a great present for James.  
  
  
  
Halloween passed by quickly. The weather was turning colder, the days were shorter and the household at the Manor was busy cleaning every surface around the building. James escaped the chaos at home every morning and joined his tenants around the estate as they readied for winter. He took off his jacket like the others did and took an ax to chop wood. The wood supply grew day by day, the hay was stored and the grains and fruit that had been harvested earlier in the season were bagged in the storeroom.  
  
He was supervising the feeding of the cattle one morning when somebody slapped his back.  
  
"There you are chap, I have been looking all over for you young man." Said a booming voice behind him.  
  
James turned with a smile. "Hello Colonel, did you need me for something?"  
  
"Indeed my dear lad. I need to go to London, the wife wants to do some shopping and my car broke down, wondered if I could borrow yours for the day." Colonel Mathews said smiling down at his young neighbor.  
  
"Of course, Colonel. I'll tell Martin to drive you to the city, I'm sure he would enjoy a day off from all the chaos in the house." James said.  
  
"Young Mrs. Potter busy with the party planning is she. I can commiserate with you there, the wife is planning for a party as well, got the idea from your wife." The Colonel said.  
  
"I'm sorry sir, I suppose you must be happy to go to the City for the day then." Laughed James.  
  
"Indeed I am. She can shop all she wants and I'll be in my club puffing a cloud and drinking some wine." Boomed Colonel Mathews.  
  
James laughed. He liked the old man standing beside him. The Colonel was really no military man, but the way he run his estate and his household he might as well had been. The Colonel was army mad, when he was a young man he had wanted to enlist and go off to war, unfortunately his father was ill, and the care of his mother and estate had fallen on his shoulders. He never regretted his choices, he was easy going, and well liked, it was the wife that was unwelcome to most of the leading people in town, but he didn't seem to mind. He was happy just as he was.  
  
The Colonel stayed with James for a moment, discussing crops and cattle. Even though there was a big age difference between the two, there were certain events in their lives that made them relate to each other.  
  
  
  
December had arrived. The days had turned cold and the nights even colder. Every fireplace was burning and the gray clouds threatened to let the first snowstorm to fall.  
  
Lily had been busy for the last weeks getting the Manor ready and thinking of ways to entertain their guests. The twins had been surprisingly helpful, they seemed to be artists when it came to flowers, all the rooms had been gloriously decorated with flowers and the girls had been responsible for that. They were happy to feel useful and Lily let them do what they pleased with the flowers picked to decorate the house.  
  
"Oh, the twins have done a great job in this room." Mrs. Potter said as she entered the formal parlor room.  
  
Vases were placed on pedestals at every corner of the room. Small flower chains had been made and placed around the walls and the windows. Garlands made out of vines and lilies hanged from the curtains and were placed around the doorway.  
  
"Yes, they did great. I never thought that they were so artistic, I can't wait to see what they are capable of with a little more practice." Lily replied as she stood in the middle of the room looking around.  
  
"They certainly did good and I'm sure that liked feeling that they had something to do." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Oh yes, they were ecstatic. Maybe we should let them to the flower arrangements from now on, I'm sure that they are ready now to start with a little responsibility." Said Lily.  
  
"Oh certainly. They have to start learning how to manage a house this big, it's a part of their education that they must learn before going to Hogwarts." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
Mrs. Evans nodded her agreement. In her opinion, household management was something that all little girls should be thought, whether it was a small house or a large one, it didn't matter, the time would come for them to have a home of their own and they needed to know how to go on.  
  
The ladies settled in the parlor to wait. The house was clean and the aromas from the kitchen enticed them. Everything was ready for the arrival of their guests.  
  
Katie and Sirius were the first to arrive. Sirius went off to look for James, whom, he was told, had gone to the stables to check on the cattle, while Katie stayed with the ladies of the house to greet the rest of the guests. Family and close friends had been invited to attend. Like the last time, Lily had sent an invitation to her sister, and like the last time, there was no response.  
  
"I refuse to kiss Aunt Olivia, every time I get near her she pinches my cheeks." Complained James some time later as he joined the ladies in the parlor.  
  
"Oh James, but you are her favorite nephew." Exclaimed Mrs. Potter.  
  
"I don't care." James pouted.  
  
"Really James, you are being childish, now smile and get ready to greet our guests, I think I hear a car coming." Said Lily, quickly kissing her husband and turning to look toward the door, waiting for Roberts to announce the guests in.  
  
The door soon opened and Roberts entered, their first guests right behind him. The next few hours were busy greeting people as they arrived. Roberts was busy in the hall directing his footmen toward the guest rooms with the luggage. A pair of dark haired heads kept bobbing up and down behind the banister on the top floor, peaking to see all the commotion and traffic going on down in the foyer. The footmen smiled to themselves as childish giggles followed them up the stairs.  
  
The Manor was soon brightly lit and full of merriment. Dinner had been put back and would be served later than usual to give time to the guests to refresh themselves. James was not too happy about this, and Sirius had been devastated when he found out. He was truly looking forward to the glazed ham he had glimpsed in the kitchen when he went looking for James.  
  
The guests continued to arrive. Mrs. Nichols directed the maids in the guests rooms making sure that all the luggage was placed where it was supposed to go and that enough linen and towels were placed in the bedrooms closets.  
  
James sat pouting in the parlor, Aunt Olivia had arrived and as he suspected, she pinched his cheeks the moment she saw him.  
  
"Oh my dear Jamie, look at you, you have grown so much." Aunt Olivia squealed the moment she saw him seating by Lily.  
  
"Hello Aunt Olivia." James sounded like a bored child.  
  
"Who would've thought that this child would get married so soon? My dear, you look gorgeous, I see what James saw in you to actually take the plunge." She said to Lily with a huge smile.  
  
"Thank you Mrs. Landy." Lily said with a smile as she nudged James to stop scowling.  
  
"Oh, call me Aunt Olivia dear, we are family now. Susan, how is life treating you?" She exclaimed moving on to Mrs. Potter.  
  
Lily giggled behind her. James was scowling again.  
  
"Don't laugh." He hissed. "It hurts when she pinches my cheeks."  
  
She couldn't help it, she laughed.  
  
Soon, the guests stopped arriving, most of those invited had arrived.  
  
"Where is Remus? I thought you said he had accepted your invitation." Said James as soon as the guests had left them to get ready for dinner.  
  
"He owled and said he would be coming." Said Lily. "It's not a full moon, is it?" She asked peering out the window to look at the moon.  
  
"No, it just passed." James said.  
  
"Don't worry, he will show up, perhaps he got held over somewhere." Lily said.  
  
"Hmmm.perhaps."  
  
"Come, let's freshen up before we go in to dinner." Said James pulling him from his seat.  
  
"It is about time. I'm hungry." James complained.  
  
Lily laughed. "I can imagine, I could hear your stomach above all the noise."  
  
James smiled sheepishly and followed her out of the room.  
  
  
  
Dinner was a big success. The glazed ham stood in place of honor at the center of the table, several mouths watered at the sight of it.  
  
"Will you look at that? It looks delicious." Whispered Sirius in awe to his wife.  
  
Katie just chuckled. "Only you would pay more attention to the food than to anything else."  
  
Sirius smiled charmingly at her. "The food is not the only thing that looks delicious." He said.  
  
"Sirius! Honestly!" Katie said, slapping his arm.  
  
Sirius chuckled before turning to the full plate in front of him.  
  
Dinner was merry and noisy. Everybody spoke at once. News about other family members were discussed and the latest Quidditch games were fought over. It seemed that Mrs. Evans was the only muggle sitting at the table. But she didn't seem to mind. She had been living with the Potters for a year now and she could hold her own with this wild group of wizards.  
  
After dinner, they all retired to the music room, where the twins awed their audience with their music prowess. Lily and Mrs. Evans had worked for hours with them on the pieces they chose to play and were proud for the twins' performance.  
  
  
  
By the time next morning arrived Lily was feeling extremely tired. In fact, she had been so occupied with all the planning and making sure all was in order that she had been very tired for the past few days. She opened her eyes to see the room bathed with bright sunlight. She blinked a couple of times to clear her sight and smiled.  
  
Everything was going better than she thought it would. She was happy. Her tiredness now forgotten she turned to her husband, who was still asleep beside her.  
  
"James." She whispered in his ear.  
  
"Hmmm?"  
  
"Wake up."  
  
"Why?" He mumbled.  
  
"You are taking the men out on a hunting party remember, they must be getting ready now." She reminded him.  
  
James groaned. "You should've hit me when I thought of it. I would be staying in bed a while longer if you had." He said as he started getting up from the bed.  
  
Lily smiled and settled back into the warm bed.  
  
"Oh fine, you can stay there but I can't." James called from his dressing room.  
  
"You know that the women will not be leaving their beds until later. They are most likely to stay in bed and have their breakfast in it." Lily replied. "I think I will do the same."  
  
"Fine, but we are taking food along with us. I know I'm going to be hungry later on." James said coming out of his dressing room, Lotty stayed behind putting away his nightclothes. He approached his sleepy wife and kissed her cheek. "Rest my dear, you have been busy lately, you must be tired. I'll see you later." He said.  
  
"Bye. Have fun!" She called as James walked out of the room.  
  
"I will bring you lots of game for Otty to prepare for tonight's dinner." He called.  
  
Lily snuggled deep into the bed and fell asleep once more.  
  
  
  
Lily had been right, the men were all ready waiting for him at the stables. The stablemen stood by the horses with rifles ready and empty sacks to hold the game hunted.  
  
"There you are, we were wondering what kept you." Somebody said as James stepped into the stables.  
  
"What else, his wife, that's what kept him." Sneered Sirius.  
  
"Honestly, Sirius!" James said.  
  
The others laughed. James was glowering at Sirius but said no more as his groom approached with his horse.  
  
Everybody mounted their horses and soon set out toward the woods surrounding the northern side of the Manor.  
  
They stayed out the whole morning. Lily had been right in assuming that the women would not leave their rooms until later. It was almost noon when all made their appearance into the parlor. They were sitting around the breakfast table eating a light luncheon when they heard the men walking in. Their laughter and high spirits letting them know that their trip was a success.  
  
James entered the room followed by the rest.  
  
"We bagged a lot of game for you my dear." He said kissing her head.  
  
"I'm sure Otty will be glad. Did you have fun?" She asked to the group in general.  
  
"Oh yes, the ride was certainly invigorating." Sirius said stealing some food from his wife's plate.  
  
"Sirius! If you are hungry go change, then you may return and serve yourself." She scolded.  
  
Those around them giggled or chuckled.  
  
Sirius looked sheepishly at her and kissing her cheek said: "I'm sorry my dear, I'll be back soon."  
  
Others followed him out of the room, wanting to change and get something to eat as well. James was the last one to leave the room, after kissing his mother's cheek.  
  
The afternoon was cold but the group didn't mind as they trekked down to the lake. Benches and barrels of hot cider were brought to the shore. The party from the Manor was soon skating around the frozen lake. Few decided to stay from the ice and sat on the benches near the lit fires, keeping warm by the flames and by the warm cider.  
  
The twins were giggling as Sirius and James took them by the hands and twirled them across the ice. Lily and Katie worriedly kept an eye on them, but the happy squeals from the girls soon filled the air.  
  
When the sky turned dark and the stars started to appear, the group made its way back to the house. The servants right behind with the kegs of cider. The fires had been put out and the lake was once more deserted.  
  
They walked through the lighter trees. All the trees in the estate had been decorated with fairies, they danced and played, making beautiful displays as they did so. It was a magical view for a magical time.  
  
Everybody happily sat around the fireplace in the parlor. The twins had been taken to the nursery to get ready for bed. Dinner was soon served, and famished, everybody enjoyed the fruits of their labor as the food contained some of the game hunted that morning.  
  
Lily looked happily down the table. Everything was going great.  
  
  
  
Later that night, James sat in his bookroom. The guests had gone to their beds, as had Lily. He was worried that she was running herself ragged with all the planning and hosting duties. He thought that perhaps it would have been better if they'd stayed by themselves that Christmas. It was their first as a married couple, but she had been so excited about it, he didn't have the heart to deny her anything.  
  
Christmas was approaching, it was only a few day away. The next morning they would all go to town for some last minute shopping. The women had decided that they preferred to go to London, and they would be apparating or flooing to Diagon Alley early in the morning.  
  
He was so lost in his thoughts that didn't hear the knock on his door. The knock came again and James shook his head as he heard it.  
  
"Come in." He called.  
  
The door opened and a tall, thin young man entered the room.  
  
"Where the hell have you been? We were expecting you yesterday." James exclaimed.  
  
"I'm sorry, I had to report to the Ministry before I came." Remus said as he sat on one of the chairs facing James' desk.  
  
"Report? Why?" He asked.  
  
"Oh, there has been some research going on about werewolves. They reckon that they have found a way to diminish the effects of the bite." Remus said accepting a warm cup of cider from James.  
  
"Well, those are good news." James said.  
  
"It would be, if it had worked. They asked me to be part of the research you see, so before this past full moon I reported to the Ministry and took the potion they had created. I reported back last night to tell them of the results." Remus said as he sipped the warm liquid.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry it didn't work. But if they are working on the subject they might come up with something that would help." James said in an optimistic tone.  
  
"Hopefully." Remus replied.  
  
"Are you hungry? I'm sure that Otty stored all that was left over from dinner. We can go a check." James said as he noticed how thin and tired his friend looked.  
  
Remus nodded. "Perhaps it's best if I do get something to eat before going to bed." He said.  
  
James happily led him to the kitchens. He didn't mind getting a second helping from the venison served at dinner.  
  
  
  
Snow fell through the night. When Lily awoke the next morning she found herself looking out the window to a landscape blanketed in snow. The snow glistened in the sunlight. A perfect picture for a Christmas card, she thought.  
  
She heard James' mumble as he snuggled deep into the pillows.  
  
She smiled. It was his turn to stay longer in bed. She and the rest of the women would be going to London to make any last minute purchases.  
  
She dressed quietly and kissed his cheek before she left the room.  
  
James sighed but didn't wake.  
  
It was two hours later when he finally rose from bed to notice that his wife was no longer beside him. He groaned. He had hoped to be up by the time his wife left the house, he wanted to see her off but it looked like he was late for that.  
  
James joined the rest of the men as they ate breakfast and read their papers.  
  
The morning passed and the men spent it at their leisure. Some stayed in the game room, others went to the stables and rode around the estate. Others closeted themselves in the library and sat to read. Sirius took Remus to the kitchen where James later found them tasting every dish that Otty created.  
  
A large luncheon was served. One made to tease the taste buds of a large group of men.  
  
It was late in the evening when the women returned. They were cheerful and happy about their purchases. Several took their husbands to their respective rooms to show them all that had been bought; some were happy to go, others were not.  
  
Lily had taken hold of James and had taken him to their rooms.  
  
"Oh and look at this, I bought it for the twins. Do you think they will like it?" She eagerly said as she held a pair of porcelain dolls.  
  
James smiled at his wife, she was as eager as the twins were sure to be.  
  
"I'm sure they will love it." He said.  
  
"Oh, and I found this, I just couldn't resist it. I just had to have it." She said as she held a bolt of fabric up for his inspection. "I'm sure I can get a gorgeous dress robes made from this fabric."  
  
"It will look great on you." He said.  
  
"Oh and look at this, I found this for your mother, I saw her looking at it earlier and she seemed to like it." She continued.  
  
James resigned himself to be shown every single thing his wife had purchased.  
  
The next two days were full of expeditions to the woods. A search for the perfect tree brought out all the men. After finding one that met the specifications of everyone in the group, they all helped carrying it to the house. The women had taken over the decorations. The younger crowd was sent to look for greenery and collect mistletoe and pine cones. Mrs. Potter took the older ladies to the attics where decorations were inspected and chosen. Lily stayed in the parlor, leading the maids and the other women through the house and deciding in ways to decorate.  
  
It was on Christmas Eve when they finished with the decorations. Candles lighted every corner of the main rooms. The large Christmas tree decorated one of the corners of the formal parlor room. Some of the guests had started to pile their gifts underneath the tree.  
  
The twins entertained themselves shaking each package, hoping to find out what was inside. Tables laden with food were kept in the music room throughout the day. Wine and cider flowed as laughter and good will reign throughout the house.  
  
Impromptu music lessons kept erupting at every hour. Carols were sung and some danced along with the melodies.  
  
Sirius sat himself in the music room near the food tables. Sometimes he deigned to join Katie on the floor and twirled her around with the rhythm of the music but most of the time he spent it by the food table piling his plate high.  
  
James mingled and eat with his guests, Lily by his side.  
  
It was a fun day, ending only after the twins had fallen asleep on top of the gifts and everybody was tired after some merrymaking.  
  
Snow had started to fall when everybody retired to their respective rooms.  
  
  
  
  
  
James woke up early the next day. It was Christmas day and his wife was sleeping by his side. He smiled at the thought of it. The first Christmas they spent together, and he looked forward for those to follow.  
  
He sighed and gathered her in his arms. She slowly opened her eyes and looked up at him.  
  
"Merry Christmas." She said.  
  
"Merry Christmas to you too." He answered kissing her nose.  
  
"Do you want your gifts now, or do you prefer to wait?" She asked.  
  
"Gifts? Does that mean that there are more than one?" He asked brightly.  
  
Lily laughed. "Yes there are." She said.  
  
"Hmmm.let's open them now." He said, jumping out of the bed.  
  
Lily laughed as she slowly followed him out of the bed.  
  
Several wrapped packages were placed on top of the table at the center of the room. James promptly made his way toward them.  
  
Lily followed him and sat on one of the chairs beside the table. James was eagerly looking through the cards on top of the packages.  
  
"Here my dear, this is for you." He said as he turned to her with a large package in his arms.  
  
"Thank you dear." She smiled. "You will find yours at the bottom of that pile." She said motioning to a pile at one end of the table.  
  
James smiled and dived in to open his gifts.  
  
Laughing, Lily started to unwrap her gift. A set of gold jewelry boxes appeared. She opened it. A slow melody started to play as a small fairy danced across the velvet setting. She smiled and turned to look at her husband.  
  
He was looking at her. "Do you like it? It is real gold you know, and that fairy is real as well." He said.  
  
"I love it." She said and stood from her chair.  
  
"Thank you for my gift this will come very handy." He said as he held up a large crystal ball, through it a Quidditch game seemed to be played. "Now I can see all the games I want without having to leave the house. Sirius will be so jealous." He smiled brightly as his wife sat on his lap.  
  
"Katie got him one as well." Lily laughed.  
  
James chuckled. "Oh well. Do you want to eat something?" He asked putting his arms around her waist.  
  
"No. I don't think I can handle any food right now. I don't think I can handle this morning sickness for the next seven months James." She said.  
  
James looked at her with a mixture of happiness and surprise. "Morning sickness? Are you saying that you are-"  
  
"We are going to have a baby." She finished for him.  
  
"Are you sure?" He asked tightening his arms around her waist.  
  
"Yes. I went to St. Mungos' when we went to London. They confirmed it for me. That's why I have been feeling so tired lately." She said.  
  
"You should be in bed. You need rest." James exclaimed as he stood with her in his arms and carried her to the bed.  
  
"James, relax. I'm fine." Laughed Lily.  
  
"Are you sure?" James asked.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"We are going to have a baby." He said with excitement.  
  
"Yes we are. Are you happy? I know it's a bit soon-" Lily started to say.  
  
"Not soon enough. We are ready for this Lily. And I am happy about it. This is the best gift you could have given me." He said before swooping down and kissed her.  
  
"Hmmm.I'm glad you liked my gifts then." She smiled before her husband leaned in to kiss her once more.  
  
  
  
It was near noon when everybody left their chambers. They partook of a late luncheon in a merry mood. The news of Lily's pregnancy was spread due to James' actions.  
  
"Here, you need your strength. Eat this I'm sure that he will like it." James said as he piled food onto Lily's plate. "We have to take care of you, in your condition it's necessary that we take care." He said.  
  
"Will you stop it James, I'm fine, are you trying to make me sick?" She suddenly asked as James put some marinated liver and eggs into her plate.  
  
Everybody was looking at them. Surprise and speculation in their countenance.  
  
"James, what condition?" Sirius asked. For once food lay forgotten on his plate.  
  
"Yes." Was all James said as he kept putting food on Lily's plate. Lily was trying to put back some of the food back into the platters and was paying no attention to those around the table.  
  
"Lily dear, are you saying you are with child?" Mrs. Evans quietly asked beside her daughter.  
  
"Yes, but mum, will you tell James that I'm not going to break, he is going to make me sick with all this cuddling. I don't like it." Lily exclaimed.  
  
Mrs. Evans and Mrs. Potter shouted with happiness and hugged Lily. James looked smugly at his friends as they congratulated him. Soon the meal turned into a celebration and many of those present started talking about the happy news.  
  
Lily had to sit and listen to those who had children give her advise from how to deal with morning sickness to what happens when the child comes home with a wife. James was teased and congratulated but he kept an eye on his wife's plate and had to be stopped several times from filling her plate as soon as she emptied it. She was not eating as she should, in his point of view, how could some pieces of plain toast and tea be enough for a growing child? It didn't matter that his mother had told him that when a lady was expecting a light meal helped with the morning sickness. He had to ask the Old Doctor if there was something that could be done about it, so she could eat as she should.  
  
Lily sighed with relief, when at the end of the meal, Sirius and Remus took James away for a ride around the town. She settled down in the parlor and allowed the others to keep her entertained with talk of children and happy memories.  
  
She couldn't wait for the day to be done and have James all to herself later that evening. For all his cuddling and overprotective behavior, he was the man she loved and was happy to know that their family would soon grow.  
  
The evening passed in quiet entertainment. Some of the guests took themselves to the music room where the air was soon filled with music and dancing. Others preferred the quiet atmosphere of the library where many settled in the plush sofas and chairs to read and lose themselves in fantasy and memories. Others went to the game room; where the television, the radio, and the game tables were soon surrounded by people seeking to entertain themselves.  
  
James, Sirius and Remus hid in the kitchens, where Otty kept them busy tasting the dishes being prepared for dinner.  
  
"Otty is very happy for Master James and Mistress Lily." Otty was saying as he placed a hot apple pie in front of the young men to cool.  
  
Sirius surreptitiously placed a cooling charm on it and reached for a knife to cut it.  
  
"Thank you Otty, I'm sure Lily would be happy to hear that." James said.  
  
"Otty will make many baby food for Mistress Lily, Otty remembers what Master James ate when Master James was a baby." Otty said with a happy expression.  
  
James laughed. "I'm sure you do Otty."  
  
"Minnie is happy too Master James. Minnie will care for the young master and Mistress Lily when the time comes." Minnie squeaked beside Otty.  
  
"Thank you Minnie, I'm sure you will be of great help." James replied.  
  
Sirius had cut the pie and had served himself a large piece. Remus nudged him and motioned for a plate for himself and James. "Don't hog it, I want some too." He whispered.  
  
"Fine." Sirius said passing the pie to Remus.  
  
"Oh Master James, I didn't know you were here." Mrs. Nichols, the housekeeper said as she stumbled into the kitchen. "Do you need something Sir?"  
  
"No Mrs. Nichols, Otty is taking care of our needs." He laughed motioning at the large pieces of pie in the plates of each of them.  
  
"Very well Sir. Sir? I want to say that all the household are glad of the happy news, it was about time for baby cries to be heard around this old house once more." Mrs. Nichols said with joy.  
  
James laughed. "Let's see if you and Roberts say the same once the baby is born. You still complain about me!" He exclaimed.  
  
Mrs. Nichols chuckled, it was true, James had been a very energetic child. She had been his nursery maid at the time and it had been hard to keep up with the toddler James, who kept escaping from the nursery to join Mr. Sanders and follow him around the estate. She was glad she wasn't a nursery maid anymore, and she doubted that Nurse would be able to handle it, with the twins to keep an eye on, another energetic child would give her a heart attack. Maybe it was good that Minnie would become the primary caretaker of the unborn child, Minnie and her own brand of magic might be able to handle the child. She didn't want to think that it hadn't worked for James. Hopefully, the child would be born with Lily's disposition and wouldn't be a terror for the staff as James had been in his youth.  
  
James was oblivious to his housekeeper's worries. Life couldn't be better in his eyes. His family was growing and his relationship with Lily couldn't be better. He ate his food with gusto and enjoyed the rest of the afternoon in the kitchen with his friends.  
  
Dinner was served later than usual. Everybody sat around the table ready to devour the exquisite dishes Otty had prepared for their Christmas Dinner. A large baked ham stood in the center of the side table, accompanied by stuffed Cornish hens, marinated turkey, soups, salads and in the center of honor, large pies of every flavor.  
  
Those seated couldn't be any more eager to begin the feast. Everything looked delicious and watched closely as Roberts and his footmen surrounded the table ready to serve.  
  
Some of the best wine was brought up from the cellar, the homemade cider was warm and sweet, and the champagne flowed as toasts were made, celebrating the holiday and the next to come.  
  
James looked with pride at his wife as she sat across the table from him. They had been married no more than six months and the first house party she planned was a success so far. Now they were ready to begin a new life as the child growing within her made its way to their world. He was proud and happy. It was the best Christmas he had ever had.  
  
  
  
The following week passed with no incident. The guests continued to entertain themselves. The music room was always full of young people singing and dancing. The library was kept warm and lighted for those who wished to spend time there. The servants kept snacks and drinks in the game room. James, Sirius and Remus took the girls everywhere, and sometimes the twins would join them. They rode a sleigh into the forest, they skated across the frozen lake, they played in the snow and impromptu snow fights were fought across the gardens.  
  
The New Year was soon approaching and everybody was looking forward for the Ball on New Year's Eve. People from across the district had been invited and expected to come and join them.  
  
That morning was spent with last minute plans and purchases for their gowns. The ballroom was richly decorated and the refreshment tables were being laden with rich foods and drinks for the enjoyment of the partygoers.  
  
The afternoon was spent getting ready. Lily ran from one place to another in her dressing room making sure that she had everything . James sat on a chair watching her.  
  
"You should calm down Lily. You are looking gorgeous, there is nothing more than you need." He said for the tenth time that hour.  
  
"Are you sure? Should I wear my red gown instead?" Lily asked looking out from her dressing room.  
  
"No, the one you have on is perfect. I'm going to be envied by everyone in that room tonight." James exclaimed. He didn't think he could stand it much longer if Lily decided to change once more.  
  
"Oh that is sweet of you. I hope our child is just like you." She said approaching him and kissing his cheek.  
  
"Hmmm.I'm sure that everybody is hoping that he is born with your disposition my dear, I'm sorry to say that nobody wants another child just like me." James laughed putting his arms around her waist and pulling her down to sit on his lap.  
  
Lily laughed. "I'm sure you weren't that bad."  
  
"Oh, I was." He grinned. "But don't worry, if he isn't then he will learn it from me or Sirius."  
  
"Oh dear, maybe you should be kept away from the baby. You are really sure that it's going to be a boy aren't you?" She asked with laughing eyes. It hadn't escaped her noticed that he kept calling the baby 'he'.  
  
"Of course it is a boy. I wouldn't mind if it's a girl you understand, but I have a feeling that it is a boy." James said smugly.  
  
"We'll see." Lily said. "Come let's go to the parlor to greet our guests."  
  
Together they retired to the parlor, hoping for that the new year would bring them new happiness.  
  
  
  
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A/N: I know that I skipped a lot during this chapter, but I really couldn't come up with much to write about. I hope that you still like it and enjoy it. It took me a while to get it ready but I tried to get it ready for you before Christmas, and I'm happy to say that I made it.  
  
Thank you all for your reviews:  
  
bubblegum*girl ~ lol, you are not the only one to have that wish, all I can say is that I have plans for them.  
  
Lostinthesupermarket ~ Thank you for reading, I'm glad that you have enjoyed the story so far.  
  
Tina ~ lol, that was quite a coincidence. Glad you liked it.  
  
Angelangie ~ I know what you mean about the emotional rollercoaster I have noticed it as well.  
  
Elvenprincess ~ Here is the next chapter, hope you like it.  
  
Rodhrrypttr ~ I liked the barroom brawl as well, it is one of my favorite scenes. About James not asking for Mr. Evans blessing before he died, well, I thought about it and I was going to include it, in fact I had that scene written but somehow it didn't seem right. The man was dying and I thought it would be better if he spent most of the time with family. I had not noticed that Sirius' initials spelled SOB, lol, thanks for pointing that out.  
  
Anorel ~ hope you liked where they are going.  
  
Twisted Rose ~ hope this chapter is enjoyable.  
  
Starlight Eve ~ What do you think, is it romantic or not? ; )  
  
Punkkittin01 ~ Don't worry I won't explain.  
  
Jessica ~ Here is the next one! : )  
  
Julie Jewelrannah ~ Sorry it took a while.  
  
Skysong ~ Glad you enjoy it so far.  
  
I'm sorry if I missed your name, but I truly appreciate all your reviews and your input. Hope that you continue to enjoy it.  
  
Did you know that the last chapter was the one to get the most reviews? Wow! I truly appreciate it. Thank you!  
  
It might take me a while to get the next chapter done, I'm still writing it and it's taking me longer than I thought, somehow I keep thinking of ideas for Harry but not for Lily and James.  
  
Oh well, hope you all liked this chapter. Have a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!!! 


	34. Part II Chapter 10

A/N: Here I am once more with another chapter. I'm glad that you all enjoyed the last chapter, I hope you like this one just as much.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own anything from the HP world, only the plot and some of the secondary characters.  
  
  
  
Chapter 10 ~ James' Ladies  
  
  
  
Lily was happy to have the house all to themselves once more after all the house party guests had left. Remus, Sirius and Katie stayed longer, but they really didn't count as guests but as family.  
  
James was more overprotective than ever now that he had nobody to distract him. Every morning she had to stay quiet and unmoving in bed a half an hour after waking up. The morning sickness was getting worse, and James' cuddling didn't help much.  
  
Lily groaned one morning as she woke from sleep to find James looking down at her from a chair beside the bed.  
  
"How are you feeling?" He asked the moment he noticed she was awake.  
  
"Sick." She said before flying off the bed and running to the restroom in her dressing room.  
  
James ran behind her but by the time he got to the door of the restroom she was washing her face.  
  
"Is there something you can take?" He asked in a worried tone.  
  
"Not that I know off, I'll ask your mother and mine. Maybe they know of something." She said meeting him at the door. She glowered at him before passing beside him back to the bed.  
  
James watched her get to the bed with surprise. Why was she angry with him for?  
  
"I don't know why they call it morning sickness. I'm sick all the time, not just in the morning." Lily grumbled as she snuggled deep in the blankets.  
  
"Perhaps the old Doctor will have a potion that we can do to help." James said.  
  
"I hope so. I don't like being sick." Lily pouted.  
  
James smiled. His mother had told him that Lily would be moody once in a while. He just hoped that he wouldn't be in the way when her mood turned bad. He really didn't want to see it.  
  
He sat once more in the chair beside the bed. Lily had closed her eyes but was still awake.  
  
"Are you going to just sit there the whole day and watch me?" She asked without opening her eyes.  
  
"Yep." He said.  
  
"Please go away, you are not helping." She said.  
  
"But what am I going to do then?" He asked. He wanted to stay beside her in case she needed him.  
  
"Go and see the Doctor ask him if he knows a way to help with my morning sickness." She ordered.  
  
"Good idea. I'll be back soon." He said. He kissed her cheek and walked out of the room, happy to have something to do.  
  
Lily just shook her head and settled in bed to rest for a while before she had to leave her bed once more.  
  
  
  
James rode into town. The scenery was completely covered in snow. He could see some of the estate children playing in the snow on the fields and the gardens. He smiled at the sight, it wouldn't be long when his own child would join them and grow up in the land where he himself had grown up.  
  
He had happy memories of the land and the people. His father was a prominent figure of those memories and he hoped to make his own happy memories with his children.  
  
The doctor's house stood at the end of a small lane in the outskirts of the small town. The doctor seemed to be in as the chimney smoked and the aroma of pastries and hot chocolate reached James.  
  
The old Doctor opened the door when James knocked.  
  
"Well, young James, something I can do for you?" He asked with a large smile.  
  
"Good morning Doctor, my wife sent me to ask for help." James said as he entered the small house.  
  
"Oh? And what does young Mrs. Potter require?" Said the doctor motioning James to sit.  
  
"Well, she needs some help with her morning sickness." James said.  
  
"Ah. I have heard that she is expecting, I gather that it has been confirmed then?" The doctor said peering closely at James.  
  
"She went to St. Mungo's when she was in town a couple of weeks ago. But I would prefer if you check her doctor, all this morning sickness business seems wrong to me." James said.  
  
The doctor laughed. "It is always like that with first time parents. Not to worry, if she is having morning sickness it means that the child has made itself at home."  
  
"Are you sure? Isn't there anything to help with it?" Asked James.  
  
"There is a potion that has been known to help, unfortunately it doesn't work with all women, but I'll check her and see if will help her." The doctor said.  
  
"Good. When should we expect you?" James eagerly asked.  
  
"Hmmm.I should probably be there by this afternoon." Said the doctor.  
  
James nodded. "Very well, I'll let Lily know. See you later Doctor."  
  
James was much happier when he left the doctor's house. He hoped that the potion would help Lily, he hated to see her unhappy in any way.  
  
He rode back to the Manor humming. Many neighbors greeted him along the way and he responded happily. He was really looking forward to the birth of his first child. He was sure it wouldn't be the only one.  
  
He was glad to see that Lily was up and about by the time he returned home.  
  
He found her in the family parlor with Mrs. Nichols discussing chores and menus for the following week.  
  
"Are you feeling better?" He asked the moment Mrs. Nichols left the room.  
  
"Yes." Lily said with a smiled. "Where did you go?"  
  
"To see the doctor, he said there is a potion that can help with morning sickness, so he'll come and give you an examination to see if it would work for you." James said.  
  
"Oh that is good." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"He will be here this afternoon." James replied.  
  
"Good. I will be ready for him." Lily said as she stood. "Come, Otty has prepared a fine meal for us.  
  
James quickly followed her out of the room.  
  
  
  
James was pacing the hall later that afternoon. It was almost time for the doctor to arrive and he was nervous.  
  
"Will you stop pacing James, you are making the servants nervous." Said Lily from the top of the staircase.  
  
"Sorry. I'm just waiting for the doctor." He said.  
  
"Come to our room. Roberts will show him in when he arrives." Called Lily. James sighed and agreed to do so.  
  
Roberts and the footmen stationed in the hall sighed with relief.  
  
Lily led James to their private chambers and sat him in the small sitting room by the bedroom.  
  
"Sit here. Minnie will bring some tea and snacks in a minute." She said.  
  
"I'm not hungry." He said.  
  
"James, there is no need to worry. I am fine. You'll see." Lily said sitting beside him.  
  
"But what if things happen? The first pregnancy can be risky." James said with a worried look.  
  
"But things are much safer nowadays. Prenatal medicine has advanced so much in the last decades. As long as the doctor examines me regularly there is nothing that we need to worry about. I'm sure we won't even have to go to St. Mungo's for the examination. Our child might even be born here in the estate, just like you and all of your ancestors have done in the past." Lily said resting her temple against his shoulder.  
  
"Mum told you that I was born here didn't she? I know I didn't tell you." James said with a smile. "She always said that it made her feel safer to give birth here than in the hospital."  
  
"She did say that. And I'm sure that we can get the best medical attention we would need." Lily replied.  
  
"If that is what you prefer." James said kissing her ear.  
  
Lily chuckled. "I do. I like the idea of our children being born in the land of their ancestors."  
  
James smiled. "I like that too."  
  
They stayed just like they were for minutes. Minnie arrived with the tea and pastries and still they didn't move.  
  
Finally, Roberts announced the doctor in.  
  
"Good afternoon my dears, I expect you are feeling better Mrs. Potter." The doctor said as soon as he entered the room.  
  
Lily looked around the room, then she giggled. James turned to look at her with surprise.  
  
"Every time I hear Mrs. Potter I think that they are speaking of your mother. I can't get used to the idea that I am Mrs. Potter now." She explained with a giggle.  
  
James chuckled. "Well, you are Mrs. Potter, perhaps we should call you Young Mrs. Potter, so that we know who we are speaking of." He said.  
  
The doctor heard their conversation with a smile. He had seen the young man in front of him being born, he had seen him grow up and he was happy at the thought that he would be there for the next generation.  
  
"Well my dear, if you are ready we can begin with the examination." The doctor said.  
  
"Yes doctor." Said Lily taking a deep breath.  
  
"Do you want me to leave?" Asked James.  
  
"No. Please stay." She whispered.  
  
James nodded and accompanied Lily to the bed. The doctor was beside it waiting for them, his bag open and his wand sticking out on one side.  
  
"I think it would be good if we take a look first. Let's see how the little tyke is doing." Said the Doctor with cheerfulness.  
  
Lily looked toward the bag. "Can you do that? Shouldn't we be in a hospital or clinic for that?" She asked with curiosity.  
  
"We should if you were muggle my dear." Smiled the doctor. "But you are not, so we will do it the easy way."  
  
"In other words, we'll use magic." Said James.  
  
The doctor nodded and grabbed his wand. He rolled the sleeves of his jacket and pointed the wand at Lily's stomach.  
  
"Enfantus Oculous" He whispered and instantly a image appeared before them.  
  
It was hard to make out what they were seeing at first but then a clearer imaged appeared. Lily gasped and stifled a sob.  
  
"Oh James, there it is, there's our baby!" She exclaimed.  
  
James said nothing, he stared in awe at the small form floating in front of them.  
  
"Is he all right?" He finally said turning to look at the doctor.  
  
"Indeed it is. In very good form, I must say." The doctor said, with his wand he made the image revolve on its axis. He looked at every inch of the image before he was satisfied and with a wave of his wand the image disappeared. "Everything seems in order. It's too soon of course to know the sex of the child, but I'm sure you won't mind waiting. Now, let's see how Young Mrs. Potter is doing." He said turning to look at Lily.  
  
Lily was smiling brightly, she had seen her child for the first time and was excited about it. She really didn't mind that they wouldn't know the gender of the baby yet, but she had to say, to herself at least, that she would like it if it was a little girl.  
  
The doctor took his wand once more and pointed it to Lily.  
  
James stayed in the room while the doctor examined Lily, aware of everything that the doctor said. He sighed with relief when the doctor started to put away his wand.  
  
"Yes, it seems that everything is in order. I will come once each month to do an examination, I will give the recipe for the potion to Otty, I'm sure he might remember it from the older Mrs. Potter's days. We'll see if it helps you with your morning sickness my dear." The doctor said, ready to leave the room.  
  
"Thank you doctor." Lily and James said.  
  
With a nod, the doctor left the couple and made his way to the kitchens.  
  
Lily and James stayed behind. Happy in each other's arms.  
  
  
  
The house was as excited as they were. Mrs. Nichols and the nursery maids had been working constantly in the nursery turning everything upside down looking for any things that had been stored after James' birth. All baby items were taken out and cleaned. The crib that had held generations of Potters was brought down from the attics, including a changing table and toy chests.  
  
James came home from the fields one afternoon to find his wife in a middle of an argument with the nursery maids.  
  
"I said I want the room next to ours readied, I don't want to repeat myself on this subject." Lily ordered.  
  
"But ma'am, it is customary for the child to be in the nursery after it's birth." A maid said with hesitation.  
  
"I do not care what the custom is, I want the crib and all the baby items to be taken to the room next to mine." Lily said stamping her foot with impatience.  
  
"Lily, sweetheart, what is the matter?" James said with consternation.  
  
"I want the baby to sleep in the room next to ours." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"Are you sure dear, the nursery is well stocked and there will be maids aplenty to take care of him." James said.  
  
"I don't care. I want my baby in the room next to ours." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"All right." James quickly said at seeing how angered his wife was becoming, he was sure that wouldn't be good for the baby. "We'll havee everything moved to the room next to ours. See to it, please." He said with a nod to the maids and the footmen, who had gathered round the room to see what was going on.  
  
The servants ran to do James' biding. Lily still looked angered.  
  
"Humph!" She snorted before storming off the hall toward the parlor.  
  
James followed closely behind.  
  
Lily sat abruptly in a chair near the fireplace, and placed a throw around her shoulders.  
  
"Lily dear, don't worry. Everything will be taken care of." James said kissing her temple.  
  
"I just want my baby near me, that's all." Lily pouted.  
  
"I know dear, we'll redecorate the room and put a door leading to our chambers." James said sitting beside her and hugging her.  
  
"Thank you James." She said kissing him gently.  
  
They were interrupted by a burst of giggles.  
  
James sighed, and Lily silently laughed.  
  
"Ok you two rascals, come out of behind that couch." James said turning to look at a couch at the corner of the room.  
  
Two dark haired heads appeared from behind the couch. Eyes wide open, looking sheepishly at the couple.  
  
"Hello Uncle James."  
  
"Hello Aunt Lily."  
  
Two muffled voices said.  
  
"What are you doing there?" Asked James letting go of his wife.  
  
"We are playing."  
  
"Hide and seek."  
  
"With nurse."  
  
"And Mr. Hop." They said holding up a fluffy white rabbit.  
  
"Why aren't you playing outside? I thought you were in the garden with Nurse." Lily said.  
  
The girls rolled their eyes.  
  
"She is looking for us."  
  
"Outside. It is safer here."  
  
They said in a tone that clearly said they had expected them to figure that out.  
  
"I see." Laughed James.  
  
"Where is grandma?"  
  
"And Aunt Rose?" The twins asked stepping from behind the couch.  
  
"They went to town, shopping." Lily said with a smile.  
  
The girls nodded before running out of the room.  
  
James smiled as he watched them leave. Lily leaned into his chest, leaning her head on his shoulders.  
  
"Why don't we go upstairs and see how the redecoration of the baby's room goes?" Said James to Lily.  
  
"Oh, yes. Let's go see it." Lily exclaimed before jumping up from her seat. She quickly left the room.  
  
James followed her in a slower pace.  
  
  
  
The town soon found out about the good news. There was a constant stream of visitors bringing gifts and their congratulations.  
  
Lily sat holding court in the formal parlor every afternoon. James sat at her side. A smile on his face masking the boredom that constantly filled his mind.  
  
Owls started to arrive daily. And to James and Lily's consternation, people always seemed to have an opinion on everything, from the name to how to raise a child.  
  
"Why do they think that it's their place to give us all this advise?" Lily exclaimed after reading a letter from an old aunt of hers.  
  
"Because they are old and think they know everything." Said a disgruntled James.  
  
"James, really, that is no way of speaking about people." Chided his mother as they sat around the breakfast table one morning.  
  
"Sorry." Mumbled James.  
  
"Isoberius! What kind of a name is that? And why would I want to name my child with such a name?" Scoffed Lily, throwing another note into an empty plate in front of her.  
  
"Isoberius? I don't think so." Said James, shaking his head.  
  
"Have you two decided what to name the child?" Mrs. Evans asked.  
  
"We haven't really discussed it." Said Lily, frowning down at a parchment in her hand.  
  
"Well, you really should. It wouldn't do for the child to be born and you two not having a name ready." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"I've been thinking about that." Said James with a thoughtful expression.  
  
"Oh?" Asked Lily turning to look at him.  
  
"Uh-huh, I think that it should be a family name. Specially if it's going to be a boy." He said.  
  
Both Mrs. Evans and Mrs. Potter turned to look at him with surprise clearly evident in their faces.  
  
"James!" Exclaimed Lily. "We don't know that it's a boy, it could well be a girl."  
  
"No, I got a feeling it's a boy." James said.  
  
Lily rolled her eyes, shaking her head.  
  
Mrs. Potter smiled as did Mrs. Evans. "Aliaster said the same thing when I was pregnant with Elizabeth." Mrs. Potter laughed.  
  
"Edward was the same." Chuckled Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Don't worry Lily dear, all men want a son. That doesn't mean that they love their daughters any less." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"Humph!" Snorted James. "Of course I would love my child if it a girl."  
  
"I know dear." Lily said patting his hand.  
  
James sniffed with scorn.  
  
Mrs. Potter laughed. "Never mind dear. You were saying about the name if it is a boy?"  
  
"Yes, I said that it should be a family name." James said.  
  
"And what name did you choose." Asked Lily looking at James closely.  
  
"Well, I thought about my middle name, it should suit him very well." James said with a smile.  
  
"Harold?" Asked Mrs. Potter.  
  
James nodded, while Lily thought about it.  
  
"It would work, Daddy's middle name was Harold as well." She said.  
  
Mrs. Evans nodded her approval.  
  
"Then it's settled, if it's a boy it will be Harold." James said happily.  
  
"Maybe we should use Harry instead. It is a diminutive of Harold, and I always liked that name." Said Lily.  
  
"Harry? Hmmm.yeah, that sounds good as well." Said James grudgingly.  
  
"Harry James. I like that." Said Lily with a self-congratulatory tone.  
  
"Oh, I like that too, Harry James Potter. That's settled then." James exclaimed.  
  
Mrs. Potter laughed.  
  
"What if it's a girl?" Asked Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Hmmm.I like the name Daphne." Lily said.  
  
"I'm rather partial to Lilian." Said James.  
  
"James, that would be rather confusing, you know we will end up calling her Lily." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Well, what about Daphne Lilan then." James said.  
  
"That would work." Said Lily with a smile.  
  
"Well, that was rather easy." Said James.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans laughed.  
  
"What is so funny?" Asked James.  
  
"My dear, wait until that child is born, you might have another set of names ready by then." Chuckled Mrs. Potter.  
  
James looked skeptical. "I don't think so. Harry James and Daphne Lilian it is." He said with a final tone.  
  
"If you say so dear." Said Mrs. Evans as she continued eating, which had stood forgotten as they talked.  
  
  
  
Spring was now at hand and Lily's body had began to change. James was constantly exhausted, trying to keep in pace with Lily's mood.  
  
He had shut himself in his bookroom this sunny afternoon. He was lying on the day bed that stood in front of the window. His eyes were closed and a small smile on his lips.  
  
This was the first time he had time for himself for a while. He had been all over town trying to find canned sardines that Lily just had to have for luncheon. He couldn't find some in the village. He had to apparate to the nearest city and go to a convenience store there.  
  
He was almost asleep that he didn't hear the knock on the door, nor did he hear the door open a minute later.  
  
Suddenly, he felt somebody nudging his chest.  
  
"Go away." Mumbled James.  
  
"Come sleepy head. You can't be asleep now." Sirius' voice said.  
  
"Go away Sirius. I'm tired." James growled.  
  
"Well, it's going to have to wait. I got a message from Dumbledore. He wants to see us." Sirius said.  
  
James groaned and opened his eyes. "What now? What did Voldemort do?" He asked.  
  
"Don't know. All I know is that Dumbledore wants to see us." Sirius said.  
  
"Very well. What about Lily? Does he wants her to come as well?" James asked worried. If this had to do with Voldemort he didn't want Lily anywhere nearby.  
  
"No. He said not to bother her." Sirius said.  
  
James sighed with relief. "Good. Let's go." He said and led Sirius out of the room.  
  
  
  
Lily sat in the garden with the twins, they were happily playing with each other as Lily sat on a bench. Lily smiled as she looked at them play.  
  
She also felt very tired. She was now five months pregnant and her belly had started to grow. She knew that sometimes she would seem unreasonable and the smallest thing could make her angry. She sighed as she thought about it. Poor James, she thought, that he had to deal with her constantly.  
  
She heard the laughter of the two little girls and smiled. Soon, the laughter of her own child would join them.  
  
  
  
James and Sirius apparated in Hogsmeade half an hour after they left James' bookroom.  
  
"Do you know what this is all about?" Asked James as both men made their way to Hogwarts.  
  
"Nope. I only got an owl telling me to get you and to come to Hogwarts fast." Sirius said.  
  
"Did you contact Peter or Remus? Are they going to be here?" James asked as they walked up the lane that led to the castle.  
  
"I didn't contact them. I don't know where they are?" Sirius replied.  
  
"I wonder what happened." James whispered.  
  
"Well, it seems that it is something big. It certainly sounded urgent." Sirius said.  
  
"Do you reckon it has to do with Voldemort?" James asked.  
  
"Who else would we be summoned for?" Sirius replied. "That bastard is a pain in the ass."  
  
James laughed. "I agree with you in that. I just hope Lily doesn't find out about this. But I don't want her involved at this moment."  
  
"Lord no! It would be more distracting. How are you holding up? Katie said that Lily's mood change with the every hour." Sirius laughed.  
  
James groaned. "Don't remind me. And she wants the weirdest things to eat. She sent me all over the place looking for sardines today."  
  
Sirius laughed.  
  
"Humph! Let's see how it goes for you when Katie gets pregnant." James said.  
  
"Lud! I think I will go on a trip then." Sirius said with a mock shudder.  
  
"She would kill you." James laughed.  
  
"I know." Sirius replied.  
  
They had arrived at the golden gates of the castle. They opened slowly and allowed them to enter.  
  
The two young men walked quickly toward the castle doors. They were open. Classes were over for the day and there were students walking all over the grounds. Some looked at the two strangers with curiosity.  
  
James and Sirius walked purposely pass the doors toward the corridor that led to Dumbledore's office. They walked fast and without stopping. Students saw them pass, some looked at them with surprise others with questioning glances.  
  
They finally arrived at the statue closing the entrance to the office. They turned to look at each other.  
  
"How are we suppose to go in there?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Didn't he give you the password in the note he owled?" James asked. Sirius shook his head. James swore.  
  
"Really Mr. Potter, this is a school, such language is inappropriate." A stern voice said from behind.  
  
Both turned to look into the stern face of Professor McGonagall.  
  
"Sorry Professor." James said sheepishly. Their former Transfiguration Mistress still had the power to make them feel like they were still in school and were about to get detention for some trick they did.  
  
"Humph! I assume you are here to see Dumbledore." She stated.  
  
"We are." Said Sirius.  
  
"Very well. Lemon Drop." She said. The statue promptly moved and the entrance to Dumbledore's office was exposed. "He should be waiting for you."  
  
"Thank you Professor." Said James and entered the cavernous chamber.  
  
The office looked the same as it had before. Fawkes, Dumbledore's phoenix, stood on its golden perch at one corner of the room. The portraits of the old schoolmasters looked down at them with curiosity. But Dumbledore was not in sight.  
  
"Sit down gentlemen." A booming voice said.  
  
James and Sirius jumped with surprise and turned to look at Dumbledore sitting within the shadows.  
  
"Pardon me for startling you." He said as he came into the light.  
  
"That's all right Professor, we just didn't see you there." Sirius said.  
  
"I'm sorry Mr. Black, I was lost in thought." Dumbledore said. "But please, sit." He motioned to the chairs in front of the desk as he sat into his usual chair. "I assume you are curious about the reason why I sent for you."  
  
The two young men nodded.  
  
"Does this have to do with Voldemort?" James asked.  
  
Dumbledore sighed. "I fear that it is. You see, he has disappeared from sight. We are afraid that he is up to something." He said.  
  
"What about the spies you have in his group?" Sirius asked.  
  
"That is what troubles me. His followers don't know where he is either." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Where was he heading to the last time he was seen?" Asked James.  
  
"He was coming north, but he hasn't been sighted. But that is not the most troubling part, we will deal with him when the time comes. His followers have been left on their own, without leadership they have been out of control. The attacks in muggles and muggle-born have increased since he left. That was why asked you to come. Lily is the most known muggle-born socially, and there has been whispers among the Death Eaters to go after her. So far, your marriage to her and your connections to the Ministry has kept her safe, but they are becoming rather confidant." Dumbledore warned.  
  
"Are you saying that Lily is in danger?" Asked James in horror.  
  
"We are not sure, there are rumors of course, there are other victims in sight, more easily to get to. But it is a concern." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Should they go into hiding?" Asked Sirius in a worried tone.  
  
"I don't see the need at the moment. So far they are only planning, they are focusing more in the muggles and less talented muggle-borns. If it becomes a concern, then it would be best to go to a safe place, but precautions can be taken at the moment." Dumbledore said.  
  
"What precautions?" James asked quickly. He would do anything to keep Lily and his unborn child safe.  
  
"I have discussed this with the Ministry. A blocking charm will be performed over the area, no one will be able to apparate any where near the estate or surrounding area. I'm afraid that the fireplace will have to be blocked from the Floo network. With the blocking charm, you will be relatively safe, anyone wanting to get near the Manor will have to go through the village, and I doubt that a group such as theirs will be able to pass through without notice." Dumbledore said.  
  
James nodded his agreement. "Will there be anything that we need to do?" He asked.  
  
"It is better if Lily and the older ladies do not find out about this." Sirius said.  
  
"I agree. There is no need to worry yet, these are all precautions." Dumbledore said.  
  
James quickly agreed. He didn't want Lily to put herself in danger, specially with their child.  
  
"There is nothing more. The Ministry has already performed the spell, the nearest apparating point is the city of Daniels, ten miles away from the village. I'm sure you will be able to find transportation from there." Dumbledore said.  
  
"We can. Thank you Professor." Replied James.  
  
"Take care young men. And take care of Lily." He called as the young men walked through the door.  
  
"Will do." Called Sirius before the door closed behind them.  
  
  
  
Lily was dressing for dinner when her husband walked into the bedroom.  
  
"Where have you been?" She asked. "We looked for you all over the place. Roberts said you had left with Sirius."  
  
"I did. He took me to meet a person who we might do some business with." James said as he walked into his dressing room.  
  
Lotty had placed his clothes on top of a chair. A bath was ready for him and clean towels were set by the tub.  
  
He immersed himself into the tub with a sigh.  
  
"Tired?" Lily asked as she stood on the doorway looking down at her husband.  
  
"Very. We had to go to Daniels and then walked all the way back." Said James scrubbing.  
  
"Why didn't you apparate?" Asked Lily.  
  
"Oh, didn't I tell you? The Ministry is testing an experimental spell in the estate, so a blocking spell was put in the area. Nobody can apparate or dissaparate, you'll have to go to Daniels to apparate." James said, keeping busy with the bath and avoiding Lily's glance.  
  
"A blocking spell? Why didn't you tell me about this before?" Asked Lily somewhat surprised.  
  
"Well, I had discussed it with the Ministry before we got married and I had forgotten about it. The experimental spell was not ready then, and it is now, they sent me an owl about it this morning, but I forgot about it." James said.  
  
"Humph!" Snorted Lily. "Where is it going to take place, I suppose nobody should stumble into it."  
  
"Lord no! Not knowing what would happen. They are using a remote area of the northern part of the estate. They will put spells around it to keep people out. Not to worry, they know what they are doing." Said James.  
  
"Very well. I will inform the staff." Said Lily grudgingly.  
  
She walked away and left James to his bath.  
  
He sighed with relief. He hated having to lie to her but it needed to be done. He was going to keep her safe, whether she liked it or not.  
  
He heard Lily leaving the bedroom. He quickly finished with his bath and stumbled out to dress. If he knew his wife, she would soon be telling his mother about what he just said and he would have a lot of questions from his mother to deal with. He wanted to be dressed when that time came.  
  
Honestly! Was he completely sane when he agreed to live with all these women in the house?  
  
  
  
The next day he decided to get away from the house. The fields were being prepared to cultivate and he thought it was a perfect excuse to be out. Sirius found him standing by the fields as his tenants planted the seeds.  
  
"Decided to be out today?" Sirius asked coming upon him.  
  
James turned to look at his friend before turning back to the sight in front of him.  
  
"Yes. What are you doing here, I thought you were going to take Katie to see her family." James replied.  
  
"She wanted to go without me." Sirius said with a shrug. "And I thought this was the perfect time to get our stories straight."  
  
"What stories? Did you do something?" James asked turning to peer at his friend.  
  
"No! Why do you automatically think I did something? I just want to know what you told Lily about the blocking charm, I want to make sure I tell the same story to Katie. It wouldn't do for us to have different stories, they will know something is wrong." Sirius quickly said.  
  
"Lord no! A moody female is enough for me, thank you. I told her that the Ministry is doing an experimental charm and that they asked to use a portion of the northern part of the estate. And because it's secret they put a blocking charm on the estate and surrounding areas to impede anyone from showing up." James said.  
  
"Hmmm.good enough I suppose." Responded Sirius. "I suppose Lily didn't need you to go looking for sardines again." He said with a chuckle.  
  
"No, I bought two cases, just in case, you understand." James said with a smug smile.  
  
Sirius laughed. "Well, at least it's not a weird craving, sardines are rather easy to come by and with a salad and rice on the side it tastes good."  
  
"It would, if she ate it like that. Do you know what she did with them? She poured them on top of an apple pie. That is not my idea of a good meal." James sounded disgusted.  
  
Sirius was shocked. "How could she do that? What a waste of a good pie. I tell you, she spoiled a good apple pie." He exclaimed.  
  
James laughed. "I thought so as well. Not a very appetizing dish, let me tell you. But I was not going to contradict her, she could be very spirited sometimes."  
  
"I can imagine." Sirius said in a commiserating tone.  
  
The two young men left the tenants to their jobs and walked toward the house. The gardens were starting to bloom once more. The snow had completely melted, and the lake was clear once again.  
  
James led Sirius through the kitchen, they stole some pie and cookies as they passed, Otty chided them as they walked by and left through the door leading to the main hall. They crossed the corridors, passing the family rooms and the formal rooms and closeted themselves in the book room.  
  
They had settled themselves in the couches by the fireplace when there was a knock on the door. The housekeeper, Mrs. Nichols, walked in with a tray. Upon it was a pot of tea, two cups and a plate with biscuits.  
  
"I thought you would like a light snack before luncheon." She said putting the tray in a small table beside the couch on which James sat on.  
  
"Thank you Mrs. Nichols." Smiled James.  
  
"I love you Mrs. Nichols, if I weren't married I would marry you on the spot." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
Mrs. Nichols blushed. "Oh you!" She giggled.  
  
James laughed as Mrs. Nichols poured the tea. "Where is Lily? And the other ladies?" He asked as he took the cup from her.  
  
"In the village. They went to see the seamstress, it seems that Mrs. Lily's dresses need to be loosened." Mrs. Nichols said happily.  
  
"Oh." James sighed with relief.  
  
"She was looking for you before they left. She wanted to see if you could get her some figs." Mrs. Nichols said.  
  
James choked on his tea. "How does she expect me to get them, it's not time for them and they don't grow on the area. I would have to go all the way to London to get some." He finally said.  
  
"Don't worry sir, we sent Martin for them. He was happy to get out of the house for a bit." Mrs. Nichols quickly said.  
  
"Oh, good. I don't feel like walking for miles just for some figs. What does she want with them anyways?" He asked with curiosity.  
  
"I'm not sure sir, she just said she wanted them." Mrs. Nichols said with a shrug and left the room.  
  
Sirius was laughing silently on the other couch.  
  
"Shut it Sirius! Let's see how Katie gets when it's her turn." James exclaimed.  
  
"Oh that won't happen for a while. We discussed it and agreed that now wasn't the time. She says I'm too childish and I agree." Sirius said happily.  
  
"You agreed?" James was skeptical.  
  
"Yes, I'm not ready to have children. You might be, but not I." Said Sirius.  
  
"Well, on that matter, we all agree." James said.  
  
"Hey!" Sirius exclaimed.  
  
Roberts and his footmen working on the hall could hear the laughter coming from the bookroom. They smiled and continued to work, happy that their master was in good spirits.  
  
  
  
The spring was in full swing. The gardens of the Manor had bloomed and everything seemed perfect. James spent all his mornings in the fields or in the stables making sure his crops and his cattle were in perfect order. Every afternoon he returned for a light luncheon and spent the rest of the day with Lily.  
  
Lily was sitting in her bed one afternoon when James came in.  
  
"Hello darling." He cheerfully said kissing her cheek.  
  
"Hi." She said rather depressed.  
  
James looked at her warily. What had happened now to make her so sad? He asked to himself. The last time she had been like this was because a bee had been killed as the gardeners worked on the flowers. Rather insignificant to the others, but she had been saddened by the incident. One that many had already forgotten, but James hadn't. He had spent long hours trying to calm her down and cheer her up.  
  
"Something wrong sweetheart?" He asked sitting beside her on the bed.  
  
"No." She sniffled.  
  
James sighed.  
  
He put his arms around her and pulled her toward him. She sat awkwardly against him. Her belly had grown during the past months and it didn't allow him to put his arms around her waist.  
  
"Tell me darling, what happened?" He asked once more.  
  
"I'm ugly." She said.  
  
James was rather shocked. "Who said such a thing?" He exclaimed.  
  
"Nobody. I saw for myself how ugly I am." Lily wailed before breaking down to sob.  
  
"You are not ugly. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever met. You are kind, and sweet and I love you. You will always be beautiful to me." He said.  
  
"You are just saying that to make me feel better." She sniffled.  
  
"No I'm not. I'm saying it because it's the truth."  
  
"How could that be? I'm big! James, I can't see my feet. I want to see my feet." She wailed once more.  
  
"Oh dear, it won't be for long. And think of what is happening. You are having our child. Our baby is growing inside of you. Here." He grabbed her hand and put it against her stomach. "Do you feel him? How do you think he would feel if he knew that his mother is sad because she says that he is making her look ugly?" He chided.  
  
"It's not his fault." Lily whispered.  
  
"Of course it's not, but is because of him that your body has changed. This is the most beautiful moment of a woman's life Lily. You are not just beautiful, you are gorgeous, and the mother of my child." He said kissing her temple.  
  
Lily smiled. "I love you." She whispered.  
  
"And I love you too. And him as well." James said kissing her belly.  
  
Lily laughed. Her sadness forgotten.  
  
  
  
He joined his mother and mother-in-law some minutes later. Minnie was in his room helping Lily to get dressed.  
  
"Hello dear, everything is ready in the fields?" Mrs. Potter asked as he sat.  
  
He sighed the moment his body relaxed on the chair. "Yes. We are all set. We think that we might have a better crop this year." He said cheerfully.  
  
"Oh good." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"Is Lily getting ready still?" Asked Mrs. Evans.  
  
James nodded. "I had to cheer her up a bit, she was rather depressed that she couldn't see her feet. Wherever she got the idea that she is ugly, I don't know." He exclaimed.  
  
"Oh poor dear. I remember how terrible those times are." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Maybe we can do something to cheer her up. What about a party?" Mrs. Potter said, excitedly turning to look at Mrs. Evans.  
  
"A baby shower. She has four more months, it would be the perfect time for one." Mrs. Evans squealed.  
  
James groaned.  
  
  
  
Sirius was waiting for him in the bookroom the next afternoon when James returned from the fields.  
  
"What are you doing here?" Asked James the moment he spied his friend drinking his brandy by the fireplace.  
  
"It's your fault I'm here." Sirius growled.  
  
James raised his eyebrows.  
  
"Whose idea was it to give Lily a shower party? I don't want to go to a baby shower, that is for women!" He exclaimed.  
  
"Tell me about it. I told my mother that I wasn't going to be there." James sighed sprawling on a couch.  
  
"What did she say?" Sirius asked.  
  
"She said it was fine, that it would keep me out of their way." James grumbled.  
  
"Good. We can go to town or something. I'm sure you and I will not be the only displaced mates on that day. Maybe we can have a party of our own." Sirius began to sound excited.  
  
"Hmmm.it has merit. And mother did say to stay out of the way." James said thoughtfully.  
  
"Of course it has merit. And the wives have nothing to complain about, they will be busy at this shower of theirs." Sirius said.'  
  
James nodded. The idea did have merit, he didn't want to be here for the party anyways.  
  
"Hmmm.James?" Sirius asked tentatively.  
  
"Yes?" Asked James turning to look at his friend.  
  
Sirius was frowning. "What is a baby shower? I mean, what happens in one?" He asked with curiosity.  
  
"Don't know, never been in one. When Elizabeth had hers I was in Hogwarts, just heard about it in an owl. All I know is that gifts are brought for the mother and baby." James said with a shrug.  
  
"What about the father? Don't they bring something for the father?" Sirius asked.  
  
"I don't think so." James said.  
  
"That is unfair. I mean to say, the mother didn't do the baby by herself, now did she." Sirius exclaimed. "Well, we do need a stag party then, bring gifts for you." Said Sirius with finality.  
  
"If you want. I just want to be out of the house for the day." James said.  
  
"Ask your mother for the list of the girls invited, we'll invite the men, see if they want to join us." Sirius said.  
  
"Very well. You are telling Peter and Remus right? I know they are not married or have a girl, but still, I would want them to be there." James quickly said.  
  
"When did it become my job to plan this party? You are the father." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"And it was your idea, therefore, you are in charge." Said James.  
  
"Oh fine. I'll owl them then." Grumbled Sirius.  
  
James nodded and happily started to think of the things that they could do on this party.  
  
"Does Lily know about this shower?" Sirius asked some time later.  
  
"Not that I know of, I haven't said a thing and she hasn't mentioned it. She would've if she knew." James replied.  
  
"Hmmm.I suppose they want it to be a surprise. No wonder they chose today to meet and plan." Sirius said.  
  
"Who?"  
  
"Your ladies and Katie of course. Well except Lily, she left before we arrived. Your mother said she was in the village with the seamstress and then would pass to see the doctor. Something about a potion." Sirius said.  
  
"I suppose. They better hurry, I don't think it takes too long. Unless she is walking and I don't think she would do so in her condition." James said.  
  
"Yes, I believe she took Martin and the car." Sirius said.  
  
"Are you staying for dinner then?" Asked James.  
  
"I suppose we will, it is starting to get late." Sirius said looking out the window.  
  
A car was heard on the distance.  
  
"Lily is here. Maybe you should go and warn the others, I will hold her in the hall." Said James.  
  
Sirius rapidly made his way to the family parlor while James stood by the door waiting for Roberts to open the door to his wife.  
  
"Hello Roberts." Lily exclaimed in a happy mood.  
  
"Ma'am." Roberts replied helping her with her cloak.  
  
"Hello dear, had a good day?" Asked James walking toward her.  
  
"Oh hello James, didn't see you there. Yes, quite a good morning. I went to see Madam Livine, she is making me a new set of robes and cloaks, these are not going to fit me in a couple of weeks. Then I went to see the doctor, mum was rather piqued this morning and I went to ask him if he had something for headaches." She chattered as she walked to James.  
  
"I hope he had something for her." James said kissing her cheek and leading her to a bench by the wall.  
  
"Oh yes, he gave me some herbs to brew for her. Did you know that his daughter will come to visit? He told me all about it over a cup of tea. He is so happy. Madam Pomfrey will not come of course, because it's so busy at Hogwarts now, but her sister will take some days off from her practice and will come." She chattered, taking no notice that James had maneuvered her to sit on the bench and not toward the family parlor.  
  
"He must be happy indeed. Do you feel tired Lily? Maybe you should go and freshen up a bit before we go for our tea. I'm sure you will feel much better then." James said.  
  
"Oh, now that you mention it, I do feel a bit fatigued. Maybe I should take my tea in our room. I will be rested for dinner then." Said Lily as James helped her up and they started up the stairs.  
  
"If you wish darling. I will tell mother and yours, Sirius and Katie are here, but I'm sure they will understand, they will stay for dinner of course, so you can see them later." James said.  
  
"Of course dear, it is better this way. You will tell Mrs. Nichols of course."  
  
"Of course sweetheart. I will take care of everything. I will send Minnie to help you." James said as they arrived in front of the door to their rooms.  
  
"Thank you dear, I do feel a bit tired. I hadn't thought of that before." Lily mumbled.  
  
"Rest dear." James said.  
  
"See you later." Lily said and walked into the room.  
  
James sighed and returned down to the hall.  
  
"That was brilliant!" Exclaimed Sirius as he stepped out from behind the stairs. "The way that you just made her think she was tired, boy, I bet she didn't even know how she got from all chatty to tired." Laughed Sirius.  
  
James scowled at him. "Shut it Sirius. I knew she was tired that is all. Where are the others?"  
  
"In the parlor room. They are waiting to see if Lily will join them for tea." Sirius said leading the way to the parlor.  
  
"She is going to nap for now, she will join us for dinner." James said.  
  
The two young men walked down the corridor toward the parlor while Mrs. Nichols went to the master bedroom with a tray for Lily. Lily was laying on the daybed. Resting for the day.  
  
  
  
Sirius took his job of planning for the stag party seriously. He spent countless of hours owling invitations and making arrangements. Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans were only too happy to give them the list of the ladies invited. It was a good idea to keep them out of the house during the party.  
  
Lily passed the days without noticing anything out of the ordinary. She spent her days resting and knitting. She had seen one of the village ladies knitting for one of her children and Lily liked the idea of having something for her child that she made herself.  
  
"Feeling rested?" James asked one afternoon when he returned from the fields.  
  
"Oh yes. I never thought that knitting could be so relaxing." Lily exclaimed with a smile.  
  
A rocker had been brought into the room from the attics. Lily liked sitting there as she worked on the blanket she was making. The rocking of the chair made her morning sickness better, surprisingly enough.  
  
James smiled down at his wife, he liked seeing her this way. He never thought that he would see such a sight.  
  
"Are you going with me for my examination tomorrow?" Lily asked.  
  
"If you want me to. I made sure that I have the morning cleared for you tomorrow." James said.  
  
"Great, the doctor said that he could tell us the gender of the baby if we wanted to." Lily said with excitement.  
  
"Do you want to find out?" James asked holding his breath. He would do as she asked but he was dying to find out if they were having a boy or a girl.  
  
"Hmmm.I don't know James. One part of me wants to keep it secret so we'll be surprised when the time comes, but another part wants to know. It would save a lot of time, as we are getting the baby's room ready, it would be nice to know if we should use pink or blue." Said Lily, James was sure she was feeling torn by the decision.  
  
James didn't say a word. His wife was deep in thought and he didn't want to push her. Besides, with her mood swings, she was capable of doing some major damage if he pushed too hard.  
  
"I think it would be best if we knew. I can get all that is needed much easier then." Lily finally said.  
  
James could've danced in happiness, but he didn't want Lily to know how much he wanted to know what they would be having.  
  
"If that is what you wish dear." He said.  
  
Lily smiled and continued rocking in her chair.  
  
James left her to rest and made his way to the family parlor.  
  
As soon as he reached the entrance hall, he could hear music coming from the music room. It was quite a while since somebody played one of the instruments. Lily used to practice her piano often, but after she found out about her pregnancy, she had given it up.  
  
James stood on the door as he watched his two small nieces with his mother. They sat on the piano bench. One girl on each side of Mrs. Potter. She seemed to be instructing the small girls and they listened attentively.  
  
He smiled. Sirius would call the ladies of the house, James' ladies and he didn't mind. They were his ladies, and he would take care of them as long as he could.  
  
He stayed where he was, listening to the girls practicing. The ladies within didn't notice him at all, until after half an hour of practice when he applauded after they played a bit of a song.  
  
"Uncle James."  
  
"Uncle James." The girls squealed running to hug their uncle.  
  
"Hello girls, you are getting good with your music lesson." James laughed.  
  
"Where is Aunt Lily?" Both asked as one.  
  
"Resting. Why don't you go to the nursery, I'm sure Nurse will be waiting for you to bring you tea." Urged James.  
  
The girls nodded and ran out of the room. James turned to smile at his mother. She smiled and stood from the bench.  
  
"Mother, I hope the little hellions are not tiring you." Said James kissing her cheek.  
  
Mrs. Potter laughed. "No dear, they are behaving themselves." She answered.  
  
"I'm glad." James said sitting on a chair at a corner.  
  
"Where is Lily? I hope she is resting." Said Mrs. Potter sitting on the piano bench once more.  
  
"She is. I left her in our rooms knitting." James sighed.  
  
"Does she know about Saturday?" Mrs. Potter whispered.  
  
"No. At least, she hasn't said anything on the subject." He replied.  
  
"Oh good." She said excitedly. "Rose is in London now buying gifts and decorations."  
  
James nodded. "We are going to the doctor tomorrow. You'll have time to plan then, there are only two days left for you to get things ready."  
  
Mrs. Potter smiled. "Are you looking forward for your day in town? Katie says that Sirius has a lot of things planned for that day."  
  
"So he says. He hasn't told me what he has planned, only the names of those coming." James said.  
  
"Well, I hope you have fun. We'll take care of Lily for you." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"At least I won't have to go looking for a hard to get fruit." He sighed.  
  
Mrs. Potter laughed. "Don't worry dear, it won't last long."  
  
"I hope so." He replied.  
  
  
  
The next morning was quite warm and sunny. A black car was waiting in the front entrance as James paced waiting for Lily.  
  
"I'm ready." Lily said as she waddled down the stairs.  
  
James quickly leapt up to her and helped her down.  
  
"Thank you dear. Are we all set?" She asked as they reached the landing.  
  
"Yes, just waiting for you." James said as he led her through the front door.  
  
Martin, the driver, held open the car door as James helped her in. She settled herself in the seat and slid over, making room for James.  
  
The drive to the doctor's house was short and quick.  
  
The door to the small house was open and a young woman stood waiting for them.  
  
"Hello Doctor Pomfrey, didn't expect you to see you now." Greeted James the moment he saw her.  
  
"I came earlier than planned Mr. Potter." She said with a smile.  
  
"I'm sure the doctor is happy to have you here." James said. "Let me introduce you to my wife. Dear, this is Doctor Pomfrey, the doctor's youngest daughter and Madam Pomfrey's sister. Doctor, this is Lily, my wife."  
  
"How do you do?" Said Lily with a friendly nod.  
  
"Nice to meet you Mrs. Potter, my father has said great things about you. I hope you don't mind if I take over your examination for today, father is feeling a bit out of the weather." Doctor Pomfrey said.  
  
"Oh I don't mind. I hope it's nothing bad." Lily said somewhat concerned for the friendly old doctor, whom she had become rather fond of.  
  
"Oh, it's just a chill, as long as he rests and takes his medicine, he will be fine." The young woman said.  
  
Lily smiled relieved and allowed James to help her into the house.  
  
The house was rather small. A cozy sitting room greeted everyone who entered the house. The furniture was sturdy and comfortable. There were two doors at each side of the room, besides the front door. One led to a corridor, which opened to the public rooms in the house, the dinning room, the kitchens and the bedrooms. The other door led to the small clinic at the side of the house. A reception area opened up from the sitting room, three small rooms opened up from the reception room. Each of the three small rooms were furnished with the latest medical technology. An examination table was set at the center of each room, an X-ray screen (I don't know what they are called so I'm calling them that, if you know what is the proper name for it, let me know), and tables full of syringes, stethoscopes, gauze, and other items that could be used during an examination. Another room stood at the very end of a building, it was usually dark but it was here where an X-ray machine stood at one end of the room.  
  
Doctor Pomfrey led James and Lily into one of the examination rooms. Lily was already used to this so she quickly made her way to the table and with James' help, climbed onto it. Doctor Pomfrey stood by the side of the table, a folder in her hand.  
  
"I have been reading your file, so I would be prepared for today." Doctor Pomfrey explained when she noticed Lily looking at the folder. "Just in case there was something I needed to know. If you are ready, we can begin."  
  
"Of course." Said Lily as she leaned back and lay on the table.  
  
There was no need for any of the instruments lying at one of the tables. Instead, the doctor pulled her wand from a hidden pocket of her robes and held it above Lily. "Enfantus Oculus." She said.  
  
James leaned in to watch closely at the image of the baby reflected above Lily's stomach.  
  
"Now let's see how this baby is doing." The doctor exclaimed, and with a flick of her wand the image started to revolve.  
  
James and lily were now accustomed to this procedure, and quietly watched as the young lady looked closely at the image.  
  
"Everything seems to be in order. It seems to be growing at a normal rate." She said. Lily and James sighed with relief. "Do you want to know the gender of the child?" The doctor suddenly asked.  
  
James turned to look at Lily with a questioning glance. She looked at him with a smile and nodded.  
  
"Yes, please." James said.  
  
"Very well. Let's see if we can get lucky and find out." The doctor said. With another flick of her wand, the image stopped revolving. She looked closely at the image once more and chuckled.  
  
James and Lily turned to look curious at what had made her chuckle.  
  
"Well, it seems that you are going to have a little boy." The doctor finally said.  
  
"A boy?" Asked Lily excited.  
  
"A boy!" Exclaimed James, leaning close to the image to look at his son. "Hello Harry!"  
  
Lily laughed, she was so happy.  
  
The doctor chuckled once more. "I see that you have a name chosen."  
  
"Oh yes. This young fellow is to be Harry James Potter." Said James proudly.  
  
Lily laughed, but said nothing. She was longingly looking at the image above her. Happy to see her son and knowing that it was healthy. She was a bit disappointed to find out that she wouldn't have a little girl. But she put the feeling aside, she loved her son as well, and she was sure that the little girl she wanted would soon follow. But for now, she was happy to look at the son growing inside of her and started to plan her future, everything revolving around the small child.  
  
  
  
The young couple left with high spirits.  
  
" - and when you can sit by yourself, I will teach you how to play Quidditch. You are going to be the best Quidditch player Hogwarts has ever seen, see if they don't choose you for the house team on your first year. You will be the youngest Quidditch player in a century!" James was talking to Lily's stomach as they drove home.  
  
Lily was laughing as she heard the plans that James was making. "Really James, it won't be until he is old enough that he will get on a broom." She exclaimed.  
  
"I was on top of a broom before I could even walk!" James said proudly.  
  
"James, I will not have you teaching Harry how to fly until he can at least walk. I will not have you put him in any danger, he could fall and hurt himself." Lily said.  
  
"But Lily, the soonest he learns how to fly, the better he will be, he won't be falling off the broom. There are some specially made for children you know, they don't fly very fast, they only hover about a meter above the ground. He won't hurt himself." James said.  
  
"Humph! I still think it's unsafe." Lily replied.  
  
"Tell you what." He said putting his arms around her and pulling her to him. "Talk to mother, she will tell you all about my exploits on top of a broom that can only fly a meter a minute, and you'll see how safe it is."  
  
"Very well, but I really think you should wait until he is at least one year old." Lily said.  
  
"We still have time to talk about it." James said, not promising a thing. He still hoped that by the time their son was born, Lily would be more open to the idea.  
  
"Are you sure we should name him Harry? You won't change your mind?" Lily suddenly asked.  
  
James turned to look at Lily with surprise. "Why? Do you want to use another name?" He quickly asked. He had already gotten used to the name of Harry James Potter, it had a nice ring to it, in his point of view.  
  
"No, just asking. I don't want to have our son being born and have us fight about the name." Lily said.  
  
"Oh, well, that won't happen, we have our son's name all planned." He said with a smile.  
  
Lily smiled as well, and settled in his arms saw the scenery pass by.  
  
  
  
They found Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans whispering as they entered the family parlor.  
  
"Ah there you are dear, how did it go?" Asked Mrs. Evans in an uncommon loud voice.  
  
Lily blinked in surprise a couple of times before answering. "Rather well. Everything is fine." She said.  
  
"That is good." Mrs. Potter smiled.  
  
Both women turned to look at James, who seemed rather excited.  
  
"Something you want to say James?" Asked Mrs. Potter.  
  
"We are going to have a boy!" He exclaimed happily.  
  
"Oh that is good news." Exclaimed both ladies and stood to hug Lily.  
  
"Isn't it? James here is already making plans to teach him to fly. Can you believe that he wants to sit him on a broom before he even walks?" Lily said.  
  
"That sounds rather dangerous." Said Mrs. Evans with worry.  
  
"Oh no, the kiddy brooms are rather safe, they do not fly very fast, they just float around. I used to put cushions on the floor whenever James climbed on one." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"Mum!" Said James rather embarrassed. Here he was trying to get Lily to agree to let him get a broom for his son and his mother was saying that he needed cushions to fly when he was a child.  
  
"Oh I hadn't thought of that. I suppose that would work." Said Lily.  
  
James sighed with resignation. If that was what would take to get a broom for his son, so be it. He would put cushions around the room when he put Harry on a broom. Hopefully, Harry would never found out about it.  
  
"Very well, I will buy lots of cushions before I get him on top of a broom." He said.  
  
"Thank you dear, that will be much safer." Said Lily kissing his cheek.  
  
James just smiled. Oh well, he thought, at least she would be happy.  
  
"Now dear, why don't you go and rest for a while. Luncheon should be ready in less than an hour." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Perhaps you are right, you will call me won't you?" Urged Lily as she made her way out of the room.  
  
"Of course dear." Both ladies exclaimed.  
  
James walked behind Lily, lots of plans for his son running through his mind.  
  
  
  
Lily rested that afternoon, not knowing about the plans that were in progress for the next day.  
  
James was closeted in his bookroom, looking over at some papers his agent had left for him to look over.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans were in the family parlor room whispering like young girls with a secret. And the servants were busily putting things in order for the next day, trying to be circumspect so Lily would not notice.  
  
Dinner was a quiet affair, considering that the twins were sitting at the table with them.  
  
"Uncle James." Said one of them quietly when dessert was served.  
  
"Yes Cassie?" Asked James eagerly reaching for his spoon to eat the ice cream presented to him.  
  
"How did the baby got into Aunt Lily's tummy?" Francie asked.  
  
James looked startled. His ice cream forgotten for the moment. "Hmmm - well - " He didn't know how to respond.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans quietly chuckled, Lily laughed. Poor James, she thought.  
  
The twins were looking up at James with a curious expression. James tried to speak but he couldn't. What was he to say? He run his fingers through his hair as he usually did when he was nervous or distracted.  
  
"Don't worry dear." Said Mrs. Potter taking pity of her son. "I will tell them. Eat your desserts my dears and we'll go to the nursery where I will tell you a story." She said to the twins.  
  
The girls smiled and turned their attention back to their ice cream.  
  
James sighed with relief. Oh Lord! He thought, how was he going to handle it when his children ask him that question?  
  
Lily smiled as she saw the relief in James' face. Poor dear, she thought before turning back to her meal.  
  
When the plates were cleared and the remaining food taken down to the kitchens, Mrs. Potter took hold of a hand from each of the twins and led to the nursery. Mrs. Evans excused herself and retired.  
  
James and Lily walked slowly to their chamber. James took care to help Lily along the way.  
  
"Maybe we should put one of those eletators things, like the muggles have, so you won't have to climb the stairs." He said.  
  
"Elevators, dear. But it would be such a waste after the baby is born." Lily said.  
  
"Not really, it would help with the baby as well. Think about it. We will need to bring down carriages, bags and what not whenever we leave the house, and it would be much faster." James said liking his idea.  
  
"Well, we can if you want." Said Lily. As she thought more about it, it was a good idea.  
  
They slowly made their way up the stairs. Lily had to stop several times to rest. James stayed by her side waiting patiently.  
  
"Perhaps you are right, we should get an elevator in here. I still have four more months and get tired easily, I can well imagine what it will be like when the time comes." Said Lily as they continued up to their chambers.  
  
"I can get Sanders to start on it by Monday, if we use magic, it will take no less than a week for it to be done." James replied.  
  
Lily nodded.  
  
As Lily rested in their room, James entered the small room prepared next to theirs. A door had been opened from their room to this one, for easy access. James looked around. The walls had been painted light blue. Pictures of bears and Quidditch balls adorned the walls. The bears danced and played as the balls flew around in great speed. He smiled. He remembered how hard it had been for him to convince Lily and their mothers to include the balls in the decorations. But he persevered, and got his way.  
  
A lush multicolored rug muffled his steps as he walked inside. A large wooden crib stood on the center, curtains hanging from the ceiling falling around it. The crib was old, but very dear to him. It was the one on which he slept as a baby, as many of his ancestors did, including his father and sister.  
  
Chests full of toys lined the walls, a rocking horse and lots of plush animals sat at the corners, waiting for the child that would soon play with them.  
  
James sighed in satisfaction and a wave full of pride invaded his body. He couldn't wait, he was eager to meet his son.  
  
  
  
James rose early to a warm and bright day. Lily was still sleeping when he silently left the room. Sirius was waiting for him in the family dinning room.  
  
"About time you made an appearance." Said Sirius with a yawn.  
  
"It's early still, Lily is still asleep." Said James as he sat down to serve himself.  
  
"The girls will start coming a little before noon." Announced Sirius as he grabbed a plate and started to pile it high with food.  
  
James nodded. "Mother and Mrs. Evans are taking Lily shopping this morning and will return at noon or so to give the girls time to come."  
  
"We should live as soon as we can. The boys are going to meet us in my house in a couple of hours." Said Sirius.  
  
"What are we going to do?" James asked with curiosity.  
  
"We are going to the Quidditch game and then we'll start the party at our return." Said Sirius.  
  
"Really? I haven't been to a game for quite a while. Who is playing?" James eagerly asked.  
  
"Appleby Arrows and Wimbourne Wasps." Sirius replied.  
  
"That should be good." Said James.  
  
Sirius nodded eagerly, his mouth full.  
  
"Don't you ever eat before you come here?" Laughed James.  
  
"I do, but somehow, I'm hungry by the time I get here." Sirius said.  
  
"You are always hungry." James said.  
  
"Not always."  
  
"Yes you are."  
  
"Am not."  
  
"Are."  
  
"Am-"  
  
"You two are acting like children. Eat. And then you may leave." Said a stern voice from the door.  
  
"Morning Mother." James greeted Mrs. Potter as she sat beside him.  
  
"Morning dear, is Lily still sleeping?" She asked.  
  
James nodded.  
  
"Well, let her rest, there is a lot for us to do today." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"Well, we are done. See you later mum." James said kissing her cheek and pulling Sirius off the table.  
  
"Hey! I was eating that!" Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"You have eaten enough. I'm sure there is more in your own house." James was saying as both left the room.  
  
Mrs. Potter laughed. "When will those two grow up?" She asked herself.  
  
  
  
Lily awoke to find herself alone on the bed. The curtains had been drawn, allowing the sunlight to enter through the open windows. A tray with tea and toast waited by her side of the bed.  
  
Lily settled the pillows behind her back and took the tray.  
  
She didn't think it odd that James was not there, sometimes he would go on his own to roam the estate. She thought this morning was like that. She patiently ate her toast and drank her tea. Happy that the potion that the doctor had given her was working and her morning sickness wasn't bothering her.  
  
She heard the door opened and she turned to see who her visitor was.  
  
Minnie came bobbing into the room.  
  
"Morning Mistress Lily. Will Mistress Lily prefer a bath soon after breakfast?" She asked as she went about the room putting things in order.  
  
"Yes Minnie. I think I will." Said Lily.  
  
Minnie quickly went to the dressing room and Lily heard the water running. Hopefully, she thought, this would be a good day.  
  
  
  
"When will we leave for the game?" James asked for the tenth time that morning.  
  
Those around him groaned. "Will you stop asking? We told you, we'll leave once Roger comes." Exclaimed Remus.  
  
"Well, why is it taking him so long?" James said.  
  
"Because, he had to visit a family member at the hospital." Peter repeated with a resigned air.  
  
"You would think it was his son playing today." Frank Longbottom said as he sat by the windows.  
  
All men present were drinking from the decanters on a table by the wall, loaded with snacks.  
  
"Humph! That child will get to hate Quidditch, the way James goes on about it. He will scare that boy from ever sitting on a broom." A young man said with a laugh.  
  
James glowered. " No Potter would ever hate Quidditch."  
  
"So you say. But the way you get about the game, you scare the devil out of anybody, a child will be scared witless." Sirius said.  
  
"Hey, you are supposed to be on my side." James exclaimed.  
  
"You have to agree James. You get too obsessed of Quidditch. I don't think you would have the patience with a child who is just learning how to play." Said Remus.  
  
"Fine friends you are." Scowled James.  
  
"Well, at least Lily will be there to keep control of James." Said Peter, paying no attention to the frown on James face.  
  
"I'm not that bad." Said James.  
  
"Yes you are." Many voices said at once.  
  
"Lord, I was never dry enough during Quidditch season at Hogwarts." Said Tobias Wood, the former Gryffindor keeper.  
  
"Tell me about it. I don't know how I never got sick from all the training we got." Said Sirius.  
  
"We needed to practice!" Exclaimed James.  
  
"James, that's all we ever did! It's a miracle we had time to play our tricks at all." Sirius said.  
  
"You are exaggerating." James said with a shake of his head.  
  
"We are not." Everybody exclaimed.  
  
"Let us hope that that kid of yours doesn't inherit that from you." Said Tobias Wood. "I know mine won't be like that."  
  
James snorted.  
  
There was a knock on the door. A servant opened and the men turned to look as the parlor door opened.  
  
"There you are, why did it take you so long getting here?" James said as a blond, portly young man entered the room.  
  
The young man looked surprised at James' tone. "I had to visit a cousin at St. Mungos'. Didn't anybody tell you?"  
  
"We told him. He is just a bear right now because he wanted to leave." Said Remus.  
  
"Oh." Roger Edwards said as he turned to greet those present.  
  
"No time for that, we have to go." Said James.  
  
"We might as well go. He is not going to relax until we get there." Said Sirius.  
  
The others nodded resigned and followed James out of the room.  
  
  
  
It was noon and Lily sat at a table underneath a large umbrella in front of the baker's shop.  
  
"Are you sure you don't want something to eat Lily. You can rest for a while before we return home." Said Mrs. Evans as the two women waited for Mrs. Potter, who had stepped into the shop.  
  
"I'm fine mum, I can get something to eat once we get home." Lily said.  
  
"If you are sure dear." Replied Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Yes mum. Have you heard from Petunia lately?" She suddenly asked.  
  
Mrs. Evans pursed her lips in disapproval. "Not much. Just that Vernon has become director of his firm and their child will be born in a couple of months."  
  
"Oh, should we have a party for her, do you think? I'm sure she would enjoy it." Lily said.  
  
"No dear, she says that her sister in law is planning one for her." Mrs. Evans said.  
  
"Oh, when is it. Do we have time to buy a present?" Lily asked eagerly.  
  
"I don't think so dear. We'll send it to her, it would be much easier, and I don't think you would endure such a trip." Mrs. Evans said.  
  
Lily frowned. Why couldn't they go? Surely Petunia would put aside their differences and make peace for the sake of their children, she thought. She was about to speak, but the door of the shop opened and Mrs. Potter stepped out with a large bag of pastries.  
  
"I just couldn't contain myself. Those pastries looked so tempting." She said with a laugh.  
  
Lily smiled as she stood. "Should we go then?"  
  
"Yes dear, the car is waiting on the next street." Said Mrs. Potter leading the way.  
  
Lily walked slowly behind. The memory of her sister still in her mind.  
  
Martin, the driver, jumped up the moment he saw them approach and opened the door for them.  
  
Lily was helped in and the older ladies followed.  
  
The car was soon seen driving away from the village and turn to the lane leading to the Manor. Lily sighed and rested against the pillows brought for her comfort.  
  
She had been here for less than two years, but it seemed like home for her now. She turned to look at the two ladies whispering at the other end of the car. She smiled. Both ladies had become bosom friends, as if they had known each other all their lives.  
  
The house came in sight. The flowers had blossomed, the trees were green and lush, and the lawn was trimmed. In her eyes, it was perfect.  
  
Roberts stood on the steps waiting for them. A pair of footmen stood beside him to help with the purchases.  
  
"Everything all right, Roberts?" Asked Mrs. Potter as soon as she got out of the car.  
  
"It is ma'am." Roberts replied with a bow.  
  
"Oh good." She exclaimed.  
  
Martin was helping Mrs. Evans out of the car. Lily waited patiently for her turn. The footmen had descended to the car and were taking all the purchases out of the trunk.  
  
"Come Lily dear. I'm sure you are as hungry as we are." Said Mrs. Evans as the three ladies watched the footmen taking their bags into the house.  
  
"Indeed. Maybe more." Laughed Lily as she led the ladies into the house.  
  
Roberts walked before them, leading them to the formal parlor. Lily frowned in confusion, they usually used the family parlor room.  
  
"There has been an accident in the private rooms Mistress Lily, we thought to serve here as things are put in order." Roberts said to Lily as he opened the door for her.  
  
"Oh, thank you Roberts." Said Lily, her frown disappearing and stepping into the room.  
  
A shout of "Surprise!" Made her jump.  
  
"Oh!" She exclaimed as she looked around. Most of her friends and neighbors were there, laughing and greeting her. A large banner on the window said. "Congratulations it's a boy!" On a table by the door leading to the dinning room were piles of presents.  
  
Tears started to run down her cheek. "Oh thank you." She said before breaking down.  
  
"Oh dear, it's all right." Mrs. Evans said taking her daughter in her arms. "It was a bit of a surprise I suppose." She said to the other ladies in the room.  
  
Several women nodded, being mothers themselves and knowing how sensitive an expecting mother could be.  
  
"Come Lily. Look at all this delicious food that Otty has prepared for you." Said Katie, taking her friend from her mother and leading her to the dinning room.  
  
A delicious array of food was served on a table by a long wall. The large table had been taken out and replaced by three smaller tables surrounded by five or eight chairs each. A footman stood behind the table where the food was served, ready to help the ladies as they chose what they wanted.  
  
Katie led Lily down the table, urging her to eat a little of everything that was presented.  
  
"Really Katie, I don't need to eat this much." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"Nonsense, you need all your energy, and that child of yours must have the appetite of his father." Katie said.  
  
Lily laughed. "I think he will inherit that from James. Do you know that I haven't actually gained much weight? I mean that once the baby is born I will have no trouble losing the extra pounds. The doctor said that all the weigh I have personally gained is not much, maybe ten pounds at the most." Lily said.  
  
"Poor Otty, he will have to work extra hard to cook for both James and the baby." Laughed Katie.  
  
Lily chuckled and sat at one of the tables, ready to forget her troubles and enjoy herself.  
  
  
  
"How did you got this private room?" James asked as the group of young men (and a few older men) sat around the room.  
  
It was a large room. Large windows at one side of the room, slanted down so that everything below could be seen. In front of the windows were several chairs lined up, enough to sit ten people. Steps went up and another line of chairs was set.  
  
Behind the chairs a large open space was cleared. Sofas and chairs lined the walls, a large table stood on one side with food and drinks served.  
  
"Had to pay a pretty hefty sum for it, but it was worth it. You can see the game quite well from up here." Said Sirius leaning down on the window.  
  
"And much more comfortable than the bleachers." Said Remus as he poured a drink into his glass.  
  
"You didn't have to spend a lot of money for this." Said James turning to look at his friends.  
  
"We didn't, everybody here pitched in." Said Peter.  
  
All the men nodded.  
  
"We wanted to be comfortable." Laughed Tobias Wood.  
  
"And you don't have to pay for every person here. You could have up to fifty guests and you would still pay for the same sum." Said Frank Longbottom.  
  
"In other words, it was much cheaper than buying the tickets for the whole group." Laughed James.  
  
"Yep." Said Sirius.  
  
"How long will this intermission last?" Groaned one of the men.  
  
"It has only been ten minutes, Norman, it will start soon enough. Grab something to eat." Said Remus.  
  
"Wonder what the girls are doing?" Asked James.  
  
"Probably opening the gifts they bought and oohing and ahing over every little piece of clothes they gave Lily." Snorted Sirius.  
  
"Is that what Katie bought? Clothing?" Asked one of the men.  
  
"Yep, at least I think it's clothing." Shrugged Sirius.  
  
"My wife bought a set of pillows. What kind of a gift is that?" Another man said.  
  
"I wager it's embroidered with little bears and ducks, that kind of things." Scoffed Remus.  
  
"Yes, full of little bears and owls." The man responded.  
  
"Well, women like that kind of things." Said Peter.  
  
"Yes, but this is a boy we are talking about." Said Sirius.  
  
"My wife bought him a set of blankets, from the National Quidditch team." Tobias Wood said proudly.  
  
"Now that is the kind of gift we want." Said James. Everybody laughed.  
  
A whistle was heard and an announcement followed.  
  
"Ladies and gentleman, the game will continue in two minutes, please take your seats."  
  
"About time." Many of the men said.  
  
Peter groaned.  
  
"What?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"Now I have to go to the restroom. I shouldn't have drunk too much water." Peter said as he walked to the small room at one end of the end of the hall. Laughter followed him out.  
  
  
  
Lily was sat on a comfortable chair, surrounded by her well-wishers and the gifts they had brought.  
  
"Thank you." Lily said once more as se held up the small blue robes.  
  
"I didn't know they made wizard robes for babies." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Oh yes, they even have play wands." Laughed Mrs. Potter.  
  
"I'm glad nobody bought one of those. They could be dangerous in the hands of our husbands." Laughed Katie.  
  
The other women laughed. After tea and snacks were served, the women started to leave. Lily and Katie slowly took the gifts up to the baby's room.  
  
"I think James will love these blankets more than the baby will." Said Katie.  
  
Lily chuckled. "I think you are right. They are cute though, I like the colors." Said Lily as she held up the Quidditch blankets that she had been given.  
  
"I like the pillows, these are cute." Katie said holding a pair of small pillows.  
  
Lily smiled.  
  
"When are you two going to start thinking about children?" Asked Lily looking at her friend.  
  
Katie chuckled. "I don't know. We have not spoken about it." She said.  
  
"Don't you want children of your own?" Lily said.  
  
"I do. Eventually. I just don't think we are ready. Maybe in a couple of years." Katie replied.  
  
"James is a little sad that little Harry will not have a playmate." Lily laughed.  
  
"He just wishes his son to have a little prankster friend in Hogwarts." Katie replied.  
  
"I truly hope that by the time he goes to Hogwarts, James will not encourage him to be anything but a good student." Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"You better pray hard and long until that time arrives." Laughed Katie.  
  
Lily smiled as she stroked her stomach.  
  
  
  
James was sitting in the middle of the living room in Sirius' house. The other men were sitting or standing around him. A pile of packages were set in front of him.  
  
"And this is from?" Asked James holding up a large box.  
  
"Me." Said Tobias Wood leaning forward, eager to see what James thought of his gift.  
  
James unwrapped the box. Inside lay a small racing broom. "Oh wow." He exclaimed taking the broom out of the box.  
  
It was smaller than a regular broom. It hovered only a foot or two above the floor.  
  
"Tobias, that's the latest model of baby brooms." Exclaimed Sirius looking at the broom with excitement.  
  
"It is. I thought that the son of James Potter could not begin life without his own broom." Tobias said.  
  
"I love it. I'm sure baby Harry will too." James said happily.  
  
"He might, but I don't think Lily will." Remus said.  
  
"And what did you bring?" Snapped Sirius scowling at Remus.  
  
Remus laughed and pointed to a large crate underneath all the gifts. "I knew what Tobias had bought." He said with a mysterious tone.  
  
Sirius and James took the crate from underneath the pile. James quickly opened it. I small trunk stood inside, richly decorated with images of Quidditch balls zooming across the wood. James opened the trunk and four Quidditch balls were found inside. All of them were made of foam, the snitch larger than the real thing, but smaller than the other balls. James took it out and the ball flew across the room at a snail pace.  
  
The other men laughed.  
  
"Well, that kid is going to be the best Quidditch player by the time he gets to Hogwarts." Laughed one of the men.  
  
"Indeed. James here wants him to be the youngest player to be chosen for the house team." Said Sirius.  
  
James happily looked at the balls and the broom. There were no better gifts for a boy, he thought.  
  
  
  
It was almost time for dinner by the time James and Sirius returned to the Manor. Both had their pockets full.  
  
They entered the house to find all the servants scurrying from one place to the other. Taking tables apart, taking large bags of paper out of the parlor, and bringing order to chaos.  
  
"Did you have a good time?" Lily asked as she stood by the parlor room door.  
  
James quickly turned to her with a huge smile. "The best." He said approaching her and kissing her cheek.  
  
"Oh, I'm glad." She said smiling up at him.  
  
"How about you. Did you enjoy yourself?" He asked, leading her to the family parlor to allow the servants to put things in order without them being in the way.  
  
"Oh yes, the girls were really fun, and you should see some of the things they gave us." She exclaimed.  
  
James laughed. "I have some more things as well. Our son will have the best." He said.  
  
"Oh good, will you show me what you got?" Lily eagerly asked.  
  
"Of course. We'll show each other what he got before we retire." He said.  
  
Lily smiled once more. She couldn't be in a better mood.  
  
Katie got hold of Sirius before he followed them into the parlor and whispering to him to get ready led him to the door.  
  
"But I have some of his gifts in my pocket." He exclaimed.  
  
"Well, give it to one of the servants. James and Lily should be on their own." Katie said.  
  
With a sigh, Sirius got one of the servants to take all the shrunk gifts and quickly left the house in company of his wife.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
A/N: Hope you enjoyed that. I have added a new doll in my webshots page of Pregnant Lily, http://community.webshots.com/album/45028991uBnciM visit sometime and have a look.  
  
Thank you to all of you who reviewed, I truly appreciate all your comments.  
  
(Kirbee01 - did you write the Prophecy Fulfilled ff? If you did, I really enjoy it)  
  
Thanks for reading, and hope to have the next one soon. : ) 


	35. Part II Chapter 11

A/N: Thank you all for waiting, I have here the last chapter of Part II of my story. I hope you like it.  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own anything that has to do with HP, only some of the minor characters.  
  
  
  
Chapter 11 ~ Is it time?  
  
  
  
The end of May had arrived when Mrs. Evans received some news in the mail.  
  
All the ladies were sitting in the dinning room, eating breakfast, when Roberts approached her with a silver platter on which a couple of letter were presented.  
  
"Thank you Roberts." Mrs. Evans said with a smile.  
  
"Ma'am." Roberts said with a bow before turning to the other ladies with another platter on which their correspondence were kept.  
  
As the notes were read and the Daily Prophet discussed, Mrs. Evans read her letters. One was from her solicitor with news about her house in London. The other was kind of a surprise for her. It was from Petunia.  
  
Lily noticed her mother looking curiously at one of the letters she received and craning her neck, noticed that it had come from her sister. She sat back and waited for her mother to share the news.  
  
"Well, you have a nephew." Mrs. Evans said as she put the letter aside.  
  
"Oh! I'm so happy for her. When was he born?" Lily asked happily.  
  
"A couple of weeks ago. They named him Dudley." Mrs. Evans replied.  
  
"Dudley?" Asked Mrs. Potter with a laughing face.  
  
Mrs. Evans smiled. "Indeed. Funny name isn't it? But it seems that it is a common name in Vernon's family."  
  
"Well, it makes no matter. They must be happy." Lily said.  
  
"I'm sure they are dear." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Should we go and give them a visit?" Lily asked turning to her mother.  
  
"I'm not sure it would be wise dear, you are so close to your time and your back has been troubling you lately, you should rest. A note will suffice." Mrs. Evans quickly said. The letter had been short and curt. It was obvious that while she was welcome to meet her grandson, Lily wasn't and she didn't want her daughter to be hurt.  
  
Lily nodded, for didn't contradict her mother. She had a good idea what made her mother feel concerned for her. She knew how her sister felt about her. She had hoped that those feelings would change and allow her to be part of her life, but it didn't seem to be happening. And probably not for a long time.  
  
Nobody said a thing as James came into the room whistling.  
  
"Hello ladies." He greeted them as he went around the table kissing each cheek and giving each a flower. Lily was the last one to be kissed. "Feeling better dear?" He asked somewhat concerned.  
  
"Oh much. You were out rather early." Lily said as she looked at the orchid in her hand.  
  
"Hmmm - The tenants had started to gather some of the fruit in the greenhouses." He said and he happily served himself.  
  
"I gather we have a good crop this summer." Smiled Mrs. Potter, looking fondly as James sat at the head of the table.  
  
"Oh yes. We had really good luck with the fruit plants." He said.  
  
"I'm sure Otty will be quite happy to hear that." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"I'm sure he will." James said before turning his attention to his food.  
  
It was a warm day. Summer was upon them and the air seemed to be peaceful and cheerful. The atmosphere around the house had become one of expectancy. Everybody was looking forward for the time to come for the new Potter to arrive.  
  
Everybody kept an eye on Lily at all times. Lily was quite exasperated by this because she knew that James was the one responsible for it. There was always a maid or a footman nearby to help her. Roberts and Mrs. Nichols were often bringing her platters of snacks, fruit and tea. And the older ladies were not far behind. Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans kept her entertained. If she groaned, everybody asked what was wrong, she would roll her eyes and just say that she was uncomfortable or that she just needed to move a bit.  
  
Lily was not too happy with this constant attention, she still had six weeks to go and everybody was acting as if the baby would be born at any second. Her favorite time of the day was when she sat in the baby's room. She sat on a rocking chair and spoke softly to her child as she stroke her stomach. Sometimes James would join her and together they made plans for their child. Other times, James would stand in the doorway, happily watching his wife.  
  
  
  
It was early on a June day when Sirius ran into the breakfast parlor where the family was assembled.  
  
"Sirius, what is wrong?" James asked the moment his friend stumbled into the room.  
  
"Dum - Dum - " Sirius panted.  
  
"Take deep breaths Sirius." Said Mrs. Potter as Roberts gave Sirius a glass of water.  
  
"Take your time." Said Lily.  
  
"No time.we have to go.now." Sirius managed to say.  
  
"What happened?" Asked James.  
  
"Explain - on way - have to go." Panted Sirius.  
  
James threw his napkin on his plate and led Sirius out of the room.  
  
"I wonder what is wrong." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
Lily looked worriedly at the door.  
  
  
  
"All right, talk." Ordered James as he and Sirius made their way our of the estate.  
  
"A group of Death Eaters is going to attack Hogsmeade. It's a Hogsmeade weekend James!" Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"How do you know?" James asked.  
  
"Dumbledore. One of his spies told him and he sent as many owls as he could." Sirius said.  
  
"I didn't get one." James said.  
  
"Neither did I, he appeared in my fireplace half an hour ago and told me to get you. How long will the blocking charm be on your estate? Apparating in the next town and running to the Manor is a lot of work." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
James laughed. "I don't know for how long, but I was told that it usually works for a year or so."  
  
"Oh, so it's not permanent." Sirius said.  
  
"No charm or spell is permanent Sirius, you should know that." James said.  
  
Sirius shrugged. "There might be some that are permanent, you never know."  
  
"Tell me what else Dumbledore said." James urged.  
  
"He said that one of his spies had made known to him that there would be an attack on Hogsmeade today and to keep the students away. Dumbledore said that it was a Hogsmeade weekend and most of the kids had left the castle by the time the message was received. He sent the professors to get them back and sent an owl to the Ministry for help." Sirius explained.  
  
"What else did he say?" Asked James as they approached the place where they would dissapparate.  
  
"Nothing more, he was about to but someone entered to talk to him, he just said 'get James, get here quick' and he disappeared." Sirius said.  
  
"What do you reckon happened?" James asked as they entered an obscure alley.  
  
"I reckon the Death Eaters made an appearance." Sirius said with a sigh.  
  
James nodded. A moment later, the alley was empty once more.  
  
  
  
Hogsmeade was in complete chaos. Students running from one place to the other screaming or crying, some were huddled together behind tables or crates trying to hide. Smoke and fire filled the air, stores and houses were being shut tight, the owners stumbling as they tried to protect their property. Hogwarts' professors were in the scene as well. Professor McGonagall led the others, ordering students to run toward the lane leading for Hogwarts were the horseless carriages waited. Dumbledore was also there, accompanied by Ministry wizards and friends.  
  
James and Sirius ran to Dumbledore.  
  
"Professor." They greeted him.  
  
"James, Sirius, glad to have you here. We have cornered the Death Eaters in that alley." He said pointing to a wide alley nearby. Flashes of light and screams came out of it.  
  
"How many are there?" Asked James rolling the sleeves of his robes and taking his wand out of his pocket.  
  
"We are not sure." One of the Ministry agents said.  
  
"Are we ready?" Asked Sirius.  
  
Everybody nodded, and as one the whole group entered the alley.  
  
They found a group, cloaked in black standing by the back wall. A small group of Ministry wizards were fighting with them. Some turned to look behind them when they sensed a presence behind them and sighed with relief as they saw reinforcement coming to help.  
  
One of these agents ran toward Dumbledore. "Glad that you are here. We have them cornered and placed a blocking charm around the alley, they cannot go anywhere." He said.  
  
"Very well." Said Dumbledore with a nod and an expression full of determination.  
  
The group made its way to the other group trying to evade the curses and hexes that the Death Eaters threw their way. They hid behind boxes and crates and trying to defend themselves as they cursed and hexed in return.  
  
The battle continued for a moment, before Sirius started to pull James' robes trying to get his attention.  
  
"Sirius, don't you see I'm busy?" Snapped James before he ducked to evade a curse.  
  
"Look at the center of that lot." Sirius said before popping up and sending his own wave of hexes.  
  
James looked toward the Death Eaters and tried to see among all the bodies to determine what had gotten Sirius attention.  
  
Then he saw it. A blond haired woman, standing in the center of the group, protected from being hit behind the bodies of her companions.  
  
"Jezebel." Exclaimed James.  
  
"A pity isn't it." Said Sirius.  
  
"I feel sorry for her, in a way." James said.  
  
"So do I. Tricked to think that her father was killed by the Ministry and now led to her death." Said Sirius.  
  
James nudged Sirius to look at the group of Ministry agents as they huddled and nodded among each other.  
  
"What do you think they are planning?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"I don't know, but I hope it will bring an end to this." Said James as ducked once more to avoid being hit.  
  
"I'm glad Katie wasn't home when I got Dumbledore's message. I don't think I could handle this if I knew she was here, in danger." Sighed Sirius.  
  
James nodded. "I know the feeling. Thank God Lily is pregnant, otherwise she would've ran after us."  
  
Sirius shuddered at the thought.  
  
A wave of curses flew from the Ministry agents as the Death Eaters tried to protect themselves. Suddenly a thick green smoke surrounded the Death Eaters and started to spread to the Ministry agents.  
  
The curses continued flying, the smoke seemed to be harmless. When it finally dissipated, the Ministry agents were unhurt and the Death Eaters lay lifeless on the ground.  
  
Dumbledore and his friends, along with the Ministry wizards, approached the huddled group on the ground.  
  
"Arabella my dear, feeling better?" Dumbledore asked.  
  
Everybody was surprised at this and turned to look at a small older lady standing by the bodies on the ground. Nobody had taken notice of her and were wondering where she had come from.  
  
"Indeed I am." The old lady smiled.  
  
"Come then, I think we all deserve a feast. I'm sure the Great Hall will be large enough for all of us." Said Dumbledore motioning for the others to follow as he helped the witch he called Arabella to step over the dead bodies. "Arabella my dear, I have a perfect place where you can settle down." He was saying.  
  
The witch was looking at him with surprise. "You do?"  
  
"Oh yes, and I have a special mission for you." Dumbledore said.  
  
James and Sirius approached Dumbledore and the group that had surrounded him.  
  
"Professor, I do not think I will stay for dinner. I'm sure my mother and Lily will be very concerned, specially if this is printed in the evening version of the Daily Prophet." Said James.  
  
"Oh, of course. What about you Sirius?" Asked Dumbledore.  
  
"I will go as well. Katie wasn't home when I left, she must be wondering where I am." Sirius said.  
  
"Very well. Let me introduce you to our group before you go. This is Mundungus Fletcher, he led the Ministry agents, and this lady here is Arabella Figg, without her we wouldn't have been victorious today." Dumbledore said as he motioned to the Ministry agent that had met them when they entered the alley and the older lady standing beside him. "These two young men are James Potter and Sirius Black."  
  
"Thank you for your help young men, I'm glad to see that the young are eager to help in the defense of the innocent." Said Mundungus Fletcher.  
  
"Indeed." Said Arabella with a nod.  
  
James looked at the lady with care, he had the feeling that he had seen those pair of eyes very closely before. He shook his head. He was becoming fanciful, he thought. He shook hands with those around him and started walking out of the alley, Sirius walked right behind him.  
  
  
  
Lily sat the whole day by the window, hoping to catch a glimpse of her husband when he arrived. She was very worried. She had heard rumors of an attack and she was sure that if it was true, he would be involved in it.  
  
"Oh God, please keep him safe for me." She prayed.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans had tried to keep her entertained but it had all been in vain as they were quite worried as well.  
  
It was later in the day when they had news of what had happened that morning.  
  
They were sitting in the parlor room, trying to keep their minds off their worry when Roberts arrived with a copy of the afternoon edition of the Daily Prophet. He placed it by the mantel, where it was usually placed, to await James' arrival.  
  
"Do you wish for some refreshment Mistress Lily?" He asked, bowing to Lily.  
  
"Bring some tea please, I'm feeling a bit parched." Lily said.  
  
"Of course Ma'am." Roberts said and left the room.  
  
"How long do you think James will be away?" Lily said trying to get up from her chair.  
  
Mrs. Evans quickly helped her up. "Maybe it won't be long." She said.  
  
"I hope so, I'm very worried." Lily exclaimed.  
  
Lily walked around the room, trying to get her nerves to settle down. She spied the newspaper and with a sigh she took it. Maybe there was something there to entertain her, she thought.  
  
She gasped as she saw the cover story.  
  
"Attack in Hogsmeade"  
  
It read. "Oh no!" Lily exclaimed.  
  
"A Hogsmeade weekend is eagerly awaited by all students in Hogwarts. Today promised to be a very fine day. But it was not to be. A group of Death Eaters apparated in Hogsmeade today, Staff from Hogwarts soon followed to keep the students out of trouble and lead them to safety.  
  
Ministry agents and concerned citizens joined the fight. Some of the Death Eaters were cornered in an isolated alley and after a hard struggle they were killed. No casualties were reported other than the Death Eaters. Damage was done to some of the buildings in the village and students were hurt. Not much information is available at the moment. Reports will follow on the incident."  
  
"What happened dear?" Asked Mrs. Potter.  
  
Lily shoved the newspaper to her while she silently sobbed. Mrs. Evans went to her daughter and consoled her while Mrs. Potter read the article.  
  
"Is it bad?" Mrs. Evans asked. Lily topped sobbing but she stayed within her mother's arms, it made her feel safe and loved.  
  
"Doesn't say much. It just says that a group of Death Eaters apparated in Hogsmeade this morning. Unfortunately, it was a Hogsmeade weekend and several students were in town. Dumbledore and his staff was on hand trying to lead the students to safety and the Ministry sent agents to help. It says that the Death Eaters were cornered and after a battle, they were killed." Mrs. Potter said, looking through the paragraphs hoping to see James' name printed. "It says there were no major casualties, except for the Death Eaters." She said with a sigh full of relief.  
  
At that moment there was a commotion in the Hall and steps walking toward the room. The door opened and James walked into the room.  
  
"Oh James!" Lily exclaimed and threw herself against him.  
  
James tried to keep his balance as he held his wife tight against him. "I'm all right sweetheart." He said kissing her hair.  
  
"Are you sure? I was so worried, and when that article appeared in the paper I was quite beside myself." She sobbed.  
  
"I'm here Lily, I would never let anything happen to me while you are here with me." He whispered in her ear.  
  
"Promise?" She whispered back.  
  
"Promise." He replied.  
  
"Did everything went as it says here?" Mrs. Potter asked holding up the Daily Prophet.  
  
"Let me see." James said. He sat Lily in one of the chairs before turning to get the paper.  
  
He read it carefully and nodded as he read.  
  
"Well, most of it was as it is printed here, but no students were hurt nor any of the buildings burned to the ground. There were a few scrapes and bruises among the students but Hogwarts' professors got them out on time. There were a few fires, but nothing big enough to cause major damage." James said.  
  
"Oh I'm glad." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"What about those Death Eaters, were they all killed?" Asked Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Well, that is the trouble. You see, when we were fighting Sirius told me to look among the group, both of us saw Jezebel Robinson among the Death Eater but when the bodies were removed, she wasn't there." He said with a troubled tone.  
  
Lily gasped. "Did you tell Dumbledore?"  
  
"We did, but he didn't think it was so, he made it seem as if we had imagined the whole thing and she hadn't been there at all." James exclaimed.  
  
"Could she have dissapparated?" Asked Mrs. Potter.  
  
"No, there was a blocking charm around the alley, it was the first thing the Ministry did as soon as they cornered them. Nobody could've escaped." James said.  
  
"Maybe you did imagine it James, perhaps it was somebody similar to her." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"No, she was there, I know it." James said.  
  
"Well, don't worry about it dear, maybe they haven't found all the bodies yet. Maybe hers was blown out of the alley and it will be found somewhere else." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"It is possible." Said James with a thoughtful expression.  
  
"Why don't you go and freshen up, dinner will be ready soon and I'm sure that you are very hungry." Said Lily shooing him out of the room.  
  
James laughed. "Oh I am. I'll be back soon." He said kissing her cheek before walking out of the room.  
  
"Oh, thank God, he is safe." Lily exclaimed as soon as James had left the room.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans nodded their agreement.  
  
  
  
Later that night, James and Lily lay on their bed. Her head against his chest as he stroked her hair.  
  
"Do you think that now that Jezebel is dead, they will bring Emma back?" Lily asked.  
  
"I doubt it. If it was indeed Jezebel we saw today, then the knowledge of all the research has been lost to Voldemort. The other person we know that has knowledge of that information is Emma. She is in more danger now than ever." James said.  
  
"I had hoped that she would meet our son." Lily whispered.  
  
"I know. She will meet him someday." James said before kissing her head and both settled down to sleep.  
  
  
  
The days after the attack passed with no new information. James checked the paper everyday to see if any mention of Jezebel was found. Sirius had gotten in trouble with Katie for leaving without a note and letting her be worried.  
  
This morning James and Sirius were sitting in the bookroom. James was scanning through the paper once more while Sirius sat brooding on an opposite chair.  
  
"Well, there is no mention of her. How can this be Sirius, both of us saw her, she cannot just cease to exist." James exclaimed.  
  
"Didn't they print the names of the Death Eaters?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Only of some, not all of them." Sighed James.  
  
Sirius shrugged. "There is nothing that we can do about it, she was there or she wasn't. Why do you care anyways?"  
  
"The suspense is just driving me mad." James exclaimed.  
  
"Just let it be." Sirius said.  
  
James sighed and put the paper aside.  
  
"Is Katie still angry at you?" He asked.  
  
"Yes. What was I supposed to do? It was an emergency!" Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"She will get over it." James said.  
  
"I hope so." Sirius sighed.  
  
"Is she with Lily?" James asked, not really caring for the answer.  
  
"Yes. She wanted to see how the baby room is looking." Said Sirius with a shrug. "How are you holding up? Is Lily giving you any trouble?"  
  
"Not lately, her cravings seemed to have ended and her mood swings are not as bad. She is having some back pain, but the doctor said it was normal." James said with a thoughtful expression.  
  
"How much longer?" Sirius asked.  
  
"The doctor said three weeks." James said with excitement.  
  
"My aunt said that firstborns are either early or late." Sirius said.  
  
"Somebody told us the same." James sighed.  
  
"What do you reckon? Early or late?"  
  
"I hope he is early, I don't think I can't handle any more weeks." Exclaimed James.  
  
Sirius laughed heartily, he could well imagine what his friend was going through.  
  
Lily was in the parlor surrounded by her mother, mother-in-law and friend. They were quietly looking at magazines for knitting patterns or toys.  
  
"What about this? It's cute." Katie said as she sat beside Lily showing her the catalog she had been looking through.  
  
"No, I don't like it. I don't want any more balls in that room. The poor kid will damage his eyes with all those balls near him." Laughed Lily.  
  
Katie laughed along with her.  
  
"I suppose that's why James has glasses." She said with a chuckle.  
  
The older ladies smiled indulgently as they heard the young women laugh and chat. Lily had been out of sorts lately, and it was a good think to have somebody her own age to keep her entertained.  
  
The girls continued talking and giggling among themselves, while the older ladies studied their knitting patterns. It was almost time for luncheon and they hadn't seen the boys.  
  
"I wonder what they're doing? James is usually here by now." Lily suddenly exclaimed.  
  
"They are probably in the stables or at the orchards." Said Katie with a shrug.  
  
"Nope, we are here. Did you want something my dear?" Said James coming into the room and kissing Lily's cheek as a greeting.  
  
"No, just wondering where you were." She said with a smile.  
  
"We were in the bookroom, reading the paper." Said Sirius leaning against the mantle.  
  
"Anything newsworthy?" Asked Mrs. Potter as her son kissed her forehead.  
  
"No, just the same things." James said.  
  
  
  
In another part of the country, in an isolated house at the end of a darkened lane, several mysterious men appeared now and then. The people of the town looked askance at the new lodgers of the old house, but nobody went anywhere nearby to meet the new members of the community.  
  
The house had been empty for as long as the people in town remembered. The owner of the house kept it in order and in good shape, but nobody had lived there.  
  
On this afternoon, several cloaked men had appeared in the house. A sense of dread and malice had filled the air and many of the inhabitants of the town had locked themselves in their houses and looked constantly out the window.  
  
Inside the house a man lay huddled in the floor panting as several others surrounded him.  
  
"You were the one who told!" One was screaming.  
  
"We knew you would betray us, why our master wishes to keep you on we don't know." Hissed another as he kicked the sobbing man still on the floor.  
  
"I said nothing, I didn't know." The man was sobbing.  
  
"Thirteen of our members were killed that day." A cold voice said. "I don't think he has the brains to have pulled it off. But there is the question of who betrayed us."  
  
"Do you really think so Severus? Do you really think he had nothing to do with it?" One of the men said.  
  
"I do Lucius. He wasn't present on the meeting where the attack was discussed." Severus Snape said looking at the man standing beside him.  
  
"Then who did? Most of those present on that meeting are dead." Another man said.  
  
"Except Lucius and I." Snape said with a cold expression.  
  
The others looked nervously at each other. "Well, we know that neither of you could possibly have done so." One of them finally said.  
  
"Glad to see that you don't doubt us." Leered Malfoy.  
  
"I suppose that means, that somebody overheard the plans." Somebody said without meeting Snape's nor Malfoy's eyes.  
  
"Or the fools said something to someone who shouldn't have known." Another man said.  
  
The man on the floor continued panting and sobbing as the other spoke. Glad that they stopped torturing him. His body felt as if it was on fire, as if pins had been stabbed in every inch of his flesh.  
  
"Get up Pettigrew. You are in the way." Snape said as he stepped over him.  
  
The others leered and hissed as they passed him.  
  
'I'll show them.' He thought. 'A time will come when I will be greater than any of them.'  
  
The small house was soon emptied. Popping sounds were heard through out the establishment as the men disappeared from sight. Peter stood slowly to his feet, he was really in no shape to try apparating anywhere. He opened his robes and took a small bag from within its folds. He opened it and threw the powder into the fireplace. Green flames sparked, and he slowly walked into them.  
  
In a darkened part of the room a pair of shadows detached themselves from the wall.  
  
"Do you really think he had nothing to do with the attack?" One of them asked.  
  
"Yes, he couldn't have found out about it in so short a time. We hadn't even discussed the time and place of the attack during that meeting. I got the owl, hours before the attack was to take place." The other said.  
  
"I didn't even take notice of it." The first man said.  
  
"Lucius, your wife was giving birth, of course you would take no notice of it." The other said.  
  
"What about you Severus, why didn't you make it?" Lucius said.  
  
Snape shook his head. "Couldn't get there in time, by the time I got there the Ministry and Dumbledore had their people all over the place, there was no way I was going to stay."  
  
"Humph! That would've been suicide." Lucius Malfoy said.  
  
"Indeed." Snape responded.  
  
"Must go, Narcissa is returning home tonight." Malfoy said.  
  
"Congratulations. A son, I presume." Snape said looking at his companion.  
  
"Indeed." Marlfoy said with a smug smile and dissaparated.  
  
  
  
Darkness had fallen over the land. The heat had made the flowers in the house wilt and die. Lily sat in the baby's room looking around with happiness. Everything was in order and soon a new member of their small family would join them.  
  
  
  
For the next couple of weeks James stayed near the house. He made sure that Roberts or Mrs. Nichols knew at all times where he had gone so they could send for him if necessary. Lily laughed at his antics, but at the same time, she was happy to know how worried he felt about her, it made her feel that she didn't need have fear herself.  
  
She was quite nervous as the time drew closer. She had heard the other women in the village talk about their pregnancies and she was very apprehensive. Some had said that it hurt so much it just put them off from having any more children. Some said that it had been a breeze and it had been the best time of their lives. Others had told how much problems they had during birth and had gone into detail about the surgeries and procedures they had gone through to have their children born. Lily had horrible nightmares that night and James had console her and soothed her, trying to tell her that their child was healthy and no problems would ensue.  
  
"But what if the cord is around his little neck? He will choke to death." Lily had sobbed.  
  
"That is not going to happen Lily, you saw the image, the doctor said everything was fine." James said.  
  
"What if there is a something that he didn't see. What if our baby will need surgery after he is born?" Lily countered.  
  
"If he does need medical attention, he will have the best." James said. "He won't need a thing."  
  
"I'm scared James." She whispered.  
  
"I know sweetheart. I am too." He replied.  
  
"You are?" She asked.  
  
"Yes. What if I'm not a good father? What if I do something that will scar him for the rest of his life?"  
  
"You won't do that. You will be the best father ever." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"You are just saying that." He said kissing her hair.  
  
"No I'm not, you will be the best. You will teach him how to play Quidditch, and will help him with his transfiguration, and when the time is right, you will teach him how to take care of the estate." Lily said.  
  
James smiled. He had achieved his purpose; Lily had forgotten about her fear and was now much calmer.  
  
Eventually they had fallen asleep.  
  
The next day, James had taken her to see the doctor. The doctor understood the fear that the new parents were going through and explained what was going to happen when the time came. The baby was healthy and everything was as it should be.  
  
Lily had felt much secure and James had gotten a good night sleep.  
  
  
  
Late on a night of the second week of July, James was woken by Lily as she shook him.  
  
"James! James!" She was saying.  
  
"What?" He groaned.  
  
"It's time." She hissed.  
  
"Time for what?" He sighed as he snuggled deep into his pillows.  
  
"What else? James get up!" Lily said with exasperation.  
  
"Lily! I'm trying to sleep!" James hissed.  
  
"And I'm giving birth to your son, you clod. Now get up!" She said as she pushed him off the bed.  
  
"Umph! Are you sure? Is it time?" James asked getting up from the floor as quickly as he could.  
  
"I think so. It feels like contractions." Groaned Lily.  
  
"Oh Lord! Oh Lord!" James was praying as he ran getting his pants and robes on.  
  
"Hurry!" Lily groaned from the bed.  
  
Fortunately, Lotty appeared, his eyes bloodshot and looking tired. "Do you wish for something Master James?" He asked.  
  
"Wake everybody, Lily is having the baby!" He screamed.  
  
Lotty's eyes grew round and hurried out of the room. Minnie soon appeared with a bowl of water and towels. She ran to the bedside and served Lily some ice.  
  
"Thank you Minnie. The pain seems to have gone." Lily sighed.  
  
"How far apart are they?" James asked, kneeling on the floor looking for his shoes.  
  
"I don't know. I didn't time it." Lily said with a sheepish expression.  
  
"Well, no matter, we'll time the next one." James said trying to put his shoes on.  
  
Running footsteps were heard on the hall. The door opened and Roberts and Mrs. Nichols came in, carrying blankets, and pillows.  
  
"Here dear, just lean back on these, it will help with the pain." Said Mrs. Nichols as she put the pillows on Lily's back.  
  
"Thank you Mrs. Nichols." Lily said with a sigh settling back on the bed.  
  
"Sir, I have sent Martin to bring Doctor Pomfrey. They should be on their way." Roberts said.  
  
"Thank you Roberts." James said, panting on the floor, he had managed to put his shoes on but found that he had put them wrong.  
  
The door burst open once more and Mrs. Evans entered, closely followed by Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Oh my dear, how are you doing? Remember your breathing now." Mrs. Evans said sitting on the bed beside Lily.  
  
"I'm fine mum. The pain is gone." Lily said.  
  
"For now." Said Mrs. Evans, making sure the pillows were plump and comfortable.  
  
"Here Lily. Take this, it will help." Said Mrs. Potter handing her a glass with ice.  
  
"I already have some. Minnie brought it to me." Said Lily putting the ice aside.  
  
When the doctor arrived at the Manor, he found every room in the house lighted. Servants were cleaning and putting things in order, still in their pajamas, looking up trying to keep sight of everything that was going on. The twins were in their nightgowns, running and jumping around the corridors, nobody was paying them enough attention to tell them to stop. And Lily's room was full of people, all speaking at once.  
  
"Ahem!" He cleared his throat.  
  
"Doctor, quick." James said flailing his arms above his head.  
  
"I need to examine her first. I will appreciate it if everybody leaves, except for James of course." Said the doctor.  
  
Everybody looked at each other with worry and slowly left the room.  
  
"Very well. Let's see how everything goes." They heard the doctor say before the door closed behind them.  
  
James stayed by Lily, nervously looking at the doctor take his instruments out of his bag.  
  
The examination lasted a couple of minutes before the doctor started to put away his things once more.  
  
"Now, there is nothing to worry about. It's just a false alarm." He said.  
  
"A false alarm?" Both Lily and James exclaimed.  
  
The doctor nodded with a smile. "You remember I told you about them."  
  
"But it felt so real." Lily said with a whisper.  
  
"I know, that's why they are called false labors." The doctor said patting Lily's hand lying on the bed cover.  
  
"How many of these will she have?" James asked with a sigh.  
  
"We never know. There are some that only have it once before the real birth time comes. There are others that have one every single night before birth, and there are some that don't have one at all." The doctor said.  
  
James groaned. He didn't think he could handle another night like this.  
  
"Do they usually come at night?' James asked.  
  
"No, it could happen during the day as well." The doctor said with a smile.  
  
"Thank you anyways doctor, I hope I could tell you it won't happen again, but I cannot guarantee it." James said with a smile.  
  
"Not to worry, just call if you feel anything. Don't worry my dear, it happens all the time. Ask your mother in law, she had ten false labors before young Elizabeth was born." The doctor said kindly to Lily.  
  
"Thank you doctor." She said with a small smile.  
  
"I'll accompany you doctor. Everybody might be out there waiting for news." James said.  
  
The doctor nodded and with a final pat on Lily's hand he left the room with James.  
  
Lily sighed tiredly and settled into the pillows to relax.  
  
"You are very stubborn aren't you? Just like your father." She said patting her stomach.  
  
The hall in front of Lily's and James' room was full of people, pacing as they waited. When the door opened and the doctor stepped out with James, they all turned to hear what they had to say.  
  
"I'm sorry, it was a false alarm." James said.  
  
"Oh dear." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"It happens." Said Mrs. Potter with a sigh.  
  
Those around the hall slowly went to their beds and resumed the dreams they had put on hold. The doctor was taken back to his house and James had gotten back into the room.  
  
The sky was starting to get light, soon, it would be time for everybody in the estate to be up and about doing their chores.  
  
James snuggled back into the bed after undressing once more.  
  
Lily watched him in silence, stroking her belly as she made room for him in the bed.  
  
"I'm sorry." She said when he slid into the bed.  
  
"Don't worry about it, you heard the doctor, it happens all the time." James with a smile as he put his arms around her shoulders.  
  
Lily settled back against his chest with relief. She had been afraid that he would be upset.  
  
"Maybe it won't happen again." Lily whispered.  
  
"Humph! With our luck, you'll probably have one every day until the time comes." James laughed.  
  
Lily smiled. She was glad that he could see the funny side of things, it made her feel calmer and without worry.  
  
"Now close your eyes, we have to rest. You have to rest." James said and hugged her tight.  
  
Minutes later, Lily smiled as she heard the snores coming from her husband. It was then that she sighed and fell asleep.  
  
  
  
It was late the next morning when Lily and James left their room. James still felt tired and thought that it might be a good idea if they had a nap in the afternoon, they might have to go through the same thing all over again.  
  
Luncheon had been pushed back and breakfast was still being served in the breakfast room. Roberts was there as always, bags underneath his eyes and a listless expression on his face. Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans were also there, both trying hard from yawning.  
  
"Good morning." James greeted them as he and Lily sat on their seats.  
  
"Did you get enough rest?" Mrs. Evans asked, looking at Lily with worried eyes.  
  
"Just a bit." Said Lily with a smile.  
  
"Maybe it would be a good idea if everybody had a nap this afternoon." Said James.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans nodded their agreement.  
  
  
  
For the next week James was awoken in the same manner. His days seemed long and tiring. On this afternoon, he walked toward the family parlor room. He had been out roaming the estate, hoping that the fresh air would clear his head.  
  
He entered the parlor to find Lily alone.  
  
"How are you feeling dear?" He asked kissing her brow.  
  
Lily turned to look at him with a sad smile. "I'm sorry James, I really thought it was time." She said.  
  
"I know. Don't worry. The doctor did say that it could happen." He said sitting beside her and putting his arms around her.  
  
"Oh, I know the doctor said so, but James, our baby was supposed to be born last week!" Lily exclaimed with worry.  
  
"Well, the doctor said that as well. He said that most firstborns are either late or early. Ours just happen to be late." James said.  
  
Lily groaned. "I don't want to feel this way anymore James, I don't like it." Lily said with a pout.  
  
James smiled. "I know darling. Not to worry, Baby Harry, will come soon enough."  
  
"Well, I hope it's sooner than later." Lily grumbled.  
  
James leaned in to look at her stomach. "Now listen here young man, this is your father speaking. It's time for you to come out, you are making your mama upset. Now I know that you are warm and cozy inside but that is no excuse to make your mother sad. We are all eager to meet you, there is no need to be afraid." James said. Lily laughed. "There, that should get him out." James said to Lily.  
  
Lily chuckled. "I think he heard you James." She said taking his hand and putting it on her stomach. "Do you feel it, he is moving." She said happily.  
  
James smiled brightly, his son was moving. He was eagerly waiting for the time to come to make his acquaintance. "Now Harry, hurry up." He whispered.  
  
Lily laughed. James smiled down at her and kissed her tenderly.  
  
Giggles were heard from behind them. James sighed and stopped the kiss to peer behind the couch. Lily chuckled and looked back as well. Two dark- haired faces with round blue eyes peered at them.  
  
"And what are you doing there?" James asked his two nieces.  
  
"Nothing." The two girls said.  
  
"Indeed, and that is why you are hiding there." He said with skepticism.  
  
"You are funny, Uncle James." The two girls said before giggling once more.  
  
James sighed and rolled his eyes, while Lily giggled along with the girls.  
  
"Come around you two." He said and the two girls did as he said and walked around the couch and stood in front of him.  
  
"When is cousin Harry going to come out?"  
  
"Is it going to take long?"  
  
They asked looking James and Lily.  
  
"Not long." Lily said. "He is just taking his time." She smiled.  
  
"Oh!" The girls exclaimed. They scrambled to sit beside Lily, one at each side.  
  
"Harry!" They whispered at Lily's stomach.  
  
"Hurry up."  
  
"Come out."  
  
"Uncle James is not so bad."  
  
"And Aunt Lily is not either."  
  
"You will like them."  
  
"You will like the grandmothers too."  
  
"Otty makes lots of nice desserts."  
  
"He will make pies, and cookies if you ask nicely."  
  
"You will like that."  
  
James laughed at this. "Don't try to bribe him." He said.  
  
"Will he like cookies and ice cream?" Francesca asked turning to look at her uncle.  
  
"I'm sure he will, but when he gets older." James said.  
  
"What do you mean? Won't he like them right after he comes out?" Asked Cassandra disappointed.  
  
"Not right away, he will be too little to eat them." Lily explained.  
  
"Will he play with us?" Francie asked.  
  
"He will, when he is old enough." James said.  
  
The girls frowned. "Then what can he do?" Cassie asked.  
  
"Well, nothing much at the beginning." Lily said with a chuckle.  
  
"He will be boring." Said Francie crossing her arms. Cassandra nodded her agreement and crossed her arms too with a pout on her face.  
  
"Well, yes, perhaps. But won't you like to help with his caring? He will need his bottle and his nappies changed. And he will like to play, but only baby games." James said.  
  
The girls seemed to be thinking about it for a moment. "What kind of games?" Cassandra asked.  
  
"Well, he will like you to sing to him, and read, and play with his balls, and with his bears. Oh, there are lots of things that you can do to keep him entertained." Lily said.  
  
"Oh, all right." Said the girls smiling.  
  
"Hear that Harry."  
  
"You will be able to play after all." The girls squealed.  
  
James laughed and Lily chuckled.  
  
"Now run along, I'm sure that you are supposed to be studying." James said shooing the girls out of the room.  
  
"Yes Uncle James." The girls said and ran out of the room as fast as they could.  
  
"Poor Harry, he won't know what to make of his cousins." James said, patting Lily's stomach.  
  
"I'm sure he will love them all the same." Lily smiled.  
  
James smiled back at her.  
  
"Happy?" He asked.  
  
"Very. You?"  
  
"Very." He said. And resumed the kiss that his nieces that interrupted earlier.  
  
It was much later when James helped Lily from the couch and led her into the dinning room for luncheon, both happy and enjoying their lasts moments alone. They knew that once their son was born, their time alone would be limited.  
  
  
  
The whole Manor was in a state of expectation. The tenants came everyday to ask for news, just as the neighbors did. The neighborhood ladies visited Lily often trying to give her advise and trying to assure her that it wouldn't be long. Their husbands and sons were much more circumspect and joined James on his rounds around the estate, keeping him company.  
  
Sirius and Katie had come to stay with them. They were eager to help out as much as they could as they waited.  
  
Remus and Peter owled everyday for news, and waited eagerly for the birth of the next generation of Marauders.  
  
"It's a pity we don't have the map anymore." Said Sirius one afternoon as he and James sat in the bookroom trying to keep out of the ladies' way.  
  
"Indeed. I'm sure Harry would've enjoyed it." James replied.  
  
"Maybe we can do another one, we could teach him how to do it." Sirius said.  
  
"Hmmm - we could, and I'm sure he will enjoy that." James said after a minute.  
  
"Of course he would, and by then he is sure to have brothers and sisters to share it with." Sirius said.  
  
"Not to mention your own kids." James laughed.  
  
"Well, I'm not sure of that, but it's possible." Sirius said.  
  
"Oh, I'm sure that by next year there will be one on the way." James said.  
  
"Humph! Don't let Katie hear you say that." Sirius replied.  
  
James laughed once more.  
  
"Did you hear from Remus and Peter?" Sirius asked, trying to change the subject.  
  
"They owl everyday to ask if Harry is here yet." Said James.  
  
"Oh, and what do they have to say about themselves?" Sirius queried.  
  
"Remus is in South America, doing some research. It seems that there had been reports that a cure has been found for his condition. Peter is back with his mother, she became ill once more." James reported.  
  
"I hope those reports are true and they can help Remus. But Peter seems to have the worst luck." Sirius responded.  
  
"Indeed. The poor fellow won't be able to get away for some time." James shook his head sadly.  
  
"How long will Remus stay away?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"Don't know, he didn't mention it." James said.  
  
"Not too long, that last message took a couple of weeks to get here." Said a voice from the door. The two young men turned to look at the speaker with surprise.  
  
"Why didn't you tell us you were coming?" Exclaimed James.  
  
"You should've said something." Sirius said.  
  
Remus laughed. "I wasn't sure when I would be back. Besides the owl would've gotten here after I did."  
  
"Most likely." Snorted Sirius.  
  
"How long are you staying?" James asked, motioning Remus to sit.  
  
"Only for a month or so. Time enough to greet Young Harry." Remus smiled.  
  
"Well, tell us, what did you find out about this supposed cure." Sirius asked with curiosity.  
  
"Hmmm - it's not a cure really, I mean, it doesn't seem to stop the transformations every month, but it does relieve the pain, id it seems to have a side effect." Remus explained but stopped to accept the glass that James offered.  
  
"What kind of side effect?" James asked.  
  
"Well, it seems that by relieving the pain, it clears the mind. Thus, if the potion is drunk before the full moon, the person changes into a wolf but remains with a human mind, and it's less dangerous that way." Remus said.  
  
"Wow, that is a just good isn't it? It's not a cure, but it sure gives hope." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"Indeed it does. It is used widely through out South America, but our Ministry is wary to allow its use here without some investigation." Remus continued.  
  
"Humph! What else should we expect? Do you know who are up for Minister? Cornelius Fudge and Bartimus Crouch, not a decent candidate in the lot." Sirius scoffed.  
  
"Both are as close-minded as a Dementor. The Ministry is certainly falling into despair." James said shaking his head.  
  
"Well, what do you expect, with the situation as it is. People just have lost faith in the Ministry. Look at all that the Death Eaters and Voldemort have done, and the Ministry has done nothing to make things better." Remus said with a saddened tone.  
  
"Well, the media gave good reports of what happened at Hogsmeade some time ago." Sirius said.  
  
"But it wasn't the Ministry they applauded, but Dumbledore and his staff for being the first on the scene and getting all those students to safety with no injuries reported. The Ministry wasn't too happy about that." James said.  
  
Sirius snorted. "Of course they were not happy, the press made it look as if the Ministry cannot do a thing without the help from Dumbledore."  
  
"Well, it certainly looks that way, doesn't it? I mean, people have noticed that, owls are sent from the Minister to Dumbledore more often than to any other person." James said.  
  
"He started doing so since your father's death James, before that, he was the one giving him advise." Remus said.  
  
The three young men were silent. The windows were open and the warm breeze made the curtains move in front of the windows.  
  
They were too lost on their own thought that they didn't even notice the owl that had come to rest on the desk looking at the three young men trough round eyes.  
  
Remus was the first to notice the owl as it cleaned its feathers with its beak. After they sat thinking for some minutes, Remus left his chair to fill his glass once more. As he turned to look back at the others to ask if they wanted more drinks, he spied the owl on the desk.  
  
"You have an owl James." He said with surprise.  
  
"Hmmm - what?" James asked snapping out of his deep thoughts.  
  
"You have an owl, on your desk." Remus said nodding toward the desk in front of the windows.  
  
James turned to look. The owl seemed to take no notice of them, he continued cleaning his feathers as if it had all the time on the world, and no important news to carry.  
  
"How long has it been standing there?" James asked leaving his chair and walking up to the desk.  
  
"Don't know, it was there when I turned." Remus said with a shrug.  
  
"Why don't you ask it?" Said Sirius.  
  
"Really Sirius!" Exclaimed James as he reached for the parchment tied to the owl's leg.  
  
Remus shook his head as Sirius asked. "What?"  
  
The moment James took the envelope, the owl spread his wings and swiftly left through the open window.  
  
James frowned and looked down at the parchment as he opened the note.  
  
"It's from Dumbledore." He said.  
  
Sirius groaned. "Now what? Don't tell me there was another attack."  
  
"No, just says that he is coming for a visit tonight and that he wishes to speak to me and Lily." James said.  
  
"He just wants to see you before the baby is born to wish you happy." Said Sirius.  
  
"Of course. Nothing to worry about." Remus said.  
  
James nodded. It was possible, but somehow, he felt that it wasn't to congratulate them the reason Dumbledore was coming, something had happened.  
  
  
  
The household was assembled in the family parlor. Lily and Katie had cornered Remus the moment he had entered the room with the others and were trying to find out everything he had done while he was away.  
  
"Remus, why do you insist in dressing so shabbily? You have enough money to buy new robes." Katie said looking down on the shabby set of robes Remus wore.  
  
"Because it's such a waste Katie, I'm ripping them every month, if I have to replace every set of robes I damage, then all my money will go to waste." Said Remus.  
  
"But how long are you going to continue wearing these?" Katie asked looking at the robes with disgust.  
  
"When they are so bad that I can't repair them. Then, I'll get a new set of robes." Remus said.  
  
"Oh Remus." Katie exclaimed.  
  
"Leave him alone Katie. It does make sense. Can you imagine how expensive it would be for him to be buying robes all the time?" Lily said coming to Remus' rescue.  
  
"Thank you Lily, knew one of you would understand." Remus said.  
  
"Really!" Katie exclaimed.  
  
"He didn't mean anything by it Katie." Lily soothed her friend as she frowned at Remus.  
  
"Yes well, Sirius is wanting me to join him. I'll see what he wants." And Remus rapidly made his escape.  
  
"I suppose I do understand why he doesn't want to spend so much money replacing his wardrobe every month." Said Katie grudgingly.  
  
"Indeed. Not even we do that every month." Lily said.  
  
"Oh well." Katie said with a shrug putting the matter out of her mind.  
  
Lily looked toward her husband. James stood at the other corner of the room. Sirius and Remus were with him. The three of them had a drink in their hands. They looked so relaxed and happy. She smiled.  
  
"How much longer do you think you have to wait?" Asked Katie looking down at Lily's round body.  
  
"Well, I'm not sure. He was supposed to have been born last week. The doctor is coming for an examination tomorrow morning." Lily said patting her stomach.  
  
"Is it very uncomfortable?" Katie asked.  
  
"Very." Lily said with a smile.  
  
"I'm glad Sirius does not wish for children yet, I don't think I could handle it as well as you do." Katie said with a shudder.  
  
Lily laughed. "I'm sure you will become accustomed to it once the time comes."  
  
"Perhaps." Said Katie somewhat skeptical.  
  
"It is a wonderful feeling." Lily said.  
  
"I'm sure it is." Katie said with a lift of her brow. "Let's see if you say the same when you are in labor."  
  
"Oh, I'm sure that I will curse James to the devil when that happens, but I'm sure it will be worth it once I have Baby Harry in my arms." Said Lily with a sigh.  
  
"We'll see." Katie said.  
  
Before Lily could say another word, the door opened and Roberts stepped across the door. "Professor Dumbledore, Sir, Ma'am." He announced.  
  
"Thank you Roberts. Welcome Professor." Said James as Roberts stepped aside and Professor Dumbledore came into the room."  
  
"James, Lily my dear, you look radiant." Dumbledore said leaning to kiss Lily's hand as he approached her seat.  
  
"Thank you Professor. I hope your trip was good." Lily said motioning the old gentleman to sit.  
  
"Indeed it was. Thank you Mr. Potter." Said Dumbledore as he accepted a drink from James.  
  
"James said that you wished to speak with us. Do you prefer to do it now, or after dinner?" Asked Lily, motioning to Roberts to wait for a moment.  
  
"After dinner, I think. Don't want to spoil dinner, and let it get cold." Dumbledore said with a smile.  
  
Lily nodded to Roberts, who soon departed closing the door behind him.  
  
"Dinner will be served soon. Perhaps we should start toward the dinning room." Lily said to the group assembled in the room.  
  
"Of course dear." Said James as he helped her up from her seat.  
  
Dumbledore led Mrs. Potter, followed by Remus and Mrs. Evans and Sirius and Katie closely behind them.  
  
The twins were already in the dinning room. Both watching closely as the footmen brought in the trays with food and placed them on the table on one side of the room as they waited for Lily's signal to start serving.  
  
Dinner was a quiet affair. The twins kept the family entertained with stories of their adventures and their plans for Baby Harry.  
  
James and Lily kept looking at each other across the table with happy smiles.  
  
The meal didn't last long. As soon as dessert was eaten, the twins were taken by Minnie to the nursery and the adults started to pile back into the parlor.  
  
"Professor, if you wish, we can move to the bookroom for our talk." Said James as soon as the others had passed through the door leading to the parlor. Only Dumbledore, James and Lily were left behind.  
  
"It would be preferable." Dumbledore said.  
  
The trio made their way to the bookroom slowly, giving time for Lily to catch her breath as they went along.  
  
"I swear, I'm looking forward to seeing my feet again." Lily exclaimed as soon as she sat on one of the couches in the bookroom.  
  
Dumbledore chuckled. "I imagine you are."  
  
"Something to drink Professor?" Asked James walking toward the decanters.  
  
"Thank you James, don't mind if I do." Said Dumbledore with a smile.  
  
James soon joined them with three full glasses of cider.  
  
"Mmm - I always enjoy your homemade cider, it is the best I have tasted." Said Dumbledore after drinking some.  
  
James smiled with satisfaction.  
  
"Now, what I have to say is very important and it must be kept a secret." Dumbledore said very seriously.  
  
"Of course." James nodded.  
  
"Do you remember some of the lectures from History of Magic?" Dumbledore asked.  
  
James and Lily looked at each other with surprise.  
  
"I'm sorry Professor but I really didn't pay much attention in that class." James said sheepishly.  
  
Lily giggled and Dumbledore chuckled.  
  
"What exactly are you asking for Professor?" Lily asked.  
  
"About the early history of magic, my dear." Professor Dumbledore said.  
  
"Oh, I know about that, well, not everything but I know about the myths of course." Said James.  
  
"What do you remember about those myths?" Dumbledore asked.  
  
"Let me see. According to early stories, some thousands of years ago there was a place in the South of England where the land was fertile and the food aplenty. The people served and worshiped the land and the mother goddess, they believed to be the creator of the land. From among these people a child was born, a little girl, with great power and supernatural talent. The people believed she was a physical manifestation of the mother goddess and worshipped her as such. The child grew and eventually had children of her own, all with talent just as hers, except that not as evolved, they needed to use objects to project their power, they were the first magical beings in the world." James said.  
  
"Good. That is indeed the myths of the beginning of magic. This little girl who grew up to be the mother of all magical people had great power, she had no need for an object to project her power with, as her children did. Those objects eventually were replaced with wands of course. But this woman used her body and mind to project and use her powers. She was the matriarch of her family, the people of this small isle considered her a goddess. She became ruler of the land - "  
  
As James and Lily met with Professor Dumbledore in the bookroom, the others kept themselves entertained in the parlor room.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans had retired early, as it had been several nights that they had a full night's sleep.  
  
"Wondering what they have to talk about." Said Sirius, sprawled on one of the couches, sitting next to Katie.  
  
"I just hope it won't take long." Sad Katie.  
  
"I doubt they will tell us what the subject is about." Remus said.  
  
"Do you think it is something to do with Voldemort?" Sirius asked.  
  
"I doubt it, if it was he would've asked us to join them." Remus replied.  
  
"But it must be dreadfully important." Katie exclaimed.  
  
"Oh, of that there is no doubt." Sirius said.  
  
  
  
" - That is why we need your help. For the charm to work, an innocent soul is needed. A person with no fear and guilt. The only being incapable of those emotions is a child." Dumbledore was saying.  
  
James and Lily had stayed silent through Dumbledore's explanation of his problem.  
  
"Will he be in any danger?" Lily asked putting her arms protectively around her stomach.  
  
"Only if Voldemort finds out. But the charm works as a protective charm, it will become weaker as time passes, but during his first two years it will be very strong." Dumbledore said.  
  
"He will be safe as long as Voldemort doesn't find out. How many people will know of this?" James asked.  
  
"The three of us and a couple of people from the Ministry." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Are they trustworthy?" James asked.  
  
"They are." Dumbledore replied.  
  
"How long will this charm work?" Lily asked.  
  
"The last time it was done it lasted for more than a thousand years." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"Did it have any side effects?" James asked.  
  
"None that were hurtful to the child." Dumbledore responded.  
  
James and Lily looked at each other for a moment. It seemed as if they were communicating to each other their thoughts and worry. After Lily nodded determinedly at James, he turned to look at Dumbledore.  
  
"When do you want to do the charm?" James asked.  
  
"We will wait for one month after Young Harry's birth." Dumbledore said.  
  
James nodded.  
  
"It is the best way to protect our magical world. If we fail, all the magic in the world will be destroyed and Voldemort will be more dangerous than ever." Dumbledore said to the young couple.  
  
"Is he back then? The last time we spoke about him, you said that he had disappeared and that not even his Death Eaters knew where he was." James said with a troubled tone.  
  
"He was spied for the first time since then, this afternoon. I'm sorry to say that he is much worse than before." Dumbledore sounded saddened.  
  
"Why do you say that Professor?" Asked Lily with worry.  
  
"He appeared in a small town in Dorset with a large number of his Death Eaters. The whole village was destroyed. One hundred and fifty people dead." Dumbledore reported.  
  
Lily gasped in horror while James cursed.  
  
"All were muggle?" James asked.  
  
"They were. We had no report of the attack until after it occurred. There was nothing that the Ministry could do, and there were no survivors." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Oh dear." Lily said, her eyes tearing up.  
  
"I must leave, there are many things to do about this situation, and they don't know how the muggle media will explain this." Dumbledore said coming to his feet.  
  
"Thank you for coming Professor." James said, shaking hands with the old gentleman.  
  
"Thank you for having me and considering my proposition. Think closely about it. There is no need for you to feel obligated." Dumbledore said peering deeply at the young couple.  
  
"We will discuss it." James said.  
  
Dumbledore nodded and left the room.  
  
"Do you think we are doing the right thing James?" Lily asked as soon as the door closed behind Professor Dumbledore.  
  
"I think we are. If this is what we must do to protect our world Lily, we must do it. The future of Harry and all our children depend on this." James said, sitting beside her and hugging her as close as he could.  
  
"I'm worried James." Lily whispered leaning against him.  
  
"I know sweetheart, so am I." James whispered back.  
  
  
  
Lily woke early on this July day. It had been a few days since Professor Dumbledore came to the Manor to speak with them and she couldn't shake off the feeling that something big was going to happen.  
  
The day after his visit, James had taken Lily to see the doctor. Lily had been very worried that a week had passed after her due date and the baby had not been born yet.  
  
"Are you sure that everything is fine?" She had asked after the examination.  
  
"Yes, my dear. Everything is fine. That little rascal is just taking his time, don't worry, he will come when the time is right." The doctor had said with a smile.  
  
Lily was still skeptical, she was sure something was wrong.  
  
This morning was just the same as the previous one, she woke up stroking her stomach and hoping that today was the day.  
  
"Don't worry Lily, he will come out soon." James mumbled at her side.  
  
"I didn't know you were awake." Lily said with a smile as she watched James roll over to his back.  
  
"I can't sleep once you are awake, I'm afraid that the time will come and then you will scream at me for being asleep." He said.  
  
Lily giggled, she had done that so often during the last couple of weeks.  
  
"Yeah, it's funny to you but I didn't get enough sleep." He grumbled.  
  
"I'm sorry." She said kissing his brow softly.  
  
"Humph!" He snorted.  
  
Lily chuckled.  
  
"The doctor wanted to go see him today didn't he? Or is it tomorrow?" James asked.  
  
"It's today." Lily said.  
  
James groaned. "All right, I'm up."  
  
Lily smiled as she watched James drag his feet toward his dressing room.  
  
"Your father is rather grumpy in the mornings Harry." She whispered to her stomach and giggled.  
  
  
  
A few hours later, James and Lily were waiting for the doctor after the examination was done.  
  
"Well," the doctor said as he reentered the room, "everything seems to be fine, but that kid is almost ready, I would not be surprised if I'm not called to your bedside in a matter of days."  
  
"Oh really doctor?" Lily said excitedly.  
  
"It certainly looks that way. Your son will join you soon." The doctor said with a smile.  
  
"Did you hear that James? Any day now." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"I heard." James said with a smile.  
  
"Yes well, I will urge you to stay in bed and rest my dear, you might feel somewhat uncomfortable until the time comes." The doctor said looking at Lily with a serious expression.  
  
"Of course doctor." She nodded.  
  
"I'll make sure she stays quiet." James said.  
  
"Good. Now, if you feel any pain at all, just make sure to call." The doctor said as he and James helped Lily from the bed and led the young couple toward the door.  
  
"I will doctor, thank you." Said Lily with a huge smile.  
  
Martin was waiting for them in front the clinic. James helped Lily into the car and soon were off toward the Manor.  
  
"Can you believe it James, our son will join us soon." Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"I know." James said hugging her tight.  
  
Lily sighed and settled against his chest, trying to get comfortable.  
  
"Now, I want you to promise me that you will stay in bed and rest, I don't want you getting up and trying to walk around the house." James said.  
  
"I'll try. But you put in the lift now, there is no need for me to go up and down the stairs." Lily replied.  
  
"No matter, I want you to rest." James said.  
  
"Very well. I'll stay in bed." Lily sighed resignedly.  
  
James took Lily to their room the moment they returned. Minnie was there to help.  
  
"Now Minnie, I want you to stay here with her and make sure that she doesn't leave that bed." James ordered.  
  
Minnie looked at James with her round eyes wide open and frightened. "Yes Master James, Minnie will keep Mistress Lily in bed." She nodded energetically.  
  
"Good, see that you do. Now Lily, just stay here and rest, I'll come and keep you company later if you want me to." James said leaning down to kiss Lily's brow.  
  
"All right, but you are overreacting James." Lily complained as she tried to move all the pillows that were on the bed.  
  
"No I'm not, I'll ask Mrs. Nichols to bring you a tray. Something to munch on will be good for you." James pulled the covers over Lily.  
  
"Oh, all right." Lily finally said trying to keep James from putting another blanket over her.  
  
"I'll see you later." James said and left the room.  
  
"Men are so insane." Exclaimed Lily.  
  
Minnie looked quietly at Lily, her expression one of worry and surprise.  
  
  
  
Sirius and Remus kept the ladies company as they waited for James and Lily to join them.  
  
"Wonder what the doctor will have to say." Said Sirius.  
  
"The same he has been saying the past two weeks, that the baby is healthy and that he is not ready to come out." Said Remus.  
  
"Poor Lily, she is really wishing for the baby to arrive." Said Katie.  
  
"Not to worry, it is very common. Petunia was three weeks late." Mrs. Evans said.  
  
Mrs. Potter nodded her agreement. "My Elizabeth was one week late, but James made up for it by being two weeks early." She laughed.  
  
"Oh, Lily was right on time." Mrs. Evans reported.  
  
James came into the room in that instant and everybody turned to look at him questioningly.  
  
"Well?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"The doctor said that Baby Harry is healthy and it would be any day now." James said with a smile.  
  
"Any day now?" Asked Katie.  
  
"Uh-huh. He said that soon we will meet him." James said happily.  
  
"Oh dear, Lily must stay in bed." Mrs. Evans said with worry.  
  
"She is in bed now, the doctor told her to rest." James replied.  
  
"Oh good, we should go and see her Rose, we must keep her entertained." Said Mrs. Potter putting her knitting things together in her sawing basket.  
  
"Indeed. She must stay in bed." Mrs. Evans said.  
  
Both ladies quickly left the room whispering among themselves.  
  
"Well, congratulations old boy, you will soon be a father." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
James smiled smugly at his two friends.  
  
Katie rolled her eyes. "I think I will join the ladies, I might get an intelligent conversation for a change." She said and walked to the door.  
  
"Hey!" The young men exclaimed.  
  
Katie didn't turn back and left the men behind.  
  
"Come James, let's go to the game room, you need a distraction as well." Said Remus and the three went looking for a way to entertain themselves.  
  
  
  
During the rest of the day the household was kept busy trying to keep Lily and James entertained. Mrs. Nichols kept the ladies watered and fed, while Roberts took care of the young men.  
  
Everybody in the house now knew that Lily was soon to deliver and they happily kept up their chores and kept looking in on Lily making sure that the time had not arrived yet.  
  
Lily happily stayed in bed, and didn't really feel like breaking her promise to James. She was feeling tired and a little rest did her good.  
  
It was late in the evening when Lily was left on her own. Time for dinner had arrived and James had come to tell everybody to go and eat. He would keep his wife company, he said.  
  
"Hungry?" James asked as soon as they were left alone.  
  
"Not really, Mrs. Nichols has been bringing tea and platters of food through out the day." Lily said with a smile.  
  
"Do you mind if I do ask for a try to be brought up? I am a little hungry." James asked hopeful that Lily would say yes.  
  
"Of course. I don't mind." Lily said with a smile.  
  
A tray was soon brought up with enough food for two people.  
  
Lily drank a little of the tea that had been brought up, and after watching James eat, she decided that she was a little hungry after all.  
  
"Knew you would get hungry." James laughed.  
  
"Seems that Harry got hungry after all." Lily giggled.  
  
It was a quiet time for both of them. Both knew that it might be one of the last moments that they would be alone before the baby was born.  
  
The others joined them after dinner. Every candle in every scone on the wall had been lit. The room was bright and the company was entertaining.  
  
The others stayed with James and Lily for a couple of hours only, soon they retired to their respective rooms.  
  
  
  
James was tranquilly sleeping. He mumbled and snored while Lily lay awake beside him. She turned to look at the clock beside the bed. It was after midnight. Lily sighed. She then turned to look at the calendar that decorated one of the walls. It was a large calendar, it looked more that an object of art than a calendar, it was that reason why Lily liked it so much. It was a magical calendar, it changed months automatically and the numbers and letters were scribed in golden letters that blended perfectly with the colorful background. She looked at it closely, following the lines and colors as they blended and sparkled in the moonlight. She smiled as she noticed the date. It was July 31.  
  
"July is almost gone Harry." She whispered as she stroke her stomach. "It seems that you don't like the month at all. Do you like August best? Is that why you are waiting? Don't worry, it will be time soon."  
  
Suddenly she gasped. A sharp pain went through her back. She waited to see if it would come again, but it didn't. She sighed with relief and snuggled deep on the bed.  
  
She closed her eyes and let her body relax.  
  
She was woken abruptly some time later. The pain in her back had returned, but this time it was a little sharper. She waited again, and again it didn't come back. She frowned. Had she imagined it? She shook her head and closed her eyes once more.  
  
Once more, she woke abruptly. The pain had returned. She looked at the clock. How long ago was the previous one? She asked herself. She didn't close her eyes this time, she tried to relax her body and hoped that the pain would not return.  
  
But it did. Half an hour later.  
  
Lily sighed and smiled. It seemed that Harry liked the month of July after all.  
  
She waited a little longer. She wanted to be sure before she woke James up.  
  
Half and hour later, it returned. She was sure now.  
  
"James!" She whispered as she nudged him.  
  
"Hmmm." He groaned.  
  
"Wake up!" She nudged him again.  
  
"Stop that, I'm sleeping." He mumbled.  
  
"Wake up James!" She hit him this time.  
  
"What was that for?" James exclaimed sitting up on bed.  
  
"It's time, I'm sure now." Lily said excitedly.  
  
"Time?" James asked rubbing the sleep of his eyes. "It's almost three in the morning. Did you wake me up just to ask what time it is?" He snapped.  
  
Lily sighed with exasperation. "That's not what I said you ninny! I said it's time, we have to call the doctor."  
  
"Oh!" James said snuggling back on the bed.  
  
Lily looked at him with surprise, but before her anger rose, he jumped out of the bed.  
  
"It's time? Are you sure?" James screamed.  
  
Lily nodded.  
  
James ran out of the room, wearing only his boxers, screaming down the corridor. Lily giggled but gasped as the pain returned once more. She groaned loudly.  
  
"Are you all right, does it hurt much? Do you know the charm for pain relief? Where is my wand? I can't find my wand!" James was yelling as he stumbled around the room in the dark.  
  
"It would probably help if you get a light. And your wand is probably by your side of the bed." Lily said, trying to be patient.  
  
She reached for her own wand and whispered "Lumos." The tip of her wand shone brightly. James blinked a couple of times and slowly made his way to his side of the bed. Lily had been right, his wand was on the nightstand on his side of the bed.  
  
"Thanks." He said and with a swish of his wand every candle was lit.  
  
As he reached for his robe, they heard running footsteps coming toward them.  
  
"What happened? What is wrong?" Panted Mrs. Evans as she ran into the house.  
  
"What is the screaming? James did you do anything to Lily?" Mrs. Potter asked coming in behind Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Besides the obvious of course." Said Sirius strolling with Katie right behind the older ladies.  
  
Lily gasped and groaned.  
  
"What is it? Lily, are you all right?" Asked Katie with worry in her voice.  
  
"She is labor, what else? Will somebody go downstairs and wait for the doctor? Roberts has sent for him." James said above the whispering and the chatter.  
  
"I'll go." Said Remus who had been standing behind Sirius.  
  
As Remus left the room, James turned on the others. "And will you leave Lily alone? If you do not know what to do, leave this instant!" He ordered.  
  
Sirius laughed and pulled Katie out. "Are you coming James?" He asked slyly. "You know nothing about this either."  
  
Lily grasped James' arm. "Don't go. Please James, stay here with me." She pleaded.  
  
"Of course darling, I'm not leaving you." James said as he sat beside her on the bed.  
  
Sirius left the room laughing as he pulled Katie along.  
  
"But Sirius, she is in pain." The others heard Katie say as she and Sirius left the room.  
  
"Here Lily, let me help you sit up, you will see that it will help with the pain." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Thanks mum." Said Lily.  
  
"Here take this. When the pain is really bad, take one of these blocks of ice and chew on it. You don't want to hurt yourself." Said Mrs. Potter using her wand to summon some ice.  
  
They heard footsteps coming down the corridor. They all turned to look at the door as it opened and Roberts walked in.  
  
"The doctor is here Sir." He said. Lily giggled at the sight of the butler. He was wearing a black night robe with white slippers on his feet. His hair was messed and his nightcap was still on his head, but somehow, he still looked imposing.  
  
Roberts stepped aside and the doctor walked in.  
  
"Well, it seems that the time has come. I will need you all to leave while I make my examination." The doctor said.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans left and Roberts closed the door behind him.  
  
The doctor approached the bed and looked down at Lily as she held on to James' hand.  
  
"Don't worry my dear, that little rascal will be with us soon enough." He said.  
  
  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans waited in the corridor as the doctor finished his examination. Katie paced across the floor. Remus and Sirius had gone in search for chairs to put along the wall. If they were going to wait in the corridor, they might as well do so in comfort.  
  
They had returned with several chairs when the doctor left the room. He had removed his cloak, and the sleeves of his robes had been rolled up high on his arms.  
  
"The contractions are getting nearer. It will be a matter of hours for her to go in complete labor." He announced.  
  
"Do you need help doctor, I could help." Said Mrs. Evans.  
  
"No thank you ma'am, my daughter is visiting, she should be coming soon." The doctor said.  
  
"We will be looking for her then." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"I'll appreciate it. She is bringing all the instruments we will need." The doctor replied.  
  
The others nodded and the doctor returned into the room.  
  
He found James trying to help Lily breathing.  
  
"Come Lily, hold on, it will pass in a moment." James urged her as she grabbed his arm and held tight as a wave of pain passed through her body.  
  
"I will not go through this again. Next time, you are going to have the baby." She groaned.  
  
"I would if I could dear." He said. James turned to look at the doctor as he approached the bed. "Don't you have something to relieve the pain?" He asked hopefully. He thought the bones in his hand were probably broken. He was sure he heard them crack as Lily was pressing them tight.  
  
"There is a charm we can try, it will not take away the pain completely, but it will manage it." The doctor said.  
  
"Give it to me." Lily growled.  
  
"Give it to her, give it to her." Screamed James as another contraction took hold of Lily.  
  
Lily groaned loudly.  
  
As the painful spasm passed the doctor took his wand and whispered as he pointed his wand to her stomach.  
  
Lily sighed with relief.  
  
A squeak sounded from below the bed.  
  
"You can come out now Minnie. She won't throw a shoe at you anymore." Said James.  
  
"Is Master James sure?" Minnie asked, her small face peering out cautiously.  
  
"Yes, I am." James said.  
  
"I'm sorry Minnie, I didn't mean it." Lily said looking apologetic.  
  
"Does Mistress Lily hate Minnie?" Asked Minnie as she came out from under the bed looking sad.  
  
"No, I don't hate you, I was just in pain and said things that I regret now." Lily explained.  
  
"Why don't you go and get more ice Minnie." James urged and the little elf quickly disappeared from the room.  
  
"You were really mean to her." James said putting his arms around Lily.  
  
"I know. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to." Lily said. A sniffle escaped her.  
  
"Oh, don't cry my dear. Harry will be scared if you cry on his birthday." James said.  
  
"I'm sorry." Lily said taking deep breaths.  
  
"Yes, that's it. Take deep breaths now." James urged.  
  
The door opened once more and a slim lady with black robes came into the room. She was carrying a large bag.  
  
"I'm here father." She said putting the bag down and discarding her cloak.  
  
"Thank you dear. The time is near, so we'll have to scrub." The doctor said.  
  
"You can use either of the restrooms." James said motioning to both doors on the adjacent walls to the bed.  
  
"Thank you. Keep helping her with her breathing, the contractions will start to get closer together." The doctor ordered as walked toward one of the restrooms.  
  
"Oh no. I don't want to have more contractions." Moaned Lily.  
  
"I know dear, but the charm will help." James said patting the hand he had clasped in his own.  
  
The doctor and his daughter returned to the room. While the doctor made sure all the instruments were prepared, his daughter started to take out some of the equipment. When she neared the bed with the muggle equipment she had shrunk to carry and placed it by the bed, James turned to look at her.  
  
"Hello Madam Pomfrey, didn't know you were in town." James exclaimed. Lily turned to look at the stern woman standing by the bed.  
  
"Mr. Potter. I'm glad that this time it isn't you in need of attention because of some adventure or other of yours." She said.  
  
James smiled. "Nope, it's Lily's turn now."  
  
"Only because of you. It's your fault I'm here." Lily pouted.  
  
James chuckled and kissed her brow.  
  
"Here Mr. Potter. Make yourself useful. Use this towel to keep her brow dry." Said Madam Pomfrey giving him a small towel. She then turned to help her father with the rest of the instruments.  
  
"Oh James, here comes another one." Lily groaned and grasped James' hand.  
  
"Keep breathing Lily." James said.  
  
Those outside waiting in the hall were rather impatient.  
  
"What is keeping them so long?" Katie exclaimed.  
  
"Labor takes time my dear. I was in labor for ten hours when James was born." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"Petunia took six hours." Mrs. Evans said.  
  
"I hope it doesn't take that long." Sirius said.  
  
"It has been only a couple of hours." Remus replied.  
  
"That is enough." Said Sirius.  
  
Every room in the Manor was lit, and it was obvious that everybody was busy with one thing or another.  
  
The servants were all up. Roberts and his footmen were in the entrance hall dusting and sweeping. The maids found dusting and cleaning to do in the same wing as Lily's and James' room. In the kitchen, the elves and Otty were busy preparing the menu chosen for that day. And Mrs. Nichols kept checking with Mrs. Potter if they needed refreshments.  
  
Dusk was approaching and the tenants were starting to get prepared for the upcoming day.  
  
"Ok Lily, you are all ready. You are completely dilated and this kid of yours is eager to join us. When the next set of contractions start, push." The doctor ordered as everybody in the room got ready to deliver the baby.  
  
"All right." Said a panting Lily.  
  
"I'm here sweetheart." James whispered in her ear as he dried her forehead.  
  
"Hold my hand James." Lily said.  
  
"I'm not going to let you go." James replied.  
  
"Here it comes." Warned Lily.  
  
"Push my dear." Ordered the doctor.  
  
"Push Lily." Said James.  
  
A string of curses were heard coming from Lily. James chuckled as he heard them. The doctor and Madam Pomfrey didn't seem disturbed by it.  
  
"JAMES POTTER, IF YOU EVER TOUCH ME AGAIN I'M GOING TO HEX YOU ALL THE WAY TO HADES." Screamed Lily.  
  
James chuckled. "I won't touch you again then." He said.  
  
The contraction passed and Lily relaxed.  
  
"Is he out yet?" Asked James.  
  
"Not yet." The doctor reported.  
  
Lily groaned.  
  
The screams and curses could be heard in the corridor. Sirius had laughed as he heard them. Mrs. Potter and Katie giggled.  
  
"I used much stronger words." Laughed Mrs. Evans.  
  
"Poor Lily. It must hurt horribly for her to scream like that." Said Katie with a shudder.  
  
Another scream and another string of curses were heard.  
  
"Maybe we should've used a silencing charm." Said Remus.  
  
"We really didn't think about it." Said Mrs. Potter with a sigh as the screams ceased.  
  
Inside the room, James was trying to keep his ears from ringing.  
  
"Ok, Lily, I can see the head." Said doctor.  
  
"GET HIM OUT OF ME!!!!!" Screamed Lily.  
  
"Here comes the head." Exclaimed the doctor.  
  
James moved to see. "Lily I can see him." He screamed.  
  
"GET HIM OUT! GET HIM OUT!" Lily panted.  
  
"Ok, Lily. One more push." The doctor ordered.  
  
"Oh no, I can't." Panted Lily.  
  
"You can do it Lily. I know you can." Said James as he dried her brow.  
  
"Here it comes." She gasped.  
  
After some vociferous moments, the cry of an infant was heard.  
  
Lily sighed with relief.  
  
"Congratulations." The doctor said as he and his daughter cleaned and examined the baby.  
  
"Oh give him to me." Pleaded Lily.  
  
Madam Pomfrey approached the bed. A bundle of blankets on her arms. "Here you go." She said with a smile as she put the bundle into Lily's arms.  
  
"Oh James, look." Sobbed Lily.  
  
"He is perfect." James said.  
  
Baby Harry yawned. "Hello Harry. I'm your mum." Whispered Lily.  
  
"And I'm your daddy." James whispered.  
  
Baby Harry opened his eyes and looked at the two faces above him.  
  
"He looks like you James." Lily smiled turning to her husband.  
  
"But he has your eyes." James smiled back and leaned in to kiss her softly.  
  
  
  
  
  
A/N: Harry is finally here and this part of the story is done. The next part will not be as long as either of the previous parts as it will deal only with Harry's first year until Voldemort attacks Godric Hollow. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, sorry it took a while.  
  
Kirbee, you are right, my sn in HP site is ilialexalop and the title of my story is the same, maybe I'll see you around sometime.  
  
Thank you to all of you who have reviewed, I'm glad you are enjoying the story so far. : ) (I know some of you had questions about what is going to happen after Voldemort's attack, well, I can't really say because it would spoil the surprise, but I'm sure that you will enjoy it.) 


	36. Part III Chapter 1

A/N: Sorry it has taken so long but I had trouble with my internet and I haven't been able to do much online lately. Here is the first Chapter of Part III for you. This part will be much shorter than the previous two because it will deal only with Lily's and James' final year. I'm so glad that The Order of the Phoenix will come out this summer, I'm eager to see what happens and I don't have to think about writing Harry's fifth year, lol, I think that's the one thing I'm looking forward to. Anyways, here is more story for you, have fun.  
  
~ A Legacy of Two Generations ~ ~Part III - Dark Times ~  
  
  
  
Chapter 1 ~ Welcome Harry!  
  
  
  
Harry James Potter was born on the early hours of the 31st of July on the year 1980, much to the relief of his mother, Lily, and joy of his father, James. Awaiting the great news were his grandmothers and parents' friends. The staff joyfully shared the news with those tenants, curious to find the Manor household awake at such an uncommon hour.  
  
The news rapidly traveled through the village and as mother and child rested, packages of every kind and size made its way to the Manor.  
  
Homemade sweets and wines, toys and blankets, pillows and trays of fruits, all made their way to the dinning room, where they were displayed as the tenants and neighbors visited the joyous family.  
  
"This kid will be spoiled." Sirius said as he looked over the gifts. "And drunk." He added as he held up a bottle of homemade wine.  
  
"That's not for the baby, you ninny. It's for Lily and James." Said Katie as she snatched the bottle from Sirius' grasp.  
  
"Maybe we should taste it then." Sirius said as he reached for the bottle once more.  
  
"Oh no, you don't." Katie pushed it aside, out of his reach.  
  
"What is he doing now?" Asked James as he entered the room.  
  
"He is trying to drink some of the wine your tenants and neighbors brought." Said Katie.  
  
"Well, Harry will have no need for it. At least not yet." Replied Sirius.  
  
"I could always put it away in the cellar and keep it there until he is of age." Responded James and laughed at the crestfallen expression on Sirius' face. "We'll taste it later." He added.  
  
"Oh good." Said Sirius and turned to inspect the rest of the offerings.  
  
"How are Lily and Harry doing?" Katie asked.  
  
"They are doing fine. They are both sleeping at the moment." James smiled.  
  
"Did you get enough rest?" Mrs. Potter asked as she came into the room with others behind him. "The Colonel is here to congratulate you." She added as she motioned to the old gentleman behind her.  
  
"Hoped to see the little tyke, but if he is sleeping don't bother." Their neighbor smiled and placed his small offering on the table along with the rest. A basket full of exotic fruits and homemade pies.  
  
"I must tell Otty to take the day off." Laughed James as he looked over the gifts that his tenants and people of the village had brought. "But I thank you Colonel, that is very kind of you. I'm sure Lily will enjoy them." He added.  
  
"How are you feeling young man? Quite an exciting evening, I wager." The Colonel boomed.  
  
"It was." James smiled.  
  
"Specially when he is screaming down the corridor in his undergarments." Snickered Sirius.  
  
James and Katie glowered in his direction but he made no notice of them, he just laughed as the Colonel chuckled and Mrs. Potter tried to stifle a giggle.  
  
They stopped when a young maid bowed at the door. "Master James, Sir. Minnie wishes to see you." She reported.  
  
"Thank you Candice." James nodded. The maid bowed and left. "If you excuse me." James said nodding to the others and walked out of the door.  
  
"Oh, dear, I hope it's nothing wrong." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"It's probably young Harry driving his mother crazy with his cries." Said Sirius. "The one thing I know about babies is that they cry the whole day. Cry, eat and sleep. That's all they do." He scoffed.  
  
"Well, what do you expect? That's the only way they can tell us what they want." Katie exclaimed.  
  
"Well, there should be a better way to do it. It's just annoying." Sirius complained.  
  
The Colonel and Mrs. Potter chuckled.  
  
"You'll change your mind when you have a baby of your own." Said the Colonel.  
  
"I doubt it." Said Sirius somewhat skeptical.  
  
The group turned as they heard footsteps on the hall.  
  
"Probably another visitor." Said Sirius with a shrug.  
  
James came into the room, carrying a bundle of blankets in his arms.  
  
"Why did you bring him down James?" Exclaimed Mrs. Potter.  
  
"He was awake and Lily couldn't rest, so I brought him down to keep him quiet." Replied James.  
  
Everybody surrounded him to see at the small infant in his arms.  
  
"Ah, look at him. He is so tiny." Whispered Katie.  
  
"He doesn't have any hair James, maybe he will be first Potter to have manageable hair." Sirius said.  
  
"Oh, I doubt it. James was as bald when he was born but his hair eventually grew." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
The infant gurgled and waved his hands as his little eyes darted around looking at all the faces in front of him.  
  
"Look, he knows us." Exclaimed Katie.  
  
"He knows your voices." Mrs. Potter whispered.  
  
Baby Harry gurgled once more.  
  
"Look at his tiny hands. We are going to have to work on that Young Harry, if you are going to be a chaser for Gryffindor, you'll have to grow some muscle." Sirius said.  
  
"Sirius! Honestly!" Katie exclaimed.  
  
Harry blinked and gave a little smile.  
  
"See, he agrees with me." Sirius said.  
  
"What makes you think that he will be in Gryffindor?" Asked Katie.  
  
James and Sirius looked at her with surprise.  
  
"Where else is he going to be? Every Potter has been in Gryffindor House. Why do you think the name of this house is Gryffindor Manor?" James said in an exasperated tone.  
  
"All right, fine. But what makes you think that he will be in the team? And a chaser at that." She said.  
  
"Stands to reason, doesn't it? I am a chaser and I will teach him to play Quidditch. There is no reason why he could not be in the House Team." James said.  
  
Katie shook her head. "Insane, both of you."  
  
Baby Harry started to cry.  
  
"See, told you. All they do is cry." Said Sirius.  
  
"Shush, Harry. I have you." James whispered as he shook Harry gently.  
  
Harry didn't stop crying. In fact, he seemed to be getting louder and louder. James turned to look at his mother with a pleading expression.  
  
Mrs. Potter smiled, and taking pity of her son reached for the baby. "Here James, give him to me."  
  
James promptly gave Harry to his mother.  
  
"Now Harry, there is no need to cry. You are all safe." Mrs. Potter whispered as she held Harry gently in her arms.  
  
Harry stopped crying instantly. He blinked a couple of times and looked at the kind face in front of him. He smiled.  
  
"See what experience can do?" The Colonel laughed.  
  
"He needs to be changed. I'll take him to the nursery for now, while Lily rests." Said Mrs. Potter and promptly left the room.  
  
James and Sirius sighed with relief.  
  
Katie laughed.  
  
"Do you wish to stay for luncheon, Colonel? We are rather informal today." James said turning to the old gentleman.  
  
"Thank you Young James, but the wife is waiting for me." The Colonel said. "Congratulations again." He shook James' hand and nodded to Katie and Sirius before leaving.  
  
"What are we having for luncheon?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Sirius, really! All you think is food. Go look for Remus. He took the twins to the gardens to keep them entertained." Commanded Katie.  
  
"Yes dear." Mumbled Sirius and walked out of the room.  
  
"I'll go and see if Lily needs anything." James said.  
  
Katie nodded and watched him leave the room.  
  
She sighed. Maybe she and Sirius should have a baby, she thought.  
  
  
  
Lily woke to find herself in a quiet and darkened room. She sighed and smiled. The memory of the exertion she went through on the early hours of the day were still clear in her mind. But it was worth it, she thought. She looked around and noticed that she was alone.  
  
The curtains around the bed were drawn, keeping away the brightness of the day. She didn't hear motion nor sensed that anybody was within the room.  
  
She stretched on the bed. It felt nice to feel her body back to normal again. She looked down and smiled as she saw her feet.  
  
"Hello feet." She said and laughed.  
  
"I gather you are awake." Said James as he drew the drapes aside.  
  
"Hello." Lily said with a smile.  
  
"Hello yourself." He said and leaned down to kiss her brow.  
  
"Where is Harry?" She asked.  
  
"In the nursery. Mother said he needed to be changed and we didn't want to wake you." James said.  
  
"Hmmm-" Lily stretched once more. "I feel so tired."  
  
"After the night you had, you should be tired." James said sliding into the bed. Do you want me to bring you lunch here in bed?"  
  
"Please, I really don't feel like going down." Lily said, snuggling next to him.  
  
"I thought of serving you on one of the chairs if you wished. Didn't expect you to get up at all. I could carry you." He offered.  
  
Lily smiled. "No, I prefer the bed."  
  
"All right. I'll ask Minnie to bring food here. We have lots of things that the tenants and neighbors brought."  
  
"Really? I'll see them later. Can you bring Harry? I want to see him." Lily looked at James. She really wanted to have Harry in her arms again.  
  
"Sure thing." He kissed her softly before leaving the bed.  
  
Lily watched him leave the room with an indulgent smile.  
  
Minutes later, he returned. A moving bundle of clothes in his arms.  
  
"Here he is." He announced as soon as he entered the room.  
  
He placed Baby Harry in her arms and slid into bed, next to them.  
  
"Hello Harry!" Lily gushed.  
  
Harry looked at the young woman above him and smiled.  
  
"Look at him James. Isn't he the most beautiful baby you have ever seen?" She gushed.  
  
As Harry was the only baby James had seen hours after been born, he could answer truthfully. "Yes, he is."  
  
"Happy Birthday Harry!" Lily whispered.  
  
Harry gurgled and waved his arms.  
  
Lily and James laughed.  
  
"Thank you." Lily said as she turned to look at her husband with loving eyes.  
  
"Didn't do much really. I should be thanking you." James whispered.  
  
Lily smiled and settled against him.  
  
James put his arms around her and their child.  
  
There couldn't be a better moment in his life.  
  
  
  
During the first week of his life, Harry was introduced to a lot of people. He was happily transferred from arms to arms and gushed over.  
  
Lily rested for three days after his birth. The doctor saw her everyday to make sure there were no complications, not that he was expecting any, but births were really tricky and you never knew what could happen.  
  
On the fourth day, she made her appearance downstairs. Everybody was happy to see her up and about.  
  
As Sirius said, Harry spent his days sleeping, crying and eating.  
  
On this bright day of August, the new parents were holding court in the formal parlor room as the neighbors and friends made their appearance to meet the new member of the Potter Family.  
  
The twins were allowed to stay during the visits.  
  
"Can I hold him?" Asked Cassie as the recent wave of visitor departed.  
  
"Me too." Francie said.  
  
"Of course. But you'll have to sit here, next to me." Said Lily.  
  
Each girl sat at each side of her.  
  
"Ok, Cassie will hold him first. Hold your arms out. Like that. Now, be sure to hold up his little head." Lily said as she showed her niece how to hold Harry.  
  
"He is really small. He won't be able to play, will he?" Asked Francie as she watched her sister hold their little cousin.  
  
"Not for a while." Said James as he stood behind the couch looking at the small group.  
  
"But remember, you are his big cousins, you'll take care of him and make sure that he doesn't get into any trouble." Lily said.  
  
"But he can't walk yet, Aunt Lily." Said Cassie.  
  
"Well, he'll start to walk soon enough." James replied.  
  
"All right. But he better not get into our nerves." Said Francie.  
  
James and Lily laughed. As younger siblings, they knew how older relatives viewed the younger ones.  
  
"Can I hold him now?" Asked Francie. In her point of view, her sister had held him long enough.  
  
"Sure. Careful Cassie." Lily directed as Harry was transferred to his other cousin.  
  
Harry was oblivious of everything as he slept quietly.  
  
"Why was he all wrinkly before?" Asked Francie as she peered down at Harry.  
  
"All babies are born like that. They outgrow it soon enough." Said James.  
  
"Hmmm.He was all red too." Cassie said.  
  
"So were you and your sister when you were born." James replied.  
  
"Ew!" Both girls exclaimed.  
  
Harry woke abruptly and started to cry.  
  
"I didn't do anything! I think he is broke." Francie exclaimed.  
  
"No dear, he is hungry." Lily said taking Harry from his cousin's arms. "I'll return." She said to James and left the room.  
  
James watched her leave as the twins slid down the couch and ran to the door to follow Lily out in the corridor.  
  
James didn't stay alone for long.  
  
"There you are." Sirius exclaimed as he and Remus entered the room.  
  
"I've been trying to keep him out of your way, but I think he is as childish as Harry." Remus said in an exasperated tone.  
  
"Hey! Harry is a baby." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"Exactly." Replied Remus.  
  
Sirius glowered at Remus. "Fine friend you are." He said.  
  
Remus smiled at him and threw him a kiss.  
  
"Ew!" Sirius exclaimed.  
  
James laughed. "Will you two stop? You're acting childish." He snorted.  
  
"You are no better than they are." Said Katie coming into the room with a platter of fruit.  
  
"Um, food." Sirius made his way toward her.  
  
"You stay away. This is for our visitors." Katie exclaimed.  
  
"But I want some." Sirius whined.  
  
"Go to the kitchens if you want something." She said.  
  
"Fine. Do you guys want to come?" He asked turning to look at his two friends.  
  
"No, I have to stay to greet those who'll come." Said James.  
  
"I'll go. I'm getting hungry as well." Said Remus.  
  
The two young men left the room badgering each other and laughing.  
  
"Honestly!" Katie was shaking her head.  
  
James chuckled.  
  
"Where is Lily?" She asked once the platter was placed on the table brought to the room, where refreshments had been piled for those who came to meet the new Potter.  
  
"Harry was hungry." He said with a shrug. "I need to stretch my legs. I'm going to join the others in the kitchen after all. Do you mind staying here until Lily returns?" He asked.  
  
"Sure." Katie nodded and James left her behind.  
  
Lily was slowly making her way back to the front parlor. Baby Harry was sleeping quietly in her arms. A footman walked behind her with pillows and blankets.  
  
She looked around the parlor when she entered and found Katie looking out the window.  
  
"Where did James go?" Lily asked.  
  
"He's gone to the kitchens with the others." Katie replied.  
  
"I see." She sat in the chair that she had vacated previously, and turned to look at the footman. " John, bring that carriage here please." She said motioning to a small carriage standing in one corner of the room.  
  
"Of course Ma'am." The footman said and walked toward the carriage.  
  
"Is he sleeping?" Katie whispered sitting next to Lily and looking down at the infant in her friend's arms.  
  
"Yes. Once he was full and his nappies were changed he fell asleep." Lily replied.  
  
Both ladies smiled down at the quiet infant. The footman had retrieved the carriage and placed it next to Lily. The pillows and blankets were put inside and Harry was accommodated in it.  
  
Visitors continued to come through out the afternoon and during the rest of the week. Harry slept through most of them. The twins were never far from the small infant. They liked to look at him, and in some occasions, they were allowed to change his dippers. Not a fun activity for either one.  
  
  
  
The end of August was soon approaching, and with it came the twins ninth birthday. It was decided to make it a special day and to christen Harry at the same time. The girls were only too happy to share their special day with their cousin.  
  
A small Christening Ceremony was planned to take place in the chapel in the morning. A luncheon would be served at noon on the lawn near the lake. James had sent to London for a group of clowns and puppeteers, and games were planned for the children of the village and the estate. The evening would end with a light dinner, followed by a small concert by a young, newly-formed, group of village girls calling themselves The Weird Sisters.  
  
The twenty-eighth of August arrived. The day was warm and sunny. The twins woke very early, eager to start the day. Harry had kept his parents awake for most of the night. As a result, James and Lily were deeply asleep when two small persons sneaked into their room and made their way quietly toward Harry's room.  
  
Harry was gurgling and smiling at the small flying objects above him. The trunk of Quidditch balls was open and the snitch ball had somehow made its way to the crib. One small teddy bear had also left its resting place among all the stuffed animals in one corner of the room and had also made its way to the crib.  
  
The teddy bear and the snitch were floating above Harry, and he smiled and gurgled at them. His tiny arms and hands were flailing at his sides as he tried to reach for them. He turned to look at the door when it opened and the ball and bear fell inside the crib.  
  
His face lighted up the moment he saw his two cousins approaching his crib.  
  
"Oh good, you are awake." One of the girls said.  
  
Harry blinked a couple of times and smiled.  
  
"We are going to have a great day Harry." His other cousin said.  
  
Harry gurgled happily.  
  
Both girls giggled.  
  
"You will like the clowns." Said Cassie as she put her hand through the bars and reached for his hand.  
  
"And the puppets." Said Francie, playing with the ball and the bear that had fallen inertly on the blankets.  
  
"And there will be sack races." Cassie continued.  
  
"And rides on the horses." Francie supplied.  
  
"And rides on small boats around the lake."  
  
"And the concert. Don't forget the concert Harry." Francie exclaimed.  
  
"Too bad you can't eat yet." Cassie said.  
  
Francie nodded. "Otty is working on the cake now. It's big Harry"  
  
"And you two should go to your room and get ready." James said from the door.  
  
The twins turned to look at James with guilty expressions.  
  
"We just wanted to see him."  
  
"And tell him about the party." They said.  
  
"I know. Go on, you'll have to get ready if you want the day to start." James said as he shooed them out of the room."  
  
"Ok." The twins said and ran out of the room.  
  
He smiled as he heard them say "Good Morning!" as they passed through his and Lily's room.  
  
"Hello young man." James said as he leaned to get Harry from the crib.  
  
Harry blinked up at his father.  
  
"I see they put your snitch and bear in your crib." James laughed as he tried to untangle said objects from the blankets.  
  
Harry gurgled.  
  
"Yes, and you are enjoying seeing me doing battle with your bear, don't you?" James chuckled.  
  
Harry smiled up at his father.  
  
"Yes, I see that you do." James replied.  
  
Once the bear and the snitch were free, James reached down for Harry.  
  
"Come, I'm sure you want to see your mother." James said to Harry as he carried him to the bedroom next door.  
  
Lily was sitting up leaning against the pillows when James entered with Harry. She smiled as she watch them approach her.  
  
"As I didn't hear him cry out, I'm assuming the girls were keeping him entertained." She said as soon as James stood beside her and leaned down to transfer Harry to her arms.  
  
"Uh-huh, they were telling him all about today's party." James said as soon as Harry was in his mother's arms ready to be fed.  
  
"Do you like your cousins Harry?" Lily whispered.  
  
Harry tried to smile and eat at the same time.  
  
"Yes, I bet you do." Lily replied.  
  
"You know that we'll have to keep an eye on the three of them. Cassie and Francie will lead him into a lot of trouble if we let them." James said as he lay on the bed watching his wife feeding his son.  
  
"I don't think so. I think that Harry will be good for the girls. They know that they have to be careful with him and that they will have to keep him out of trouble. They might learn how responsibility works before they leave for Hogwarts in a couple of years." Lily said.  
  
"Hmmm - Perhaps. As long as Harry doesn't do the same thing the girls did to me when I went back to Hogwarts after father's death." James said.  
  
Lily looked at him with curiosity.  
  
"They hid in my trunk and I didn't find out about it until Lotty was putting away my things in the dormitory." He answered her unspoken question.  
  
"We'll just make sure that we know where Harry is whenever we are taking the girls to the station." Lily replied.  
  
"I'll go get dressed, I want to make sure that everything is in order. There are still three hours for the ceremony. Rest." He said as he kissed her cheek.  
  
"I want to see how things are going. I'll go to the lawn as soon as I'm done with Harry." Lily said. James nodded before walking to his dressing room.  
  
"You'll have a great day Harry." Lily smiled down at her son.  
  
Harry paid no attention to her as he ate.  
  
  
  
Family and friends, along with some members of the neighborhood, stood in front of the estate chapel after the ceremony.  
  
"He was so quiet, he is an angel!" Exclaimed James as the group started to walk toward the lake.  
  
"An angel? James, didn't you hear him scream his lungs out when the water touched his head?" Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"He just doesn't like you much." Said James.  
  
"Most babies cry at that moment." Mrs. Potter smiled.  
  
"I still think it was a mistake to make Sirius his godfather. He will lead him into trouble." Said Peter, who had just arrived that morning to attend the ceremony.  
  
"I'll make sure he doesn't." Said Katie scowling at Sirius.  
  
Sirius smiled innocently at her.  
  
"That's why Katie is his godmother." Lily said smiling down at Baby Harry whose open eyes darted around looking at everything.  
  
The twins were happily running around the gardens.  
  
The lawn in front of the lake was richly decorated.  
  
A large tent had been erected, below it, several tables were distributed and covered with white table covers. Each table was surrounded by eight or ten chairs, comfortable white pillows on every seat. On one end of the tent was a large table. Three large cakes stood in the place of honor, around them trays of fruit, puddings and sweets were placed. Next to it was a long table; it was covered with trays of assorted meats, salads, and soups. Vases of yellow roses, pansies, and ferns, decorated the perimeter of the tent.  
  
In front of the lake was a erected a stage. A few paces away, a temporary dock was placed, where small boats bobbed above the water. On the opposite bank of the lake, a race course was cleared. It was larger than the small one cleared in front of the tent, where the kid's races would take place. This large race course was cleared for the adult members of the party. James and Sirius had thought that the adults would like to have a horse race as well as a rowing race across the lake, so they wouldn't feel left out by the activities going on for the children.  
  
Balloons of every size and color adorned several tall posts around the grounds. Booths with carnival games were placed around the small race course. Hanging on the walls were toys of every kind for the winners.  
  
The Christening party arrived to the tent as it started to fill with their tenants and neighbors. Children were running, giggling across the lawn.  
  
A thunderous applause filled the tent as soon as Lily entered with the twins and Harry.  
  
Harry started to cry in fright.  
  
"The poor little tyke." One of the neighborhood ladies cooed.  
  
"He is just not used to so much noise." Said Lily as she tried to calm him down.  
  
"Of course." The other ladies nodded.  
  
The other children were called to join the adults in the tent as the guests of honor took their place at the center table.  
  
Laughter and chatter permeated the tent as everybody ate and drunk to their heart's content. The children were happily piling their plates with sweets and puddings as they waited for the cakes to be cut.  
  
When the footmen transferred the cakes to the table of honor, everybody cheered.  
  
The twins were jumping with excitement as the candles were lit. Lily held Harry, pointing at the bright flames.  
  
"Look at that Harry. Do you like the candles?" She cooed.  
  
Harry smiled and waved his little arms.  
  
"Yes you do." Laughed Lily.  
  
Everybody fell silent while they waited for the candles to be lit.  
  
"Ready?" James asked as soon as the flames on every candle danced merrily.  
  
"YES!" Everybody shouted.  
  
James laughed and the room readily exploded with: "Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday Cassie and Francie! Happy Birthday to you!" Several added: "And Happy Christening to Harry too!" Before the twins blew out the candles.  
  
The cake was soon cut and served, along with ice cream for the children. Everybody was now looking forward to the games.  
  
The tent was emptied soon after as everybody started to make their way through the games. The small band was starting to get ready on the stage. The clowns were settled underneath a small tent, with chairs surrounding a small space in the middle where they would make their act.  
  
The puppeteer and his puppets were settled underneath a large oak tree, benches and chairs were placed in front of his small stage ready to entertain.  
  
Soon, music and laughter was heard through the air.  
  
The twins were everywhere, the neighborhood children running after them to join the fun. Lily and James pushed Harry's carriage around the lawn, stopped constantly by people wanting to take a look at the Potter heir.  
  
Everybody had fun, the children enjoyed the sack races and relay races as much as the adults enjoyed the horse and boat races.  
  
A light dinner was then served underneath the tent as soon as twilight had fallen. The games and fun had made everybody hungry once more as every platter served was soon emptied. The guests then piled out back onto the lawn to sit in front of the stage to hear to the young girls' band. Everybody enjoyed it.  
  
The carnival games were a huge success and before the party was over, each person had won a prize.  
  
It was late in the evening by the time the last guest left the estate. Lily had taken Harry for his nap and the twins were already tired and looking forward to a nice, long sleep.  
  
While the servants cleared the lawn and put everything in order, the adults of the house reunited in the parlor room.  
  
"That was fun." Said Sirius leaning against one of the couches.  
  
"Thought so too." Said Peter, looking out the window.  
  
"But very draining, I think I will retire. Good night." Said Mrs. Potter as she left her seat and walked to the door.  
  
"Good night!" The others exclaimed.  
  
"I think I will do the same. I'm going to check on Lily and Harry first." Said Mrs. Evans before leaving the room.  
  
"That son of yours has large lungs James, how do you sleep at night?" Said Sirius after a moment of silence.  
  
"I don't sleep much." Laughed James.  
  
"We can see that." Remus said from his seat. "But he will grow out of it won't he? He is sure to do so."  
  
"I hope so." Sighed James.  
  
"Humph! I bet you are not the one getting up in the middle of the night to see what he needs." Said Katie.  
  
"I do too. Lily doesn't have to do everything." James snapped.  
  
"Well, you can't feed him, now can you?" Katie replied.  
  
"I can keep him quiet." James pouted.  
  
"I doubt it." Katie said before leaving the room in a snit.  
  
"What is wrong with her?" Remus said as the young men watched her leave.  
  
"I don't know, but I guess I have to look for her and see what is wrong." Sighed Sirius.  
  
"It would be the best thing to do." Peter replied.  
  
Sirius hurried out the door.  
  
"What do you think happened?" Asked Remus.  
  
James shrugged. "Could be anything really. Sirius will take care of it."  
  
"Or he can make it worse." Peter replied.  
  
  
  
In another room of the house, Lily sat on her chair watching Harry fall asleep in her arms.  
  
"You are my sunshine  
  
my only sunshine." She was singing quietly while her mother stood by the door looking indulgently at the sweet picture before her.  
  
"He will be a happy child." Mrs. Evans said once the song was over.  
  
Lily turned to look at her with a smile. "We'll do what we can to make him so." She answered.  
  
"I'm sure you will. Do you need any help? I'm going to retire early." Said Mrs. Evans as Lily put Baby Harry in his crib.  
  
"No, I'm set. I think I will go to bed early as well." Lily replied.  
  
Mrs. Evans nodded, and together, they both left the room in silence.  
  
  
  
Katie knew that she was being irrational. There had been no need for her to snap at James the way she did. She knew that, but she just couldn't help it. All that talk of babies and watching Lily happily during that day had made her jealous. The moment she held Harry in her arms during the ceremony had made her realize that she wanted a baby of her own, and when Harry opened his eyes and smiled at her, she felt a wave of jealousy had gone through her body.  
  
She sighed with sadness as she stood in front of the window in the room that she and Sirius were always given when they came to visit. Perhaps it was time to return home, she thought. She didn't turn when she heard the door open behind her, she knew who had entered the room.  
  
"Are you all right Kat?" Sirius said as he came behind her and put his arms around her shoulders.  
  
"Yes." She said quietly.  
  
"Are you sure?" Sirius asked turning her to look at him. "Tell me Kat, what happened?"  
  
"Nothing happened. I'm just tired, that's all." Katie shrugged.  
  
Sirius continued to look at her, but with a sigh let his arms fall at his sides. If she didn't want to tell him it was all right, he thought, she would in time.  
  
"Very well." He said. "Are you joining us downstairs, or are you going to stay here?"  
  
"I'll stay here." She whispered.  
  
Sirius nodded, kissed her brow and left the room.  
  
Katie watched him go in silence before breaking down and cried.  
  
  
  
Sirius joined the others just as the servants arrived with the tea tray and some of the food that was left over from the party.  
  
"Oh good, I'm just in time." He exclaimed.  
  
"Serve yourself, there are no ladies here to pour tea." James said as he piled some food on his plate.  
  
"Don't mind if I do." Sirius replied.  
  
The four young men served themselves as much as the plate could hold.  
  
"What was wrong with Katie?" Asked Remus as soon as they had returned to their seats.  
  
Sirius shrugged. "She didn't want to talk about it."  
  
James looked a bit troubled by this. "Do you think she is in trouble?"  
  
"Don't see how, we are together most of the time." Sirius said as he started to pick his food.  
  
"Maybe it's that time of the month." Peter said.  
  
The James and Remus shrugged, it was possible, but Sirius continued to pick his food.  
  
"I'm going to bed, I have a meeting with Dumbledore tomorrow." Said James once the food was eaten and the tea drank.  
  
Peter seemed interested by this piece of news. "Are you? What for?" He asked.  
  
"He is just coming to meet Harry." Said James. He had not told his friends about he previous meeting he and Lily had with Dumbledore before Harry's birth. He had promised to keep it secret, and he would, even if it was from his best friends.  
  
The others looked skeptical at the reason for Dumbledore's visit. How many babies from former students had the Headmaster of Hogwarts actually gone to meet? But they didn't contradict him. For all they knew, that might be the reason Dumbledore had given for his visit.  
  
  
  
By the next day, things had gone back to normal. Peter had gone back home and Remus was preparing to leave as well. Sirius and Katie were also thinking of cutting short their visit and let the new parents have time on their own with their son.  
  
The servants had also gone back to their usual chores. From the moment Harry had been born, he had become the focus of every member of the house. Roberts and Mrs. Nichols had found several excuses to help Lily with the baby, and Otty had been happily making preserves for the infant. Minnie had become personal maid to Harry, and allowed Lily to have some time for herself. Even the other servants had found ways to help with the baby. Harry quickly became accustomed to the arms of everybody living in the house, and it wasn't uncommon to see a footman or a maid with Harry in his or her arms.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans were the doting grandmothers, and the twins enjoyed trying to keep their young cousin entertained.  
  
"I really fear that Harry will be quite spoiled." Said Lily that morning as she and James got ready for the day.  
  
"We'll just try to be careful and firm. I don't know about you but I won't have my son growing up like a Malfoy." Said James with a shudder.  
  
Lily smiled. "At what time will Professor Dumbledore be here?" She asked next.  
  
"He said he would come after luncheon." James replied.  
  
Harry started crying. Minnie came into the room. "I believe Master Harry is hungry Miss Lily." She squeaked.  
  
"I expect he is. I swear, that boy inherited your appetite James." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"You say that as if it was a bad thing." James called as Lily walked toward Harry's room.  
  
James spent his morning around the estate. Harvest time was almost near and some of the fruit and grains would be soon collected. He also had to check on the sheep and goats and check on the supply of wool and dairy left.  
  
Luncheon was almost ready by the time he returned home. He found Lily and Harry holding court in the family parlor.  
  
"James!" Sirius called the moment James walked into the room. "We have to take Harry to Quidditch Pitch one of these days."  
  
"He is too young Sirius." Katie exclaimed.  
  
"I will not allow you to put him on a broom yet. He cannot even sit on his own yet!" Lily frowned.  
  
"We won't put him on a broom, we'll just show him around. Get him use to the place." Said Sirius with a smile.  
  
Katie and Lily glared at him but said nothing more.  
  
"We could do that later this afternoon. After our meeting with Dumbledore." Said James after kissing his mother's cheek and approaching his wife and son.  
  
"You are not going to do anything dangerous, are you?" Lily asked concerned.  
  
"Of course not. I would do nothing to put my own son in danger." Exclaimed James.  
  
"You better not. Or we will have your heads." Exclaimed Katie.  
  
"Nothing to worry about." Sirius said. "Remus will go with us."  
  
"And that is supposed to make us glad? He got into much trouble as you two did." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Oh, but he is the most responsible." Said Lily.  
  
"Well, one of us had to be." Remus laughed.  
  
Luncheon was soon served and the group ate heartily. The weather was turning cooler, but the sun shined as brightly as before. Harry gurgled and slept in the carriage by Lily's chair, and the rest chatted and laughed as they ate.  
  
Luncheon didn't last long. As Lily and James walked toward the bookroom with Harry to await Professor Dumbledore's arrival, the rest went their different ways looking for something to keep them entertained.  
  
"Do you think we are doing the right thing?" Lily asked as she sat on one of the comfortable couches with Harry sleeping in her arms.  
  
"I think we are. The future of our world depends on this Lily. I don't like the idea of Voldemort becoming immortal and more powerful than anybody on this planet." James said.  
  
"Oh, I suppose you are right. But so many things could go wrong." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"We will be here to protect him always Lily. Harry will not lack the protection he needs." James replied sitting be her and putting his arms around her shoulders, careful not to disturb his son.  
  
"You are right, he has us to protect him." Lily whispered kissing Harry's bald head softly. Nothing more was said as Roberts opened the door. "Professor Dumbledore, Sir." He announced.  
  
"Thank you Roberts." James said as the butler bowed and allowed Dumbledore and a cloaked figure to enter the room.  
  
"Glad to see you again Professor, hope your trip was uneventful." James said as he shook the hand of his former Headmaster.  
  
"Quite enjoyed it really. A nice trip before a new term begins." Said Dumbledore with his laughing eyes twinkling. "And I see our new Potter is here. May I?" He asked to Lily reaching down for Harry.  
  
"Of course." Said Lily with a smile.  
  
Dumbledore took Harry into his arms. Harry slept, oblivious of the old man in whose arms he was now resting.  
  
"Well, hello there young Potter. I will be looking forward to seeing you in Hogwarts in eleven years. Hopefully you will not be as much trouble as your father was." Dumbledore said.  
  
Lily giggled while James chuckled.  
  
"What do you think of him my dear, will he serve as our protector do you think?" Dumbledore asked at the cloaked figure, who had stood by the door silently watching the group.  
  
"I believe he will." A husky feminine voice said.  
  
James and Lily looked surprised at the woman standing by the door. They had forgotten that Dumbledore had come accompanied and the voice made them think of the warm breeze blowing across a clear lake. James shook his head slowly, when had he become so fanciful, he though.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry, I've seen to have forgotten my manners, my dear, allow me to introduce you to the Potters. This is Lily and James, and the little man here is Harry." Dumbledore said motioning to the young couple beside him. "Lily, James, allow me to introduce you to Alanna. She will be performing the charm for us."  
  
The woman released her cloak. A dark-skinned woman stood before them. Her black hair seemed to fall in waves to her shoulder and her eyes were the deepest shade of gray that they had ever seen.  
  
"How do you do?" She greeted them.  
  
  
  
Remus and Sirius had gone for a ride in the motorcycles as the meeting was taking place in the bookroom.  
  
"I think I've found a way to improve on this bike." Sirius was saying as the young men emerged from the garage with their hair blown into all directions.  
  
"Do you?" Asked Remus, he was sure that it would be a dangerous idea.  
  
"Yes. If I tweak with it for a bit, it will be the best motorbike in England." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"You better not tell me, I'm sure that it could be illegal." Remus said.  
  
"Oh pooh, you are becoming quite softhearted Remus. Who would've thought that you were once part of the adventurous group called The Marauders." Sirius scoffed.  
  
"I've grown up Sirius. It's not fault of mine that you haven't." Remus smiled.  
  
Sirius rolled his eyes. "If you are going to become all stiff and adult I will stay with Baby Harry."  
  
Remus laughed. "Come, let's see if James is done, so we can take Harry to the Quidditch Pitch."  
  
"Now you are talking." Said Sirius as he started running toward the house.  
  
Remus followed him and soon a race around the gardens began.  
  
  
  
Dumbledore didn't stay for long, and soon Remus and Sirius saw him pass through the entrance hall accompanied by a cloaked figure.  
  
"Wonder who that is?" Said Sirius.  
  
"Don't know." Remus replied.  
  
James and Lily were leaving the bookroom.  
  
"Now, be sure that you keep him covered. I don't want him taking a chill." Lily was saying. "And be careful. Don't you dare put him on a broom by himself. No matter what spells you use to keep him there."  
  
"Don't worry, he will be fine." James replied.  
  
"He will not need to be fed until four or five hours from now. Be sure to be back before then." Lily ordered.  
  
"Yes, dear." James sighed.  
  
"Now don't leave him lying on the ground while you lot go flying into the air. He might get bitten by an insect or something." Lily said.  
  
"Don't nag Lily, he will be fine." James exclaimed.  
  
"Oh, all right. Just be careful." Lily said, kissing Harry's brow before kissing James in his cheek. "Have fun."  
  
"Oh we will." James smiled and joined Sirius and Remus who had been standing by the door waiting for him.  
  
"About time." Sighed Sirius.  
  
"This is the first time Harry will be out of the house, she is just worried." James said.  
  
"We are not going far." Said Sirius.  
  
"But young mothers are protective Sirius, you'll see how it is when you have your own children." Said Remus.  
  
The small group walked quickly toward the Quidditch Pitch saluting and greeting tenants as they went. They stopped several times when the wives or children of the tenants were met wanting to see the heir to the estate.  
  
"That took long enough." Sighed Sirius as soon as they stepped into the Pitch. "Young man." He said to Harry who had woken up as they walked around the gardens. "You are too popular for your own good."  
  
Baby Harry looked up at his godfather and gurgled.  
  
"Yes, well, you laugh now." Sirius said as James and Remus chuckled.  
  
In the middle of the Pitch were three brooms laying on the ground.  
  
"I suppose we won't be needing them now." Remus said as he bent down to pick them.  
  
"Who says we won't?" Exclaimed Sirius. "Just because James can't use them, doesn't mean that we can't."  
  
"Who says I can't use them." James asked.  
  
"James, you promised Lily that you would not leave Harry on his own in the ground and that you were not going to sit him on a broom." Said Remus.  
  
"I said I wasn't going to sit him alone on the broom. I didn't say anything about sitting him on the broom with me." James said as he took one of the brooms and mounted.  
  
Sirius whooped and mounted his own broom.  
  
"Are you sure about this?" Asked Remus looking at the hovering father and son.  
  
"Of course, I'm not going to go really fast." James proclaimed.  
  
Remus shrugged and mounted his broom. They hovered above the ground and soon were flying around the Pitch. Sirius and Remus raced from end to the other, while James trailed behind with a gurgling Harry in his arms.  
  
"You like this don't you?" James laughed as Harry squealed and gurgled. "I told your mother that you would."  
  
Harry's eyes were wide open and looked up at the flashing sky. His small arms waved and flailed as they rode.  
  
"He is not even scared." Said Remus in awe as he and Sirius flew back to James.  
  
"Of course he isn't. Quidditch Material, he is." Sirius said.  
  
"I'm telling you, he will be the youngest Quidditch Player at Hogwarts." James laughed as the flying group started to float back to earth.  
  
Harry gurgled his agreement.  
  
When the three men touch the ground, Harry let out an earsplitting cry.  
  
Remus and Sirius winced while James pushed up on the ground and let his broom hover to see what was wrong. Harry stopped crying.  
  
"He didn't want to come back down." Smiled James proudly.  
  
"Give him here James." Said Sirius taking Harry in his arms. "You like to fly do you? I'll show you flying." He said and zoomed up on his broom.  
  
"SIRIUS!!" Screamed James. "I'm going to kill him." He said as he made to follow.  
  
Remus stopped him. "Don't, if you follow him you know he is going to make it into a race."  
  
James screamed in exasperation.  
  
"Let's wait until he returns. It won't be long, he can't fly if he can't use his arms." Remus said.  
  
"He is dead." James exclaimed.  
  
"I agree with you. But wait." Remus replied.  
  
Both turned to look at the flying man with trepidation. There were no cries, just laughter. Despite themselves, they smiled.  
  
"He will be a good flyer." James said.  
  
"He will have the best Quidditch Players Hogwarts had ever seen, with our help as his teachers." Said Remus.  
  
Harry flew that whole afternoon in the arms of the three young men.  
  
  
  
Darkness was falling by the time the foursome returned to the house.  
  
Lily and Katie waited for them in the family parlor room.  
  
"Hello dear, had fun with your father?" Cooed Lily down at Harry once she had taken him from James' arms.  
  
"Lots of fun. I'm telling you Lily, he will be a great Quidditch Player." Exclaimed James.  
  
Lily looked at James. "You did not sit him on a broom on his own!" She said.  
  
"Of course not. I'm not a dunderhead!" James said.  
  
Lily turned to look at Remus and Sirius.  
  
"It's true. He never sat on a broom by himself." Said Sirius.  
  
Remus nodded.  
  
"Humph! Come Harry, it's time for your dinner." Said Lily and walked out of the room.  
  
"Now really, did you sit that child on a broom?" Katie asked as soon as Lily had left.  
  
"Nope, he never left our arms. He saw the Pitch as one of us carried him." Said Sirius.  
  
"Are you telling me the truth?" Katie glared at him.  
  
"Of course I am. Look at his clothing, if he was on his own in the brooms he would have a twig or something on his clothes." Sirius said.  
  
"Sirius, flying brooms don't shed twigs as birds shed their feathers." Remus said.  
  
"Are you sure? I always seem to have one or two on my clothes when I fly." Sirius said to his friend.  
  
"That's because you are a maniac when you fly." James replied.  
  
"Humph! Just go and change, dinner will be served soon." Katie said.  
  
"Of course dear." Sirius kissed her quickly and left the room.  
  
Katie glared. She was sure that lot let Harry fly on his own.  
  
  
  
Remus left the Manor on the following day. Nobody knew where he would go to next. He planned to leave the country once more, in search for help in his condition.  
  
Sirius and Katie left soon after. Sirius thought that a tour around the continent might help to cheer Katie, whom seemed a little depressed lately.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans moved with the twins to the small Dowager House that stood a couple of miles away from the Manor. They thought that the time had come for the young couple to be on their own.  
  
For the first time in their lives, Lily and James were on their own, to start a new life and begin to form a family.  
  
  
  
A/N: Here you are. Hope you liked it, remember to review and thank you for waiting so patiently. 


	37. Part III Chapter 2

A/N: I'm sorry it has taken so long but school and work hasn't left me with much free time. But I'm ready now and I have one more chapter for you. Thank you to all of you who reviewed and welcome to my new readers, I'm glad you are liking it so far.  
Chapter 2 ~ A Family Man  
Fall had fallen and Harry was growing too fast in Lily's point of view.  
  
He would attend his first Harvest Festival and James was looking forward to take him to his first Quidditch game.  
  
James was lying on the floor of his bookroom watching Harry play with one of his foam Quidditch balls on this afternoon.  
  
"You do not put the Quaffle on your mouth Harry, you put it in the goals." Laughed James as he tried to pull the ball from Harry's mouth.  
  
Harry gurgled and flailed his arms before putting the ball back to his mouth.  
  
"Hmmm.Maybe I should buy you a case of chocolate frogs, those you can put in your mouth." James chuckled.  
  
"You will not, I do not want him to get sick." Said Lily coming into the room.  
  
"But he keeps putting things in his mouth." James exclaimed.  
  
"Of course he does, he is teething." Lily explained sitting in a chair near James.  
  
"But is that hygienic?" James asked trying to keep Harry from putting the ball in his mouth.  
  
"No it isn't, that's why we must keep his toys and everything around him clean. He puts everything in his mouth." Lily said.  
  
Harry started to cry in frustration. His father had succeeded in keeping his ball away from his mouth and he clearly didn't like it.  
  
"Oh, is daddy being mean and keeping you from your ball?" Cried Lily taking Harry into her arms.  
  
"Hey, don't make me into the ogre father." James exclaimed.  
  
"Just let him keep the ball, put an the Impervious Charm on it, that should keep the dirt of the ball." Lily said.  
  
"All right." James flicked his wand over the ball. It glowed for a second and then he passed it to Harry.  
  
Harry squealed and smiled as he put his ball back over his mouth.  
  
James stayed down on the floor, smiling up at the sight of his young wife with their child in her arms. He had never thought that the day would arrive when he would be in this position.  
  
Growing up, he was trained to be the leader and provider of a large estate. His income and assets were larger than most men in his world. His family name was well known and respected. He had the best training available to him. What more could he had wanted.  
  
He had no idea that he would meet the woman that would become his partner in school. They went through a lot together and on their own. But they had finally made it. They were married and now they had a son who will inherit the name and possessions that had belonged to the family for centuries.  
  
Lily looked at her husband underneath her lashes. She had noticed that he was smiling smugly as he looked at her and Harry. What is he thinking? She wondered.  
  
Harry gurgled and she looked down at their son. He looks just like James, she thought. A few weeks before, Mrs. Potter had shown her James' baby pictures. Lily had fallen in love with them, but there was no mistaking the fact that their son looked exactly as his father did at that age. Harry's hair was growing, and to the disillusionment of his father, it was black and it seemed that he would not escape his father's untidy hair, even now, it stood on end and no matter what was done to it, it continued to look as if a breeze had passed through his head.  
  
Harry yawned and the ball lay forgotten on the couch.  
  
"I'll take him to his room." Lily said.  
  
James nodded and watched as his wife left the room.  
  
He stood up and reached down for the ball that had been left among the cushions and smiled.  
The house was quiet now that the twins had moved to the Dower House with the older ladies, but they still found the time to visit his uncle and bring some of their energy back to the big house.  
  
Lily spent most of her time with her mother and mother-in-law than at the house, specially on those days when James had to be gone for long hours.  
  
On this bright September morning, James and Lily were driving to town. Baby Harry slept in Lily's arms. It was the first day of the Festival and they planned to meet their mothers and the twins in the village square.  
  
"Will he wake up once we get there?" James asked looking down at his son.  
  
"Probably." Replied Lily.  
  
"Maybe we should've left him behind." James commented.  
  
"Oh no, everybody is looking forward to seeing him in town." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"Sirius is right, Harry is more popular than you or I had ever been." James laughed.  
  
"We have to go to Gringotts." Lily suddenly said.  
  
"Why?" James asked turning to look at his wife.  
  
"We need to start a vault for him." Lily said.  
  
"Isn't it a little too early for that?"  
  
"Oh no, we must be prepared. We don't know what might happen to keep us from putting aside the money he will need for Hogwarts. I just want to be ready." Lily said.  
  
"If you wish to, we'll go to London at the end of the week to open that vault." James kissed her brow.  
  
"Thank you. I just got this feeling of urgency and I can't seem to shake it off." Lily looked worriedly at James.  
  
"Don't worry Lily, everything will be all right." James whispered.  
  
Lily didn't have time to say anymore. The village square was in sight and the music and laughter emanating from the crowd had woken up Harry.  
  
James was surprised to see that Harry didn't cry at all. He just opened his eyes and smiled waiving his little arms in the air.  
  
"You know that you will be the center of attention, don't you?" Laughed James.  
  
"It seems that he inherited your arrogance and self-centeredness." Lily giggled.  
  
"Hey! I'm not like that, you make me sound like a Malfoy!" Exclaimed James.  
  
"I think that's why you hate him so much, because there is a lot in him that you see in yourself." Lily replied.  
  
"Now you are losing your mind." James responded.  
  
"Of course dear."  
  
The car had stopped at the edge of the square. People were walking and dancing through the street.  
  
"Come, everybody is eager to meet Harry." James got out of the car and helped Lily climb out.  
  
Lily was instantly surrounded once they stepped into the street. James stood by her, looking proud and happy as his neighbors greeted him and his family.  
  
It was some time later when they were able to move and walk among the crowd. They still had to stop and chat as inhabitants of the village tried to meet the new member of their little community.  
  
Finally, they made it to their mothers' side, who had been waiting in the center of the village square.  
  
"I take it you got stopped." Mrs. Potter said after she greeted the young couple.  
  
"Yes. Everybody wants to meet Harry." James laughed.  
  
"That is because he is such a handsome boy. Aren't you, Harry?" Cooed Mrs. Evans as she held Harry in her arms.  
  
Harry seemed to agree with her. He smiled and gurgled up at her.  
  
"Can we see him?"  
  
"We want to see him." The twins piped as they stood on their toes trying to look at their cousin.  
  
"It will be your turn soon." James said.  
  
"Come, why don't we take a seat." Urged Lily as she spotted an empty table in front of the stage.  
  
The band was getting ready when the group approached the table. People nodded and waved to them as they passed.  
  
"What are you giving him Lily, he must be keeping you up at night, now that he is teething." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
"Doctor Pomfrey gave me a small bag with herbs that he says soothes his pain if he chews on it. I have it here somewhere." Said Lily as she looked through the baby bag.  
  
"Oh, I don't need to see it. I know what it is. He gave me the same thing when Elizabeth and James were teething. It does help a little." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"Well, right now, he is happy chewing on everybody's fingers." James chuckled.  
  
"I imagine he is." Laughed Mrs. Evans.  
  
The band started to play and Lily and James turned to look at Harry to see if he got scared by the loud sound.  
  
Harry didn't seem to mind. He looked up at the sky and listened attentively before looking for his parents with a small smile.  
  
"He likes it." The twins said hiding their giggles behind their hands.  
  
"Yes, he does seem to do so." Lily said.  
  
"I don't think he is scared by anything. He will definitely be in Gryffindor." James exclaimed.  
  
"James, really. You should stop making plans for Harry. You don't know what will happen in the future." Mrs. Potter chided.  
  
"But he wouldn't be in any other house Mother. You know that. Every Potter has been in Gryffindor since they first attended Hogwarts." James said.  
  
"I know dear. But there is always a first for everything." Mrs. Potter replied.  
  
James didn't want to argue with his mother, he knew that his son was going to attend Hogwarts and that he would be in Gryffindor. There was nobody that would make him think otherwise.  
  
The atmosphere turned festive the moment the band started to play. James led Lily out to the dance floor while their mothers kept an eye on Harry.  
  
The twins were happily looking at the games that had been set up for the children and they spent all their allowance in sweets and toys.  
  
Mrs. Evans and Mrs. Potter were happy just sitting in their table with their grandson keeping them company.  
  
It was a warm and sunny day, and everybody took advantage of it.  
Lily stirred in the middle of the night. She moved toward James' side of the bed but she found it empty.  
  
She opened her eyes and blinked in the darkness. What had woken her? She asked herself. She stretched up on the bed and started to look around.  
  
She noticed that the curtains had not been closed on the windows. The moonlight sneaked into the room through the open windows.  
  
It was a full night. Lily sighed. "I hope Remus doesn't have a bad night." She whispered. She continued to look around. Where was James?  
  
She stood from the bed and put on her robe. She walked toward Harry's room. It was almost time to feed him.  
  
She thought it was surprising that Harry hadn't woken up yet. Usually he woke her up when it was time for him to eat. It hadn't happened this time.  
  
She walked into the semi-darkened room. Some of the candles on the scones along the wall were lit. Her steps were muffled by the thick carpet as she approached the crib. It was empty.  
  
Lily's body froze in fear. Where was Harry?  
  
She turned to leave the room and go for help when she noticed movement on the far side of the room.  
  
James was standing by the window. He had Harry in his arms.  
  
"Oh James!" She sighed with relief.  
  
James turned to look back and smiled.  
  
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you." James said. "I heard him and came to quiet him and let you rest.  
  
"Oh James, I was so scared when I saw the empty crib." Sobbed Lily.  
  
James quickly walked toward her. "I didn't mean to frighten you Lily." He said standing in front of her.  
  
"I know. I'm being silly, I know." Lily sniffled.  
  
Harry started to cry.  
  
"He must be hungry." Lily whispered as she tried to control her emotions.  
  
"Yes. He was happy with my finger but I suppose that would work only for a while." James said.  
  
"Oh yes, he will want something more substantial." Smiled Lily.  
  
James passed Harry to Lily. Lily walked toward the rocking chair and started to feed Harry. James stayed by the crib, watching them with loving eyes.  
The days were getting colder, and the harvest was underway. Most of the fruit and grain had been collected and stored. James stayed out on the fields most morning and in the afternoons he was busy with Mr. Sanders, his estate manager, figuring out the income and the things that needed to be done around the estate before winter fell.  
  
But the evenings, the evenings were reserved for his family. Since the Harvest Festival, Lily had invited their mothers and the twins to take dinner with them. It was this time of the day that he looked forward to. To spend time with his family, that's what he worked the whole day for.  
  
James was really looking forward to Christmas. It was Harry's first Christmas and James had started to make plans for it. It was going to be the best Christmas they had ever had.  
  
On this October afternoon he sat silently in his bookroom. Mr. Sanders had just left to finish his chores and Lily had taken Harry to visit with the neighbors.  
  
The room was getting dark, but he didn't bother to light the candles nor the lamps. As if on an impulse, James opened one of the drawers on his desk. It had been a while since he opened it. In fact, the last time he had opened the drawer was when he returned from Hogwarts after graduation.  
  
He took out a crystal orb. It was small and had small grooves at the bottom. A Silver fog shone the moment he put his fingers on the grooves, and images of his life started to flash through the ball. He smiled. It was the Pensive that Lily had given to him on that Christmas on their seventh year. He hadn't used it since he returned from Hogwarts, and he had forgotten about it.  
  
He pulled his wand out of his robes. Soon, images of everything that had happened for the last four years started to flash inside the orb. Scene after scene, all blending together into the silver fog within the Pensive.  
  
An hour later, he stood by the window. The Pensive safe within his drawer.  
  
He heard the front door open and close. His family was back. And darkness had fallen.  
  
James quickly left the room. It was time for him to change and to spend the rest of the day with his family.  
James was walking among the gardens one morning. He was on his way to meet Sanders and look at some repairs that were being done in the stables. He was feeling quite happy this morning. The day was sunny and there was a cool breeze.  
  
He looked around him, the gardens were well tended, the lawns were trimmed and the topiaries were in perfect state. The mazes were beckoning to him, he should lose himself with Lily one of these days, he thought with a smile, it would be great fun.  
  
He heard a roaring sound coming from the main drive.  
  
"What is that?" He exclaimed aloud.  
  
He turned toward the front drive. The sound was deafening.  
  
He smiled as he arrived to the front of the Manor and saw what was causing the commotion.  
  
"You are going to wake up Harry." He said.  
  
"I don't think so, he is a tough kid." Laughed Sirius from the seat of his motorcycle.  
  
"What did you do to that bike, it's so loud. Mine is not that bad and I know yours wasn't the last time you rode here." James said approaching his friend.  
  
"Oh, I made some small changes." Sirius smiled.  
  
"What kind of changes?" James asked feeling a little suspicious.  
  
"Oh, nothing big. Just enough to make it better." Sirius replied.  
  
"How can it be better if it's too loud." James exclaimed.  
  
"Just something that I need to work on." Shrugged Sirius.  
  
"Well, you better work on it fast. It makes too much noise." James responded.  
  
"Never mind that. I came to see my godson." Sirius said.  
  
"He should be napping right now. Minnie is keeping an eye on him. Lily and our mothers went shopping. Lily is complaining that Harry grows too fast and his clothing doesn't fit him anymore." James said.  
  
"Well, I'll pop up and see him for a while then. Where are you going?" Sirius asked as he dismounted from the bike.  
  
"To the stables, there are some repairs that I have to check on." James said, watching as his friend took off his helmet and put it on top of a bag strapped to the back of the seat. "What do you have there?" He nodded toward the bag.  
  
"Oh, nothing much. Just some snacks for the road." Smiled Sirius.  
  
James shook his head. "I'm going to the stables, want to come with me?" He asked.  
  
"Nope, want to see my godson first." Sirius insisted.  
  
"Fine, but don't wake him up." James admonished before walking toward the stables once more.  
  
"Nothing to worry about." Called Sirius before he entered the house.  
  
Roberts had held the door open as James and Sirius spoke.  
  
"Thanks Roberts, is Harry still sleep do you think?" Sirius asked as he stepped into the hall.  
  
"I cannot tell Sir, Minnie has been in Master Harry's room the whole morning. Do you want your bike to be taken to the garage?" Roberts asked.  
  
"No need. I'll leave as soon as I've seen Harry." Sirius said.  
  
"Very well Sir." Roberts said and walked toward the kitchens as Sirius walked up the stairs toward the family rooms.  
  
Minnie opened the door when he arrived to Harry's room.  
  
"Master Sirius Sir." Minnie greeted him.  
  
"Hello Minnie, I came to see Harry." He said as he walked into the room and made his way to the crib.  
  
Harry lay wide awake, shaking the small quaffle in his hand.  
  
"Hello Harry. Having fun with the Quaffle, I see." Sirius chuckled.  
  
"Master Harry likes the balls, Master Sirius, Sir." Minnie reported.  
  
"He should, he is going to be the best Quidditch player Hogwarts has ever seen." Sirius replied.  
  
"Minnie must check on Master Harry's food Sir." Minnie said, bobbing beside Sirius.  
  
"Go ahead Minnie, I'll keep an eye on the little tyke." Sirius chuckled as Harry grabbed hold of his finger and led it to his mouth. "You better hurry too, he is about to eat my finger."  
  
"Yes, Master Sirius, Sir." Minnie replied before disappearing from the room.  
  
"What do you say if we spent some quality time together Harry?" Sirius whispered down to Harry.  
  
Harry smiled and waved his small arms in the air.  
  
"Yes, I know you will like it." Sirius said as he reached down to pick Harry from the crib.  
  
Minnie returned in an instant, a bottle ready in her hand.  
  
"Why don't you leave him to me Minnie? I'll keep him entertained." Sirius said turning to look at the small elf.  
  
"If Master Sirius, sir, is sure." Minnie looked skeptically at Sirius.  
  
"I'm sure Minnie, I'll call if I need help." Sirius said with an innocent smile.  
  
Minnie nodded and handed the bottle and the bib to Sirius, before disappearing from the room once more.  
  
"Well Harry, you and I will have a great time." Sirius said as he fed Harry.  
  
Harry obliviously drank from his bottle, taking no notice of the mischievous smile gracing his godfather's face. Not that he would've known any better.  
  
After feeding Harry and burping him, Sirius looked around the room. He spied a small bag where baby items were carefully kept. Sirius had noticed that James and Lily always took it with them whenever they left the house with Harry.  
  
"Reckon there is everything in there that you might need." He said down to Harry, who happily looked up to his godfather's face.  
  
Sirius said no more and took it. He looked around once more, and with a expression full of satisfaction, he left the room with Harry in his arms.  
  
"Shh! We mustn't tell anybody." Sirius whispered at Harry.  
  
Harry gurgled.  
  
Sirius made his way silently down the corridors toward the entrance hall. He stepped off the staircase very carefully, making sure that nobody saw him.  
  
"We are lucky that the servants seem to be working somewhere else." Sirius whispered.  
  
Harry was turning his little head, looking around.  
  
They finally reached the front door. Nobody was in sight.  
  
Sirius had some trouble opening the door, but he finally opened it. He closed it behind him and skipped toward his bike.  
  
"I'm sure, you'll like my bike Harry." Sirius said. "I have something for you." He reached for his wand and flicked it toward the bag strapped behind the seat.  
  
The bag opened and some of the items spilled out.  
  
"See this, I had this made specially for you." Sirius said as he held up a tiny helmet. "And I made this myself." He exclaimed with pride, holding up a small sack with two small holes on either side of the bottom and a large one on the top. It had large straps on either side.  
  
Sirius put Harry inside the sack, his small face peering up from the large hole on the top. Sirius put it against his chest and strapped it around his body. Then he put the tiny helmet on Harry's head.  
  
"Ready Harry?" He asked as he put on his own helmet.  
  
Harry gurgled.  
  
"Right. Let's go for a ride." Sirius said.  
  
The bike roared. Harry looked around with surprise. Minutes later the bike drove down the lane.  
  
"Let me show you what I did to this bike Harry." Sirius called.  
  
He pressed a small button on one of the handles and suddenly the bike started to vibrate. Minutes later the bike started toward the sky.  
  
Sirius roared with laughter. He looked happily down at Harry, who didn't seem frightened by the experience. His small arms waved at his sides and his little head was turning in all directions.  
James was returning to the house when he saw a car stopping in front of the house. He walked to the family parlor and waited. He was sure that it was Lily and their mothers returning from their shopping.  
  
Lily walked in minutes later.  
  
"We bought lots of new clothes for Harry. I'm going to try them on him, in a minute. Want to come and see them?" She said the moment she saw him by the windows.  
  
"Of course." James smiled as he kissed her. "I gather you had a good day."  
  
"Oh, marvelous, but I did miss Harry. Maybe I should've taken him with me." Lily said.  
  
Lily took James' hand and together made their way to the family chambers. Lily chattered as they walked.  
  
Finally they walked into Harry's room. It was empty.  
  
"Where is Harry?" Lily asked.  
  
"Maybe Minnie took him to the kitchens to feed him." James said. "Minnie." He called.  
  
Minnie appeared instantly before them. "Yes Master James." She bobbed.  
  
"Where is Harry?" Lily asked.  
  
"Master Sirius has him, Mistress Lily." Minnie said.  
  
James ran to the window. "Where is Sirius? Oh no. His bike is not in front." He said.  
  
"Don't tell me that he took my son for a ride on that motorbike of his." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"I'm afraid that he might had." James replied.  
  
"I'm going to kill him." Lily exclaimed.  
Sirius arrived back at the Manor a couple of hours later, oblivious to the worry he had put James and Lily on.  
  
The whole household was eagerly waiting as they heard the commotion of the engine in the driveway.  
  
"Oh thank goodness." Exclaimed Lily running out of the front parlor where they had been waiting.  
  
James followed her out.  
  
The front door had been thrown open and Lily stood on the stairs waiting until Sirius stopped the engine.  
  
"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING?" She screamed the moment Sirius dismounted his motorcycle.  
  
Sirius blinked worriedly at her and Harry started to cry in fright.  
  
"See what you did? Now you scared him." Sirius frowned as he put his arms around Harry, who was still strapped around his chest.  
  
"What are you wearing?" Asked James, who had arrived in time to keep Lily from screaming further to Sirius.  
  
"Oh, I made this myself. To carry Harry around in." Sirius smiled.  
  
"Well, give him to me. Why didn't you leave a note, or anything? I've been so worried." Lily exclaimed as she took Harry out of the sack.  
  
"What would be fun in that, I was teaching him how to sneak out." Sirius said.  
  
"Honestly Sirius!" Lily snapped.  
  
Harry was still crying, and no matter what his mother did, he would not stop.  
  
"You did something to him, he doesn't stop crying." Lily wailed.  
  
"I did nothing, you scared him. He was happily in his little sack." Sirius snapped back.  
  
"Here Lily, you are too high-strung, Harry feels that. Calm yourself my dear, he is fine." Mrs. Evans said as she joined them and took Harry from Lily.  
  
"Come Rose, bring Harry to the parlor. Come Lily, you need a cup of tea." Said Mrs. Potter leading the other women back to the parlor.  
  
"You really should've left notice Sirius." James chided.  
  
"I told you I was trying to teach him how to sneak away, but I suppose you are right." Sirius grudgingly conceded.  
  
"Did you have fun?" James asked looking at the sack that was still strapped around Sirius' body.  
  
"Oh lots, Harry enjoyed the changes I made to my bike." Sirius grinned.  
  
"You still haven't told me what those changes are." James said.  
  
"I don't think you would like to know." Sirius replied.  
  
James groaned. "I think you better tell me all the same, I don't want to find out when an accident happens. Specially if you are going to sneak my son out whenever you feel like it."  
  
"Oh, all right. I installed a levitation charm on it. It can fly now." Sirius smiled with pride.  
  
"Are you telling me that you took my son flying?" James' eyes were wide and dread was clearly seen in them.  
  
"It is no different than when we took him flying on the brooms." Sirius responded.  
  
"Shhh! Don't say that aloud, Lily might hear." James hushed him looking back to the house.  
  
The door was closed and there was nobody around.  
  
"And he was much safer. When we flew on the brooms we had him in our arms, and that could've been dangerous. That's why I made this sack. This way, Harry is strapped tight to my body and it leaves my arms free." Sirius said pointing to the small sack on his chest.  
  
"Hmmm. Maybe we should have mother make some of those, it does seem useful." James said looking at the sack.  
  
"Here you can take this one." Sirius said taking the sack off from him. "I better leave, or Lily will yell at me some more."  
  
Sirius gave the sack to James. Minutes later, Sirius was driving away while James stood on the steps watching him go.  
  
Meanwhile, in the parlor room, Mrs. Evans and Mrs. Potter succeeded calming Lily down.  
  
"Don't worry dear, nothing bad came off it." Mrs. Evans was telling Lily.  
  
"I think we were mental, thinking in making Sirius his godfather." Lily was ranting.  
  
"Now dear, you know there couldn't be a better person. Sirius will die first than put Harry in any danger. You saw that he took precautions on this venture of his. He even constructed a way to keep Harry safely on the ride." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"Humph! I suppose that's true." Lily conceded.  
  
"Harry will love him. He will be his crazy Uncle Sirius." Mrs. Evans said.  
  
Lily actually giggled.  
  
"Nobody can deny that." She said.  
  
"And he will always be there if Harry ever needs him. You know that children don't go to their parents all the time. Sirius will be the one to whom Harry will run to whenever he is angry at you or James." Mrs. Potter replied.  
  
"Oh, I suppose you are right. But he did frighten me dreadfully." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"Oh my dear, all mothers are frightened when our children are out of our sight. But you have the best of friends around you and nobody will put Harry in danger." Mrs. Evans said.  
  
"I'll forgive him then." Said Lily smiling.  
  
Harry was quiet once more, sleeping in his grandmother's arms.  
  
"The little dear, he must be so tired." Mrs. Potter said looking at her small grandson.  
  
"Give him here mum, I'll take him to his room." Lily said taking Harry from her mother.  
  
Lily took the lift to the family chambers instead of the stairs. She looked lovingly down at her son as he slept innocently in her arms.  
  
"Did you have fun Harry? I bet you did. Your godfather will keep you in trouble." Lily whispered.  
  
Harry yawned.  
  
Lily chuckled. "Yes, he tired you too. You will love him."  
James walked up to Harry's room after Sirius left and found Lily looking down the crib at their sleeping child.  
  
"Is he asleep." James whispered coming into the room.  
  
Lily turned to look at him and smiled.  
  
"He is." She whispered back. "Is Sirius gone?"  
  
"A few minutes ago." James replied. "He was afraid that you would yell further to him."  
  
"I'm sorry I lost my temper." She said.  
  
"I know dear, but he did deserve it." James responded.  
  
He walked up to her and put his arms around her waist as both turned to look down at their son.  
  
"Sirius will be Harry's favorite person in the world you know." Lily commented.  
  
"I know. What did we get ourselves into?" James exclaimed.  
  
Lily chuckled.  
Halloween was approaching. The weather had turned bitterly cold. The ground was covered with golden leaves and the barren branches danced with the wind.  
  
James had spent most mornings with Mr. Sanders, making sure that all repairs were done before winter fell; he didn't want any of his tenants to suffer through the cold.  
  
He returned home one afternoon to find Lily worriedly waiting for him.  
  
"What happened Lily? Something wrong?" He asked the moment he saw her.  
  
"Oh James, Harry is ill. I don't know what to do." She wailed as she threw herself into his arms.  
  
"What do you mean he is ill? What is wrong with him?" James exclaimed.  
  
"He has a fever and a cough." Lily sobbed.  
  
James sighed with relief. "But that is common Lily, he must have a cold."  
  
"Colds can be very dangerous for babies. Their little bodies are not prepared for such." Lily's tearstained face turned to look up at him.  
  
"Did you call the doctor?" James hugged her, trying to calm her down.  
  
"Yes, he is not here yet." Lily sniffled against his chest.  
  
"What about our mothers? They have experience with babies."  
  
"They are gone to the village to shop." Lily explained.  
  
"I see. Don't worry, you'll see that it's nothing to worry about." James said as he eased her from him. "The doctor will come soon." He looked down at her.  
  
"Perhaps you are right. But James, his little body is so flushed with fever and he is so uncomfortable." Lily whispered.  
  
"He'll get better, you'll see." James said. "Come, let's go see how our son is doing." And slowly led her up the stairs toward their chambers.  
  
The doctor arrived soon after. Lily and James were waiting for him in Harry's room. Minnie was working diligently to get Harry to drink a potion she had prepared. Harry cried and waved his little arms in the air as he lay in Lily's arms.  
  
"The doctor is here, Sir, Ma'am." Roberts announced.  
  
"Oh doctor, please help my baby." Lily exclaimed the moment the old doctor walked into the room.  
  
"Let's see what is bothering Young Harry." Said the doctor reaching for Harry.  
  
The doctor placed Harry back on his crib and started to examine him. Lily and James stood by the crib, looking at every little thing the doctor did.  
  
When the doctor put away his wand and the examination was clearly over, Lily and James waited expectantly for the prognosis.  
  
"Well doctor?" Asked Lily as she clasped her hands nervously in front of her.  
  
"It's just a cold. He will be fine, just continue to get him to drink this potion and he will his old self by morning." The doctor said.  
  
"Thank you for coming, doctor." James shook the doctor's hand.  
  
"Nothing to it. With infants we never know. A fever can lead to many things, but Young Harry here seems to very healthy. He's obviously eating well. He will be trying solid foods in no time." The doctor reported.  
  
"Those are good news." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"Not to worry my dear, infants are stronger than what we give them credit for. Your son here seems to be made of sterner stuff." The doctor laughed.  
  
"Oh, I'm so glad there is nothing really wrong with Harry." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"Just make sure that he takes the potion and that he is kept warm. There does seem to be a bug running around, he is the fifth infant with a fever I had to treat in the last two days." The doctor said.  
  
"Should this be something that we should be worried about doctor?" Asked James, he didn't like the news that infants were falling sick in the area.  
  
"I don't believe so, the cold always seems to bring illness with it." The doctor said as he reached down for his bag in which all his instruments were held. "I better go, old Mr. Andrews sprained his knee and I want to check on him."  
  
"Thank you for coming so soon." Lily said from beside the crib. Harry was sleeping silently. Minnie had finally succeeded in getting him to drink the potion.  
  
"Nothing to it my dear, glad to be of service. That's what your young man here pays me for, don't you know." The doctor smiled before leaving the room.  
  
James followed him out, leaving Lily alone with Harry.  
  
"Oh Harry, you gave me quite a scare." Lily whispered.  
  
Harry continued sleeping.  
James was relieved that nothing wrong had happened and that their first crisis, in Lily's point of view of course, had passed with no problems. Harry was healthy and happy by the next morning, not that this made Lily relax one bit.  
  
James started to think of ways to distract her. Sirius gave him the idea when he came to visit a couple of days after Harry had fallen ill.  
  
"I was thinking of Hogwarts last night." Sirius had suddenly said.  
  
Both were sprawled on a couch in James' bookroom. The fireplace was lit and the dancing flames gave a cheery atmosphere to the chamber.  
  
"Why?" James had asked.  
  
"I was thinking of the Quidditch Pitch really. I just want to have a go in that field one more time. I really miss it." Sirius sighed with nostalgia.  
  
"It was fun." James said.  
  
"Why don't we do it? Why can't we go and have a fly around the old Pitch for fun?" Sirius had exclaimed.  
  
"Because it's school time and students are bound to use it. I do have a pitch here you know, in case you have forgotten." James responded.  
  
"Oh, but it's not the same." Sirius had exclaimed.  
  
"Besides, I'm don't want to leave Lily and Harry on their own for long. Lily was really upset when Harry fell ill." James said.  
  
"Well, let's take them with us. Harry will enjoy the Pitch." Sirius urged.  
  
James laughed at Sirius' enthusiasm.  
  
"Come James, what do you say?" Cajoled Sirius.  
  
James just shook his head in disbelief and laughed. But later that night, as he lay in the darkness and Lily slept beside him, he thought it would be a good idea to go and visit Hogwarts.  
  
"And there are a couple of things I want to speak to Dumbledore about." He whispered.  
  
Lily moaned and snuggled against him.  
  
James put his arm around her and kissed her brow before closing his eyes and falling asleep.  
Sirius was overjoyed when James owled him the next morning with the news that they would be going to Hogwarts. Lily was a little suspicious that James wanted to visit Hogwarts.  
  
"Think of it Lily, let's show Harry our old playing grounds, he needs to see what is in his future." James exclaimed as he tried to sell his idea to his wife.  
  
"But why now James? We can go at any time and Harry is too little to pay much attention to much. We will go when Harry gets his letter." Lily replied.  
  
"Oh please Lily! I miss the old place, I would like to see it one more time." James pleaded.  
  
"Well, I would like to see the castle again. It has been a while since I've been there." Lily seemed to be warming up to the idea.  
  
"And we can take the twins as well. They will be getting their letter in less than two years, it would be a treat for them if they get to see the place before they actually go. How many first years get the chance to go before they get their letters?" James said.  
  
"Well, yes, that is true." Lily seemed to cave in. "All right, we'll make it a family outing." She said.  
  
"I'll invite Sirius and Katie to come along, I think they might like to join us." James replied happily.  
  
"Oh yes do. This could be fun." And Lily ran off to talk to her mother and mother-in-law about the projected outing.  
  
James happily wrote an owl to Sirius.  
The day chosen for the outing couldn't be better. The day was sunny and rather warm for a fall day. James had owled Dumbledore letting him know of their visit. The Headmaster had sent a welcoming response.  
  
"Is everything ready?" Asked Lily as they all stood on the entrance hall with several bags at their feet.  
  
"We are if you don't need to take something else." James said as he looked down at the bags laying on the floor beside him.  
  
"No, I think I got everything." Lily said.  
  
"Well, then we can leave." James said.  
  
"How are we getting there?" The twins asked.  
  
"We are Flooing." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"Do you think that is safe with Harry?" Asked Katie.  
  
"Lily, Harry, Mrs. Evans and I, are going in the car." James said.  
  
"Why don't we all go in the car? I've never driven to Hogwarts, it will make for a change in scenery." Katie said.  
  
"Well, you can come along if you want to. There is another car we can take." James shrugged.  
  
"Yes, let's all ride the cars, I would prefer it, I don't like the idea of separating the group." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
James groaned. "By all means, let's take the car." He exclaimed and the other car was called from the garage.  
  
Two black cars left the estate and made its way north. The cars were obviously special, as Lily noticed that they covered a lot of ground without seeming to go at a great velocity. Harry slept most of the day while the twins kept their faces pressed to the windows taking notice of everything they passed.  
  
They made several stops during the trip. The inns chosen for the stops were small but cozy, and very hospitable. Lily made sure that Harry was fed and changed into clean diapers before they moved on once more, while Mrs. Potter took care that the twins got in no trouble.  
  
A little after noon, the scenery started to change and everybody knew that they were nearing their destination.  
  
"Are we driving into Hogwarts?" Asked Mrs. Evans.  
  
"No, we'll stop in Hogsmeade where Dumbledore will have carriages waiting for us." Responded James.  
  
"Cars do not work in Hogwarts, there is too much magic for the engines to work." Explained Mrs. Potter.  
  
"I see." Exclaimed Mrs. Evans.  
  
The cars drove deeper and deeper into the Highlands of Scotland. The forbidding sights attracted them and soon they were able to spot the small town of Hogsmeade.  
  
"We are here!"  
  
"We are here!" Exclaimed the twins.  
  
"Settle down girls, you do not want to scare your cousin." Urged Mrs. Potter.  
  
The twins promptly sat back on their seat and turned to look back out the windows. Harry kept sleeping in silence in his mother's lap, oblivious to his cousins' excitement.  
  
The cars stopped in front of The Three Broomsticks. Everybody piled out and stood looking around them.  
  
"This looks like a fun town." Expressed Mrs. Evans as she watched cloaked men and women walk rapidly from store to store, greeting others as they passed.  
  
"It is!" Exclaimed James and Sirius.  
  
"Do you think we might have some time for a drink? I'm sure Mrs. Evans would like to try the butterbeer that the Broomsticks serve." Sirius asked with a suspicious, innocent look.  
  
"Well, I don't see why not. I wouldn't mind a drink myself." James said.  
  
The group piled into The Three Broomsticks. Rosmetta, the waitress of the establishment rapidly approached for their orders but was instantly distracted from her purpose the moment she saw Harry in Lily's arms.  
  
"Will you look at him? He is quite a handsome boy." She exclaimed. "But why should I be surprised, considering who his parents are."  
  
Lily smiled contently up at her while James sat proudly beside her.  
  
"We'll have to watch out for him in eleven years, I'm sure he will get in trouble just as his father did." Rosmetta laughed.  
  
"Indeed, I'm quite glad I'm not the one who will have to deal with those owls. I had my share." Mrs. Potter laughed along with Rosmetta.  
  
"Let's just be glad that Mr. Black does not have a son of his own yet." Rosmetta said nodding to Sirius.  
  
"Oh, but you will. In time." Sirius grinned cheekily at her.  
  
"Lord protect us!" Exclaimed Rosmetta.  
  
The twins were giggling behind their hands. They liked this nice lady.  
  
"Well, what will you have?" Rosmetta eventually asked.  
  
"Bring us a round of butterbeer." James ordered.  
  
"Oh and would you mind if I prepare a bottle for Harry?" Lily asked before Rosmetta left them.  
  
"Why don't you give it to me, I'll have it prepared for you." Said Rosmetta.  
  
Lily gave the bottle to the waitress, who promptly retired to the bar.  
  
"I'm going to change Harry while we wait." Lily said and left the table.  
  
"Why doesn't she stay here? All she has to do is magic it." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"Because it is of bad taste to do it in public Sirius. How would you like it if you had to do your business in front of everybody?" James replied.  
  
"Well, I see your point." Sirius conceded.  
  
Lily quickly returned and Rosmetta returned soon after. For the next half an hour the group enjoyed their drinks and Harry made the acquaintance of all the visitors to the pub.  
  
As soon as drinks were drank and introductions made, the group made their escape and climbed into the waiting carriages in front of the pub.  
  
The lane to Hogwarts was deserted as the sound of the invisible hooves headed toward the castle.  
  
Eventually the carriages turned and entered the sweeping lawns of Hogwarts. The lake shone against the sunlight and the trees of the Forbidden Forest stood tall and dark in the distance.  
  
The imposing façade of the castle stood in front of them. The tall turrets and towers blocked the sunlight.  
  
A lone person stood underneath the arch of the doorway. As the carriages stopped, James smiled as he saw who this person was.  
  
"Hello Professor!" He called as soon as he climbed down the carriage. He then turned and helped his mother and wife out, while Sirius helped Katie and Mrs. Evans. The twins didn't bother to wait, they clambered out of the carriage as fast as they could.  
  
"I gather you are going to behave yourself this time? Mr. Filch is still upset from what happened the last time you and your friends paid us a visit." Professor McGonagall said. Her forbidding expression set, but her eyes twinkling with merriment as James and Sirius laughed at the memory of that visit.  
  
"Not to worry Minerva, you have reinforcement here." Mrs. Potter laughed as she approached the austere woman at the door.  
  
"That is a relief." Professor McGonagall replied. Her expression softened the moment Lily approached with a wide awake Harry in her arms. "Oh, he is so tiny." She exclaimed. She reached for him and Lily promptly allowed her to take Harry. "He looks like Potter, but he has your eyes Miss Evans." She said.  
  
"Don't forget she is a Potter now, Professor." Sirius said.  
  
"Oh of course, I keep forgetting." Professor McGonagall exclaimed.  
  
Lily laughed. "Not to worry, I forget sometimes."  
  
"I just hope he takes after his father in looks only." Professor McGonagall said turning to look at James. "Hopefully he has inherited his mother's nature."  
  
"You should be so lucky." Sirius mumbled under his breath. James heard him, as he was standing right beside him, and nudged him into silence.  
  
"We all hope so Minerva, we all hope so." Mrs. Potter replied.  
  
Harry gurgled and smiled as his elders spoke. The shiny glasses above him attracted his attention and he waved his little arms in front of him trying to grab the shinning object.  
  
"Well, he certainly is curious enough." Professor McGonagall said as she tried to keep her glasses out of Harry's reach.  
  
Lily laughed and took Harry back.  
  
"Dumbledore is waiting to greet you." McGonagall said and led them through the corridors.  
  
Mrs. Evans was eager to see everything; the only two times she was at Hogwarts she didn't get to see much of the castle. The first time was when Lily had her accident on her seventh year, Mrs. Evans didn't leave her side then. The second time was for Lily's graduation, and she only stayed for a few hours.  
  
Everybody pointed out things to her and the twins, who were also eager to see the place where they would live in a couple of years. The subjects in the paintings waved and greeted them as they passed. Their eyes opened wide when they noticed some of the staircases change direction.  
  
Mrs. Evans was disappointed when they stopped in front of an extremely ugly gargoyle. Who would keep such an ugly thing? She asked herself, but gasped a moment later when the gargoyle opened and showed a spiral staircase.  
  
"I believe you know your way." Professor McGonagall said stepping aside and motioning them to enter.  
  
James took the lead. He stepped into the opening and allowed the staircase to lead him up. The others soon followed. Mrs. Evans noticed the opening closing once the last person stepped onto the staircase.  
  
They stepped into a circular room. Odd things stood around the room. Mrs. Evans noticed an old, frayed hat on one of the shelves, paintings of old wizards and witches hanging on the walls watching the group with curiosity.  
  
The twins exclaimed when they saw a large, red, odd-looking bird standing on a golden perch.  
  
"What is it Uncle James?"  
  
"What is its name?" The twins asked as they approached the bird as it stood looking down at the girls with a measuring look.  
  
"Oh, that's Fawkes, and he is a phoenix." James answered.  
  
"Fascinating, I always thought they were a myth." Mrs. Evans exclaimed.  
  
"Well, you must remember mum, that most things that in the muggle world is thought to be myth or legend, to us is history and reality." Lily said.  
  
"Lily is right, Rose." Mrs. Potter exclaimed.  
  
"Welcome. I hope you had a nice trip." A booming voice was heard from the door behind them.  
  
"Hello Professor, hope we are not keeping you from your work." James said approaching Dumbledore to shake his hand.  
  
"Oh no, not much to do today. It is the weekend after all." Dumbledore smiled. "What do you think Hogwarts young ladies? Think you would like living here?" He asked turning to look down at the twins who were looking at him with looks full of curiosity and consideration.  
  
"Oh yes."  
  
"It's really nice." The girls exclaimed.  
  
"You came just in time, we are having the feast soon enough." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Oh good, I hoped we would get a chance to eat." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
Dumbledore chuckled. "I'm glad we told the elves to be ready for you."  
  
Everybody laughed at this, but the gurgle and laughter coming from the bundle carried in Lily's arms attracted Dumbledore's attention.  
  
"He is awake then, I thought he was asleep as he was so quiet." He said approaching Lily.  
  
"Oh, he has been looking about." Lily smiled as she passed her son to her former Headmaster and employer.  
  
"Hello Harry! How do you like Hogwarts?" Dumbledore asked looking down at the infant who watched him steadily.  
  
Harry smiled and flailed his small arms. Dumbledore chuckled and took one of the little arms that seemed to be curious about his beard. Harry grasped one of his fingers and held on to it.  
  
Harry gurgled happily as he pulled the finger in his hand.  
  
James and Lily looked indulgently at their small son as he played with the Headmaster's hand and beard.  
  
"You chose a very good day to come, there is no better time than Halloween to visit Hogwarts." Dumbledore said.  
  
"I say! I can't wait until dinner time." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"I thought you wanted to come because you wanted to ride your broom in the Pitch." Katie said.  
  
"So I did, and still plan to, but that doesn't mean I'll say no to Halloween Feast at Hogwarts." Sirius responded.  
  
"There is somebody waiting for you at the Pitch." Dumbledore suddenly announced.  
  
"Indeed. Who?" James turned to look at Dumbledore with surprise.  
  
"You will see when you get there." Dumbledore replied as his smiling eyes twinkled.  
  
"Let's go James, there is no better time than the present." Sirius called as he started to leave the room.  
  
James reached for Harry and quickly followed his friend out with a squirming bundle in his arms.  
  
"I'm not sure I should let him take Harry with them. I'm sure that they will get him on a broom." Lily said looking worriedly at the door after Sirius and James had disappeared out of the room.  
  
"Humph! What makes you think they haven't already?" Katie laughed.  
  
"Oh surely not. Wouldn't that be too dangerous?" Mrs. Evans exclaimed.  
  
"Of course it is. That is why they love it so." Mrs. Potter replied as she tried to keep the twins from grabbing some of the things found around Dumbledore's office.  
  
"No matter, they can get in no trouble." Mrs. Potter said after she finally got the girls to sit quietly beside her.  
  
"My dear Susan, we thought the same thing when they entered on their first year, and they got in trouble every single day." Dumbledore smiled.  
  
All the women groaned around him.  
  
"Maybe we should go to the Pitch as well." Lily quickly said and made her way out of the room, closely followed by the rest.  
James and Sirius took their time getting to the Pitch. They stopped several times along the way to check on the secret passages that they found when they attended Hogwarts.  
  
"Do you think the map is still in Filch's office?" Sirius asked as they stepped out of the castle.  
  
"Most likely." James said as he tried to move Harry in his arms. His right arm had fallen asleep and he was afraid that he would let Harry fall.  
  
"Here, let me hold him." Said Sirius as he noticed his friend's trouble.  
  
James quickly passed Harry to Sirius. Harry didn't seem to mind this change at all.  
  
"Maybe we should steal into Filch's office and get the map back." Sirius said.  
  
"Are you crazy?" James exclaimed looking at his friend as if he had sprung horns on his head.  
  
"Why not? Harry here should have it when he comes." Sirius said.  
  
"Sirius, he will have enough problems with you as his godfather, he won't need any more than that."  
  
"Hey! Are you saying I'm a bad influence?"  
  
"You're an influence all right!" James laughed.  
  
"What do you mean by that?" Sirius growled, but there was no response as they arrived at the Pitch.  
  
"I missed this place." James sighed as he looked around.  
  
The towering walls holding the seats where the students sat to watch the games looked as they had always did. The enormous rings at each end of the Pitch glistened in the sunlight. And the banners, hanging in the spectator boxes where the teachers and guests sat, waved in the breeze.  
  
"It was about time you got here, I've been waiting for hours." A voice exclaimed from one of the seats.  
  
James and Sirius turned to look at the speaker.  
  
"What are you doing here? I thought we told you that we were meeting at James' and come from there." Sirius called as he waved to the young man sitting in the seat he always sat when he watched the games while at school.  
  
"I wasn't sure I could make it on time so I came here instead." Remus said as his two friends started to climb to join him.  
  
"Well, no matter, you are here." James said as he took a seat next to Remus.  
  
"Yeah, at least you made it, Peter couldn't come." Sirius sighed as he sat next to James.  
  
"Where is everybody else?" Remus asked peering down to see if anybody else walked into the Pitch.  
  
"Dumbledore's office." Sirius responded.  
  
"Not anymore I think." James pointed behind them. They could see a small group making its way to the Pitch from the castle.  
  
Sirius groaned. "Why are they coming, they are going to spoil the fun."  
  
"I think they were afraid of what you might do with Harry here." Remus pointed at the infant in James' lap.  
  
James had sat Harry in his lap resting his little back against his stomach. Harry was curiously turning his head around the Pitch, gurgling as he noticed everything, up to the smallest things, around him.  
  
"See, told you he would like it. Don't you Harry? You better take a closer look around the place, you're going to spend a lot of time here once you come to Hogwarts." Sirius looked down at the smiling infant who had turned to look at him the moment he heard his voice.  
  
"Will you look at that? Madam Hooch is with them." Remus said as he watched the group coming nearer.  
  
"Is she?" James asked turning back to see if Remus was correct.  
  
"She might as well be here as we are going to have to borrow some of her brooms." Sirius said, also turning back to watch the group coming toward them.  
  
Lily and Katie were before the others as they entered the Pitch.  
  
"This place is larger than what I remembered." Lily exclaimed the moment they stepped into the field.  
  
"So are those seats, I can't believe we actually sat that high." Katie said looking up at the seats above them. She quickly spied the three young men and tugged Lily's sleeve. "They are up there. Someone else is with them." Katie motioned at the trio watching them from the seats.  
  
"Who is that?" Lily asked covering her eyes against the glare of the sun.  
  
"Probably Remus." Shrugged Katie.  
  
The others soon joined them and the twins ran off to join their uncle.  
  
"Did they just come to sit there?" Scoffed Madam Hooch.  
  
Dumbledore chuckled. "I rather doubt it, they are not the kind to just sit there and keep still."  
  
"You can say that again." Sighed Mrs. Potter.  
  
"This place looks huge. Is the Pitch at the Manor the same size?" Mrs. Evans asked as she looked around.  
  
"It is, but it looks smaller because it's all surrounded by the orchard. This is open space, so it looks larger." Lily said as she started to walk toward the sitting group up on the stands.  
  
"What are all of you doing here?" Sirius called.  
  
"Making sure you lot would not get in trouble." Katie smiled innocently at her husband.  
  
Sirius glared at the group.  
  
"You are not planning to take that child on a broom with you, are you?" Exclaimed Madam Hooch as she spied Harry on James' lap.  
  
"Of course he is going on a broom with us. It's his destiny." Said Sirius.  
  
"Sirius, honestly. It's not safe on a broom with a child as young as Harry. How do you expect to keep your equilibrium if your hands are holding him?" Scoffed Katie.  
  
"Well, with this of course." Sirius said holding up his homemade harness for Harry.  
  
"I thought you had left that with me." Said James.  
  
"I did, I made another one." Sirius held his creation proudly in the air.  
  
Lily laughed. "You know you can buy those at a muggle shop don't you? And they are much more prettier."  
  
The others laughed as Sirius scowled at them holding his sack against him.  
  
"I'll have you know that I put a lot of effort into this! I had to read all my mother's sawing magazines to get the stitching right." Sirius sounded offended.  
  
James and Remus snickered.  
  
"You sewing?" Laughed James. "I would've loved to actually see you at it. Sirius sitting in a chair with needle and thread."  
  
"I didn't use needle and thread. That's what the wand is for. I'm not going to risk pricking my fingers." Scoffed Sirius.  
  
The others continued chuckling and laughing.  
  
The twins had lost interest in the conversation around them and both were looking over the edge, trying to look at the decorations around the Pitch.  
  
"Girls, be careful." Mrs. Potter exclaimed the moment she noticed their precarious position.  
  
The mood changed after that.  
  
After some begging, James was allowed to use Sirius' creation and take Harry riding with him. Madam Hooch happily provided some brooms and joined the young men on their ride as well.  
  
Lily kept her eyes on her husband, while Katie kept up a conversation with Mrs. Evans and Dumbledore.  
  
Mrs. Potter took the twins for a tour of the grounds and the pair was later seen running around the lawn.  
  
"Where are the students, Professor?" Asked Lily after a while, once she was sure that Harry was safe in his father's company.  
  
"In their common rooms most likely." Said Dumbledore as he looked at the flying friends in the Pitch.  
  
"But it's Saturday!" Exclaimed Katie, clearly remembering that she took advantage of the weekends to have fun while she attended Hogwarts.  
  
"Teachers have left quite a bit of work this week." Chuckled Dumbledore.  
  
"Well, at least it allowed the boys to have their fun without bothering anybody." Lily said.  
  
"It won't be for long. Who are those kids coming toward us?" Mrs. Evans was looking behind her toward the castle.  
  
The others turned to look and saw the scarlet robed group making its way to the Pitch.  
  
"It looks like their fun is over." Said Katie waving at Sirius, motioning him to approach them.  
  
Sirius flew over to his wife and stopped in front of her.  
  
"You need to tell the others that your time is over." Katie said.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because Gryffindor is coming to practice." Lily said turning back to look at the Pitch.  
  
"Oh, I want to see that. James, Remus, time to leave the field." Sirius screamed to his friends.  
  
"Couldn't you be any louder?" Katie rolled her eyes while Sirius smiled cheekily at her.  
  
James and Remus quickly joined them, Madam Hooch following at a slower pace.  
  
"What? Why do we have to stop?" James and Remus asked.  
  
"Gryffindor is coming to practice." Sirius reported while James passed a wide-eyed Harry to Lily.  
  
"Oh, I got to see this. How is Gryffindor's team this year Madam Hooch?" James asked the matron flying beside him as they slowly sank back to the ground.  
  
"Well enough. I don't think they can compare to your team however." Smiled Madam Hooch.  
  
James laughed.  
  
"Of course not, we were the best." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
The foursome joined the others just as the Gryffindor team was entering the Pitch.  
  
One of the team members, the smallest and skinniest of the lot, nudged the tallest and motioned toward the group that sat watching their entrance. The team quickly approached the sitting group.  
  
"Professor Dumbledore, Madam Hooch." The tall boy greeted the staff members and looked at the others with curiosity.  
  
"Mr. Johnson, time for practice I see." Dumbledore said as he looked over the young people standing in front of him. He noticed the team's curiosity and quickly made the introductions. "This is James Potter, his wife Lily, Sirius Black and his wife Katie, Lily's mother, Mrs. Evans, Remus Lupin and this little tyke is James and Lily's son, Harry."  
  
The team nodded kindly at the group before them.  
  
"Very pleased to meet you Mr. Potter, Mr. Black, you are quite a legend around here." The tall boy said with excitement.  
  
James and Sirius preened with satisfaction while Lily and Katie seemed quite resigned to hear the young man gush at their husbands.  
  
"This strapping fellow here is Jonathan McDowel, he is Gryffindor's Beater and Captain this year." Madam Hooch introduced the tall boy.  
  
"Indeed, nice to meet you Mr. McDowel." Said James shaking the young man's hand.  
  
"It is indeed a pleasure for me Sir." Jonathan McDowel said happily. "This is my team, Henry Edwards, Michael Blight, and Anna Norton are our chasers, Thomas Dunn is our other beater and this young fellow here is our new seeker, Kenneth Wellington."  
  
"Well, we won't keep you from practice then." James said eager to see how good this year's team was.  
  
"Won't you join us Sir, we would appreciate any tips you might give us." Jonathan asked eagerly, looking at both James and Sirius.  
  
"What do you say James? Should we fly with Gryffindor once more?" Asked Sirius looking down at the Pitch with adoration.  
  
"Of course we should." James exclaimed.  
  
Both tumbled down from their seats in a hurry, the team running right behind them. Harry had started crying the moment his father left his mother's side.  
  
"Oh Harry dear, don't worry, he'll be right back." Lily soothed her son.  
  
Harry continued crying.  
  
"Maybe he wants to fly some more." Said Madam Hooch. "He was enjoying himself, you could hear his squeals of laughter anywhere on the Pitch."  
  
Dumbledore chuckled. "I'm afraid that we might have another Quidditch player in our hands."  
  
"It certainly looks that way, doesn't it?" Said Katie as she watched her friend trying to get Harry to stop crying.  
  
Lily sighed with exasperation, nothing she did seemed to work.  
  
"Here, why don't I take him for a slow ride while James and Sirius are playing with the team?" Said Remus leaning down for the broom, sitting at his feet along with the homemade strap Sirius had made, before reaching for Harry.  
  
Harry stopped crying the moment he spied the broom and gurgled with laughter.  
  
As Remus climbed down the stairs, the others sighed with relief.  
  
After some minutes of play, the team seemed to have a problem and Harry seemed to be in the center of it.  
  
"Lily, you must do something, your son is not allowing us to practice." Sirius exclaimed flying up to the quiet group up on the seats.  
  
"What do you mean? What is he doing? He is flying with Remus well below you." Lily replied.  
  
"Yes, but he keeps getting the snitch. Don't ask me how, because we don't know, but the snitch always keeps flying to his hands." Sirius sounded quite exasperated.  
  
"Are you telling me that Harry is summoning the snitch to him." Katie exclaimed with surprise.  
  
"It certainly looks that way." James had flown behind Sirius and looked quite proud that his son had been able to do magic that he should've learned on his fourth year.  
  
Lily giggled with delight, Dumbledore boomed with laughter as Madam Hooch and Katie smiled, Mrs. Evans had gone to join Mrs. Potter and the twins beside the lake.  
  
"Yes, we are all proud of him as it is clear that he will come to Hogwarts, but we do need that snitch." Sirius said as the others finally got over their merriment.  
  
"I'm sorry Sirius, we didn't bring his toy snitch, and I do worry that he might put the snitch in his mouth and he would swallow it." Lily said.  
  
"I think I might have something." Said Madam Hooch and ran down the steps to her office.  
  
The team was flying slowly beside Harry who didn't seem to want to let the snitch go. Remus was smiling down at him but didn't try to take the snitch away from him.  
  
Madam Hooch soon returned and approached at the flying group. A large snitch, three times bigger than the regular snitch flew out of her hands and flew toward Harry, fifty times slower than the regular snitch, it might as well just be hovering above the ground. Harry reached for it, letting the regular snitch out of his hand in the process. The team whooped and the game resumed.  
  
"I had that in my office, some spell reflected on it on one of our practices and it has not been able to fly fast since then, I just did an engorgement charm for Harry." Explained Madam Hooch as she took her seat once more.  
  
They stayed out on the Pitch for a couple of hours, the Gryffindor team seemed to do better than they ever did, and thanking their heroes, left for the dormitory with dreams of the Quidditch Cup.  
  
Dumbledore led his visitors to the castle, ready to share with them the Halloween Feast.  
  
The teacher's table was divided into two, one were most of the teachers were to sit and the other where Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall would host their guests. A high chair was conjured at this table and the students were eager to find out who would seat with their Headmaster.  
  
They had all heard rumors that visitors had come to Hogwarts. But as most of the students had either stayed in their dormitories or gone to Hogsmeade after finishing their work, nobody seemed to know whom the visitors were. The Gryffindor team was quickly surrounded as some of their classmates had heard that they had spent time with Dumbledore's guest that afternoon.  
  
Before the team said a word, however, Dumbledore entered the Great Hall, followed by a group of witches and wizards some of who were familiar to the older students.  
  
"James Potter and Lily Evans, they were Head Students six years ago." Some of the students whispered to their younger housemates.  
  
"They got married, I heard it was a wonderful wedding." Some girls were gossiping to each other.  
  
"That must be their son, I read about it in the social section of the Daily Prophet this summer." Others said as Harry looked around him with wide eyes, the floating pumpkins and flying bats seemed to have grabbed his attention.  
  
Dumbledore led them up to the table readied for them, but before they settled into their seats, Hogwarts' former students greeted their old professors and met the new ones. Harry was a great attraction and he seemed to like the attention he was getting.  
  
Once everybody was sitting, Dumbledore stood as the students craned their necks trying to get a better view of the Headmaster's companions.  
  
"I hope all of you enjoyed your day." He started as the students cheered. "We have some special guests this year. Mr. James Potter and Mrs. Lily Potter have brought their family and friends for a short visit. Please welcome them." The Hall exploded into applause and cheers.  
  
Harry started to cry, it seemed that the noise scared him. Lily quickly took him into her arms and Harry eventually stopped crying as the noise in the Hall settled into something more manageable.  
  
Food soon appeared on the tables and everybody settled to eat. Harry sat on his high chair throwing everything into the air instead of putting it into his mouth. Finally a house elf appeared and took Harry to the kitchens were the elves happily tried to get him to eat. The more food he threw, the happier they became.  
  
Lily and James chatted with Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall throughout dinner as Sirius kept his attention solely on his food and Katie kept Mrs. Evans and the twins entertained with stories about their life in Hogwarts as Mrs. Potter listened attentively.  
  
It was a fine meal for everyone. But eventually it had to end.  
  
Harry was brought back to the Great Hall as soon as the students started to leave for their dormitories.  
  
"The lil' tyke." Exclaimed a booming voice at the other side of the teachers' table.  
  
Lily and James turned to look at the speaker and smiled as they saw their large friend, Hagrid, coming toward them. "He is so small." He said.  
  
Lily laughed. "Indeed he is. Harry, say hi to Hagrid." Lily held Harry up to Hagrid.  
  
Harry laughed and tugged on his beard. Hagrid's booming laughter could be heard throughout the hall.  
  
"He seems to have his father's curiosity." Sighed Mrs. Potter.  
  
"That's not bad." Said James.  
  
"Let us hope that he inherited Lily's common sense." Said Katie.  
  
Hagrid had taken Harry into his arms. Harry seemed to be happily settled into the warm cocoon of Hagrid's arms.  
  
"Ye wait 'ere, I'll return." Said Hagrid suddenly as he returned Harry back to Lily and quickly left the room.  
  
The others watched him go with surprise but soon forgot all about it as they turned to say goodbye to the Professors that were eager to retire to their own room.  
  
The doors of the Great Hall opened soon after. Hagrid had returned and something small seemed to be hidden within his hands.  
  
"Got a present. For Harry." He panted. It seemed that he had ran all the way to get his gift.  
  
"Why thank you Hagrid. You didn't have to." Said Lily with a kind smile.  
  
"Oh just thought 'e would like it." Blushed Hagrid as he deposited a small fur ball on top of Harry's blanket.  
  
Harry looked steadily at the strange thing on his blanket.  
  
"What is that?" Asked Sirius peering closely at the small object. He jumped back when it started to twitch.  
  
"You didn't give him something dangerous did you Hagrid?" Asked Remus, his lips twitching with suppressed laughter.  
  
Hagrid scratched his head with confusion. "Don't see how it could be dangerous. Quite a borin' thin' to be sure." Hagrid said.  
  
"In other words. It's safe." James smiled.  
  
The ginger fur ball started to move and two small pointed ears appeared. Soon a small feline face with green eyes stared at the small infant face near it.  
  
"Oh it's a kitten." Squealed the twins.  
  
James groaned. "Now Harry will have his menagerie just as the twins do."  
  
"We don't have a kitten."  
  
"We have a rabbit."  
  
"A dog."  
  
"Fish."  
  
"A lamb."  
  
"A toad."  
  
The girls started to list as the small kitten scrambled to his paws and looked around him.  
  
"Where did you get it Hagrid?" Remus asked as he reached to scratch the kitten's head.  
  
The kitten purred with contentment.  
  
"In the forest. It was 'uddling behind a log tryin' to keep warm." Hagrid said.  
  
"The poor thing." Sighed Katie looking at the small kitten.  
  
"Why don't you want to keep it Hagird?" Sirius asked. As long as he could remember, Hagrid kept every animal he ever encountered.  
  
Hagrid scoffed. "What good is a kitten? Don't do anythin' but roll in the carpet and sleep."  
  
James laughed. "Of course. Quite boring."  
  
Lily giggled. They all knew of Hagrid's penchant for caring for dangerous animals. The bigger, the better.  
  
"We have to go if we want to make it home before it gets too dark." Said Mrs. Potter. The others nodded and quickly made their farewells.  
  
The horseless carriage was waiting for them in front of the castle.  
  
Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall waived their goodbyes as the carriage turned and left the school grounds behind.  
  
Soon, they were climbing into their cars and found themselves driving back home.  
  
James looked as Lily soothed Harry into sleep. The small kitten rolled up on top of the blankets. James smiled. Who would've thought that one day he would be a father and have the only woman he ever loved at his side?  
A/N: I hope that you liked this chapter, it will start to get a little darker and perhaps sadder as the story continues, so be prepared. Don't forget to review, I look forward to read what you thought about this chapter. : ) 


	38. Part III Chapter 3

A/N: I'm sorry it has taken me a while to post, but I've not had the time until now (Spring Break, yay!) To prepare more chapters for you. I thank all of you who reviewed and I hope that you like the chapters to follow. I'm working on chapter 7 now, which is posted in the harrypotter.com, and I think that two more chapters and this part is over, this means that I'm getting close to James and Lily's death (I'm not looking forward to it). Some of you have asked what will happen when I'm done with James and Lily. Well, the story is not ending there, I will continue to write about what happens after that night and will eventually write about Harry, I'm hoping that the book is out by the time I get there. Ok, I will continue with the story now.  
Disclaimer: I know, I have forgotten about it on the last chapters. I don't own anything that has to do with Harry Potter and I'm not gaining anything by writing this (except writing experience of course) so don't bother to sue me because you cannot gain anything by it, I'm not rich.  
Chapter 3 ~ The Dark Shadow  
The days passed without any worry. Christmas was getting near and Harry had started to crawl. A circumstance that left Lily in constant agitation as she never knew where Harry would appear next. The kitten had also grown and followed his small master everywhere he went. Where the kitten was found, Harry was bound to be as well.  
  
As Harry could sit up on his own now, Lily was quite worried when the time came to allow James to take out the broom that was given to him the day of her baby shower.  
  
James was soon found in the Pitch with Harry on the small broom hovering above the ground. The baby quidditch balls flying around them.  
  
James enjoyed his time with his son. Even though his mornings were always busy with estate affairs, he always found the time to take Harry in the afternoons.  
  
Lily watched them one afternoon from the fringes of the Pitch. She smiled as James jumped up and down by the hovering broom and Harry squealed with laughter. The kitten walked patiently by the broom trying to keep away from James' feet.  
  
James finally spotted her. "Hello there!"  
  
"It's time to get inside. It is starting to get chilly and there seems to be snow coming." Lily said as James carried Harry toward her.  
  
Harry was clapping his hands in exuberance but the moment they neared his mother he threw his small arms in the air.  
  
"Ma - ma!" He screamed.  
  
"Oh James, he said mama, he said his first word." Yelled Lily as she hurried toward them.  
  
"Say Da - da Harry, da - da." Urged James.  
  
Harry was squealing with laughter.  
  
Lily giggled.  
  
"Yes, it's fine for you to laugh. He said mama." Said James in mock anger.  
  
Lily reached for Harry and he settled happily into his mother's arms.  
  
The small family made its way toward the house. Dusk was falling and the temperature had dropped.  
  
"It's going to be a cold winter this year." James said as he looked toward the lake behind the house, which seemed to be getting solid as the days went by.  
  
The pair walked in silence as Harry squealed and laughed at the sight of the kitten running at their side.  
  
The Manor was brightly lit. The fireplace was lit in every room lending some warmth to the house. The servants were seen working quietly on their evening chores as the small family walked through the entrance hall.  
  
"Will dinner be ready soon Roberts?" Asked James as the butler held the door open for them.  
  
"Nearly Sir, Mistress Susan, Mrs. Evans and the twins have just arrived and are waiting for you in the family parlor." Roberts reported.  
  
"Thank you Roberts, could you get Minnie for me, Harry needs a change." Lily said as she led James toward the family parlor to greet their mothers.  
  
"Of course Ma'am." Roberts said with a bow. He nodded to one of the footmen working in the hall and the young man quickly departed in search of Minnie.  
  
Even though Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans, along with the twins, didn't leave at the main house any more, they shared dinner with Lily and James often. The twins were constant visitors to the Manor, eager to play with Baby Harry, and their small cousin seemed to enjoy his time with them.  
  
"Oh, there you are dears, how is our grandson doing?" Mrs. Potter asked as she reached for Harry.  
  
Harry was passed to his grandmother's arms as the kitten jumped into one of the chairs to curl and get ready to nap.  
  
"He has been playing with James in the Pitch." Lily said as she kissed her mother and mother-in-law's cheek.  
  
"He was flying in his broom." James said as he tried to walk with both twins hugging his legs tight. "Come brats, let me greet your grandmother and Mrs. Evans." He laughed.  
  
The twins let him go and scrambled to sit by Mrs. Potter to play with Harry.  
  
A faint pop was heard and Minnie appeared in the room. "Minnie comes for Master Harry, Miss." She bobbed her head looking at Lily.  
  
"Thank you Minnie, I'm sure that he is ready to eat and get settled into bed." Lily said.  
  
Minnie took Harry, who started to wave his little hands at the others in the room. Everybody waved back.  
  
"Can we eat dinner with Harry?"  
  
"Please, we want to eat with Harry." The twins said.  
  
"You can if you want to." Said Lily and nodded to Roberts, who had come into the room with drinks, as the twins ran out of the room. Roberts bowed and left the room, and Lily knew that he was on his way to the kitchens to warn the staff that the twins would be eating with Harry in the nursery.  
  
The room was full of merriment. The staff prepared the dining room for dinner and Minnie had her hands full with the children, not that she minded at all. Everybody made plans as the night progressed, none knowing of the dark shadow growing in the horizon.  
Peter Petigrew left his mother sleeping in her room. They had just returned from a visit to the doctor. He stepped out of the house and looking around fearfully started to walk down a dirt road to the cliffs some miles away.  
  
The land was deserted and unless you know of the cliffs and how to get there, they could not be seen from anywhere in the proximity.  
  
Peter shook with apprehension; a note had been delivered in the early hours of the morning with an assignation in the cliffs. He knew who had sent the note. But he wasn't sure if he should be afraid that he had received it or of what would happen from it.  
  
At the thought of the note, his steps quickened. Half an hour later he saw the cliffs and could hear the sea hitting against the stones below.  
  
He neared the edge and looked around. He sighed with relief. Maybe he is not coming, he thought hopefully, maybe it was a joke. No sooner had he thought that, when the breeze picked up and he heard steps behind him.  
  
He turned and saw a tall man, cloaked in a black, walking toward him.  
  
"I'm happy to see that you are on time Petigrew, or should I call you Wormtail?" The leering voice said. Peter gasped, how did he know about that? "You can't hide much from me, you fool. But that little gift of yours could come of use." The man said.  
  
Peter stood shaking were he stood. Anybody would've thought that it was from the cold, but he and his companion knew that it was from fear.  
  
The man chuckled. "There is no need to fear me Wormtail, as long as you don't betray me."  
  
"I.I.I woul-ld-dn't do that Master." Peter stuttered.  
  
"See that you don't, your life wouldn't be worth much." Lord Voldemort said.  
  
"Y-y-es Master." Trembled Peter.  
  
"It has come to my attention that your friends, the Potters, might know the location of a very important place, I need that information Wormtail." Voldemort said.  
  
"I.I.I have not heard them say so Master." Peter replied with fright.  
  
"Of course you haven't." Voldemort spat in anger. "Nobody is supposed except for some people. But a friend of mine was able to find out about it. It is your job to make it possible for me to get that information."  
  
"But Master, they haven't mentioned a thing, they would've done so if they were going to tell someone about it. I'm one of their best friends." Peter said.  
  
"They won't tell you a thing, they are too noble to do so. I'm sure that they haven't even told their mothers. But that is not what I want, I want you to make it possible for me to see them in private to get that information." Voldemort hissed.  
  
"But Sir, the Manor is full of people. I don't think it would be possible." Peter exclaimed.  
  
"You need them to leave the Manor, drive them away somehow, I need just the three of them. Just the Potters, not their mothers, not their servants, specially, not their friends." Voldemort said.  
  
"But Sir, how am I supposed to do that?" Peter asked with fear that Voldemort would do something to him for not having an idea of how to do what he was asking.  
  
"Think about it Wormtail, I'm sure that you will come up with something. Ask help from the other Death Eaters if you need them in your plan." Voldemort said before turning his back to him and walking away.  
  
Peter watched him go and waited on cliffs until the moon shined on the sea and the forbidding sight of Voldemort was long gone.  
Christmas Eve had arrived. The first one of Young Harry's life, and his family was eager to share the happiness of this holiday with him. The twins had come to the Manor at a very early hour, crossing the three snow- covered miles between the Dower house and the Manor in less than half an hour, considering how often they stopped along the way to pelt snowballs at each other. The servants in the Manor were all up and all the decorations and greenery collected the previous day were ready to go up and adorn the main rooms. The twins ran from one room to another looking around as the servants put up the decorations.  
  
Lily found them in the family parlor some time later as they were eagerly eating the cookies and milk that Mrs. Nichols had brought them.  
  
"Good morning Aunt Lily!" Both said as Lily entered the room with a curious Harry in her arms.  
  
Harry was looking around the room, surprised to see the colorful decorations and odd shaped objects around the room.  
  
He grunted and pointed to every little thing that grabbed his attention.  
  
"Good morning girls, you're up a little too early." Lily said as she smiled down at the two girls as they sat crossed-legged on the floor next to the coffee table where the plate of cookies was.  
  
"Oh we've been up for hours."  
  
"Grandma and Aunt Rose are still sleeping." They said.  
  
"I wish I was back in bed." Grunted James; coming into the room after his wife. "But your cousin has the same tendency as you do of getting up at an ungodly hour."  
  
The girls laughed at the sight of James. His hair was more untidy than usual and it seemed that he had forgotten to change his pants as his stripped pajamas pants covered his legs.  
  
James shrugged. "I got up too fast." He mumbled as way of explanation.  
  
Lily felt sorry for him. Harry had woken up a little too early and had been fussy since then. Minnie and Lily tried to keep him quiet but they were not successful. Lily finally decided to dress and take Harry downstairs. She thought that perhaps the decorations would keep him entertained for a while. James had been woken by all the movement and when he saw his wife preparing for the day, he left the bed and started to dress half asleep. He didn't listen when Lily told him to stay in bed.  
  
Lily put Harry by his cousins, who were eager to play with him, and went to her husband, who sat on one of the couches looking at the children with sleepy eyes.  
  
"You should've remained in bed." She said as she stroked his hair until it was tidier, as tidy as it could get.  
  
James shrugged again. "I wouldn't had been able to go back to sleep." He said.  
  
Harry was squealing with laughter as his cousins made faces and noises to him.  
  
"Let's go in to breakfast." Lily urged and took his hand. She pulled him off his seat before reaching for Harry and leading the others to the small dining room, near to the kitchens.  
  
The round table in the middle of room could be enlarged to seat fifteen people if needed, at the moment it was only big enough to hold eight. The table was covered in lace cloth, red and green silken threads embroidered into it. A colorful flower arrangement stood in the middle, surrounding a large candlestick, a white candle on it. Three of the walls held large windows, the curtains, made of green velvet and red lace, around them had been pulled back and the snowed scenery glistened through them. Against the one remaining wall was a large table where the platters of food were placed to allow the family to chose what they would eat.  
  
Five chairs had been placed around the table this morning, one of them was a high chair. Lily placed Harry in his chair as the girls scrambled into their own right beside it. Roberts stepped forward at once to serve the girls as James walked up to the table to serve himself.  
  
"What do you want Lily?" He asked turning to look at his wife as she kept Harry from moving too much on his chair.  
  
"Whatever you are having." She said with a sigh as Harry looked down at the plate that Roberts had placed in front of him.  
  
James picked two plates and piled food on both. He placed one of them in front of Lily's seat when he approached the table.  
  
"Thank you dear." She said as she fed Harry.  
  
The small family ate happily. The snow was falling, the day looked dreary, but the atmosphere inside was cheery and hopeful.  
The snow continued to fall throughout the day. At noon, Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans made their appearance in the Manor.  
  
The twins took Harry outside, the three bundled in warm clothes to keep warm, and showed him how to do a snowman, not that he paid much attention as he looked at the white stuff all over his clothes with curiosity.  
  
Lily, Mrs. Evans and Mrs. Potter watched them from the parlor's windows as they drank hot chocolate and gossiped about their acquaintances.  
  
James had retired to his bookroom to look over the Daily Prophet in silence but Roberts found him asleep when he went in to offer some drinks. The butler left his employer alone and softly closed the door behind him.  
  
The smells of the dinner that Otty, the cook elf, was preparing permeated the room. Some of the dogs from the kennels, the youngest and oldest of the lot, were brought into the house to keep them warm during winter. Patsy and Roger, the oldest pair, were sleeping in front of the fireplace at their master's feet in the bookroom. The youngest were with the twins and Harry playing in the snow along with the small kitten that had curled by Harry as he played with the snow.  
  
It was a quiet, festive day, and everybody enjoyed themselves.  
  
The children stayed outside for a few hours only. Lily was worried that Harry would get sick if he stayed out much longer.  
  
James emerged from his nap in high spirits and joined his nieces in an energetic game of tag around the game room, with a bouncing Harry watching from his Grandmother Rose's lap.  
  
Dinner was served early that evening. There were seven chairs around the table this time and Otty prepared a magnificent dinner for them. Roasted duck, smoked pork chops, hot soups, and cold salads, but it was the desserts that had grabbed their attention. As was customary, the pudding stood in place of honor in the middle of the table; it was accompanied by cookies of assorted shapes and colors. There was also a plate of apple sauce. Otty had not forgotten Harry either, a platter with baby food made its appearance as well.  
  
The family ate with enthusiasm, Minnie had come along to feed Harry to allow Lily to eat without worry.  
  
The day ended in this merry atmosphere, as the children were sent to bed early. They didn't mind though, as their dreams were filled with images of what Father Christmas would bring for them.  
The snow was falling once more as Lily awoke the next morning. She opened the curtains on the window to look out and found a wondrous sight. The barren trees were covered in white and the distant lake shone as the sunlight hit it.  
  
She heard a whimper coming from Harry's room and she hurried to her son's side.  
  
She found Harry awake, his blanket had fallen from his body during the night and he was getting to screw his face and cry.  
  
"Shhhh Harry, you'll wake your father." Lily whispered as she grabbed the blanket and put it around Harry before taking him in her arms.  
  
Harry looked at the kind face looking down upon him and he smiled.  
  
"Yes, I'm happy to see you too." She whispered as she walked to the rocking chair in front of the window.  
  
Harry cooed and smiled up at his mother.  
  
Lily chuckled. "Just like your father. You are charming when you want something. I bet you are hungry." She said as she prepared to feed him.  
  
James turned on the bed and stretched his arm to reach for his wife. His arm touched the mattress. He opened his eyes and looked around. Lily was not in the room. He looked out the window and saw the snow falling. He groaned and fell back on the bed. He heard whispering and cooing coming from his son's room and smiled.  
  
"I bet the little tyke is awake." He whispered to himself. Might as well get up, he thought before putting aside the blankets and reaching for his robe.  
  
The sound of his naked feet on the floor was muffled by the thick carpet. He walked promptly to Harry's room.  
  
He found Lily rocking on the chair beside the window as she fed Harry.  
  
Even though he made no sound, Lily looked toward him with a smile. She didn't seem surprised to see him there, it seemed that a sixth sense had told her that he had entered the room.  
  
"Good morning." He said as he leaned against the doorway watching his wife and son with a smile.  
  
"Morning." She said.  
  
Harry turned his head when he heard his father's voice, when he couldn't see him, he whimpered.  
  
James approached them in an instant and looked down on his son. Harry saw him and smiled.  
  
"Merry Christmas Harry." James said before kissing his son's cheek with tenderness.  
  
Harry lost interest on his father and turned to continue eating.  
  
James laughed. "I've been traded for food."  
  
Lily chuckled and reached for James' hand. "He loves you all the same."  
  
James stood by the chair looking down at his wife and son as Harry finished eating.  
  
As soon as he was done, Minnie appeared in the room, ready to prepare Harry for the day.  
  
James and Lily walked to their room to get dressed.  
  
Half an hour later, after getting Harry from his room, they descended the stairs to the family rooms. They found the twins squealing with excitement by the Christmas tree.  
  
"You're finally here."  
  
"We've been waiting for ages." The girls said as soon as Lily and James entered.  
  
Harry squealed with laughter and clapped when he saw his cousins.  
  
"Merry Christmas Harry!"  
  
"Merry Christmas Harry!" The girls danced around James and Lily, Harry pointed at them as they went around.  
  
"Calm down girls, calm down. We'll open our presents in a moment. Let's wait for Mother and Mrs. Evans." James urged the twins.  
  
The twins settled down by the tree as Mrs. Evans entered the room.  
  
"Merry Christmas." She said.  
  
"Merry Christmas." Everybody responded  
  
It wasn't long when Mrs. Potter joined them and finally, presents were exchanged and opened.  
  
The girls laughed and squealed with surprise as their gifts were opened. Clothes, toys and jewelry was thrown around them. Harry sat in his mother's lap as the presents given to him were opened with care by Lily.  
  
"Look Harry, look what you got?" Lily said to Harry as she held up a pair of pajamas with Quidditch balls zooming across it.  
  
Harry reached for them and put them in his mouth.  
  
James laughed. "No Harry, you wear them, not eat them." He said as he tried to get the pajamas from Harry's mouth.  
  
Harry cried as soon as the pajamas were taken from him.  
  
"Let him have them James, they can be washed before he wears them." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
James shook his head in resignation and gave Harry the pajamas. Harry stopped crying and the pajamas were back in his mouth.  
  
"He will be spoiled if we let him do what he wants." James said.  
  
"Oh, that would not spoil him. It's nothing." Said Mrs. Evans with a dismissing wave of her hand.  
  
James shrugged. "If you say so."  
  
He turned to look at Lily, who had reached for his gift to her and was getting ready to open it.  
  
Lily unwrapped a thin box, it clearly was a jewelry box. She turned to look at James with a smile.  
  
"You didn't have to get me jewelry." She said.  
  
"You don't even know what is inside." He laughed.  
  
She turned back to the box and opened it. She gasped at the sight. "Oh James!"  
  
A necklace lay on the velvet cloth, a strand of diamonds, separated by glittering emeralds. Below it stood a ring. An emerald ring with small surrounding diamonds.  
  
"Do you like it?" He asked her.  
  
"Oh yes, it is beautiful." She said.  
  
"Here, let me put them on you." He said as he reached for them.  
  
He turned Lily on her side and clasped the necklace behind her. Lily turned back to her previous position to look down at the necklace as James reached for the ring. He slid it down her finger.  
  
"Let me show you what this does." He said once the ring was in place.  
  
"It does something?" Lily asked.  
  
James passed the palm of his hand on the ring and it started to glow. A moment later, a golden mist swirled around it. As the mist retreated an image started to form. The image was of James, Lily and Harry. All waving to the real James and Lily above them.  
  
Tears were glistening in Lily's eyes. "Oh James, that is so sweet of you." She said before kissing him.  
  
Harry cried, it seemed that he didn't like his father getting all the attention.  
  
James laughed and reached for him. "You have to share her you know." He said, looking down at his son.  
  
Harry just cooed and grasped James' robes.  
  
"Yes, you are happy now." James said as he bounced a squealing Harry on his knee.  
  
Lily smiled contently at the two of them before turning to show her gifts from James to her mother and Mrs. Potter.  
  
The twins soon joined James and showed him all they got while he tried to keep Harry from grabbing anything on sight to put it in his mouth.  
  
After all the gifts had been opened and taken by the servants to put away, the family filed into the family dining room.  
  
Freshly baked scones and biscuits, warm spiced cider, hot chocolate and tea, bacon, eggs, toasted bread, jams, and much more, was piled into platters in the large table against the wall.  
  
Usually, Roberts and one or two of his footmen helped the family as they served themselves, this morning they were not there. The staff was having their own special breakfast in the large kitchens, while the family ate happily on their own.  
  
Breakfast didn't last long, the family had to prepare for the wave of visitors that would come later on the day.  
  
The first to arrive were Sirius and Katie, who would be staying for the rest of the day and share Christmas dinner with them.  
  
"Where is Harry? Where is my godson?" Hollered Sirius from the entrance the moment they got there.  
  
The family were waiting in the formal parlor room, just by the entrance hall. The footmen were preparing a long table were foodstuff would be place to greet the visitors. Roberts had gone to open the door when the bell rang and stood with a smile beside the door as Sirius made his way to the parlor as soon as Roberts had let him know that the family was there.  
  
"There is no need to shout Sirius." Katie chided as she followed at a slower pace behind him.  
  
Harry had perked up and looked toward the door when he heard his godfather's voice and when Sirius walked into the room, his whole little face lighted up with a smile.  
  
"There you are, Happy Christmas Harry!" Sirius said as he reached down for his godfather and lifted him high above his head.  
  
Harry squealed with laughter.  
  
"Be careful Sirius!" Both Lily and Katie exclaimed.  
  
James laughed. "I don't know if I should be offended that you came to see only Harry."  
  
"Oh posh! You know I came to see you all." Sirius laughed as he sat on one of the chairs and set Harry on his lap. Harry was currently eyeing with curiosity the glistening, diamond pin on Sirius' tie.  
  
Both Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans chuckled. The twins ran up to him and hugged him before turning to hug Katie.  
  
"Uncle Sirius!"  
  
"Aunt Katie!"  
  
"We got lots of stuff."  
  
"And Harry got lots of stuff too."  
  
The girls squealed to their visitors.  
  
Katie smiled down at the girls before turning to greet Lily and James.  
  
"Nice to have you with us dears, do you want a small drink?" Mrs. Potter offered as soon as everybody was settled in their seats.  
  
"Don't mind if I do." Exclaimed Sirius leaving his seat to approach the table being piled with drinks and appetizers by the footmen.  
  
Katie laughed but shook her head. "No thank you."  
  
Lily turned eagerly to her friend. "Tell the latest news, I heard that.."  
  
James had followed Sirius to the table. Sirius was busily choosing something to eat and James noticed that he had given Harry a stick of bread, who was munching happily.  
  
"Really Sirius, you are going to make my son grow fat. That is really unhealthy." James said reaching for Harry.  
  
Harry went quietly to his father.  
  
"No he won't, if he is like all the Potters, he could eat all this food and not gain a pound." Sirius said smiling cheekily at James.  
  
James snorted but said nothing more. Sirius was right. The Potters were known for their huge appetite and fast metabolism.  
  
The group settled to wait. It wasn't long when the neighbors started to arrive with Christmas cheer.  
The Manor had finally fallen silent after all the people who had arrived to give their respects. Dinner was served early. Otty had prepared a fabulous feast with roasted turnkey, smoked ham, marinated Cornish hens, salads, onion soup and mushroom sauce. The Christmas pudding was brought at last and everybody enjoyed the cookies and jams that had been served along with it. The blow ticklers and crackers were a huge favorite with the children, not to mention with Sirius as well.  
  
Harry had fallen asleep after being shown off to lots of people and dining with his family. The twins had also gone to bed. They had spent a fun afternoon with Sirius, playing in the snow.  
  
The rooms were now dark and only a few were lighted. Two young men were sitting in the bookroom smoking near the lighted fireplace.  
  
"Do you reckon we should go to town then?" James asked.  
  
"I would if I were you." Sirius said.  
  
"I knew the charm would eventually wear off, I just hoped that it would last longer." Sighed James.  
  
"Well, you were the one who said that there was no charm or spell that was permanent." Sirius reminded James.  
  
"I know. But now that the blocking charm has worn off, the estate is in a precarious position. Now anybody could apparate anywhere in the vicinity." James said.  
  
"How many people would know that it has worn off?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Well, not many. Only Dumbledore, the protection committee of the Ministry, you and I would know. I didn't even tell Remus and Peter about it. They just know that the charm had been performed." James replied.  
  
"Why can't it be performed again?" Sirius turned to look at his friend.  
  
"Because it was placed on a large space of land. The charm was designed to block certain buildings, and pieces of land, but not something as big as the estate and town. In order for the charm to be effective again, we need to wait for a year." James said.  
  
"Well it seems to me that going to town is the safest bet. You live just across the Ministry and after what happened there two years ago, that place is impenetrable. You'll be safe there." Sirius said.  
  
"You are right. But I can't stay there forever either. I would have to return on the spring to take care of the planting and the shearing. Then in May is the summer festival, Lily and Mother will want to be here, not to mention Harry's birthday in July and then the twins birthday. I know Lily will want to celebrate them here instead of in town." James said.  
  
"You'll have to tell Lily the truth about it then." Said Sirius.  
  
"I can't do that! She is worried enough as it is." James exclaimed.  
  
"Why is she worried?" Sirius turned to look at James with curiosity.  
  
James didn't say anything for a minute. He had almost said about the secret arrangement they had done with Dumbledore. "Well, you know how she is. Especially since Harry was born. It wouldn't do to have her worry about anything else." He finally said.  
  
Sirius looked at James for a moment, and then shrugged turning to look to the fire. James sighed silently with relief, glad that Sirius had accepted his excuse.  
  
Both man sat brooding looking at the dancing flames in the grate. Each lost in thought.  
  
The rest of the week passed without incident, if you discount the fright Harry had given his mother at being able to climb down from the couch on his own while she was talking to some neighbors. Sirius and Katie had spent the week with them.  
  
New Year's Day was upon them. The day was bright and chilly, but as a whole, they thought, a good sign that it would be a good year.  
  
When the holidays were over and Sirius and Katie had returned home, life settle down at Gryffindor Manor. Harry was five months old now and he could sit, crawl and eat solid foods. Lily and James spent as much time with him as they could. He was growing so fast and they wanted to enjoy their time with him.  
  
But in the evenings, when Lily took Harry to his room to settle him for the night, James retired to his bookroom and thought.  
  
He had a feeling that things were changing and maybe not for good. His friends were scattered all over the continent. His relationship with them seemed to be strained at best. How could they have lost contact with each other? He thought. He just hoped that their ties were strong enough that they could still rely in each other.  
  
He started thinking about Harry. What would happen to his son if things didn't go as they hoped?  
  
He reached for a parchment and a quill and started writing. He wanted to make sure he covered all the bases in case something happened.  
  
He needed to call his estate manager, Mr. Saunders, and his family solicitor, he thought, he should've made a will the moment he got married, but somehow, he always put it aside. It was time he started to think about the future.  
  
Darkness fell around him, the candles in the scones in the walls started to lit on their own, but James paid no attention to anything around him. He wrote and wrote, and wrote some more. Parchment after parchment piled in front of him, until his eyes started to feel heavy with sleep. He pushed the parchments from him and looked them over. They were enough for now, he thought.  
  
He stretched his muscles and looked out the window. The sky was clear and the stars were shinning above.  
  
He sighed with exhaustion and decided to go to bed. Lily might be waiting for him in their room.  
  
He left the bookroom behind and made his way up the stairs toward their bedroom. He needed to tell Lily that he had decided to move the family to town for the rest of the winter, there was no need for her to know why, he would come up with something. But for now, he had the feeling that it would be best if they were far away from the Manor, he didn't know why, but he had a strange feeling that they were in danger. He needed to have his family somewhere safe, and the Potter House in Rowe Square was the safest place to be now that the Ministry had placed a protective shield around the Square after the attack a couple of years ago.  
  
The lights around the house died and soon the Manor was dark and asleep. In the distance, among the trees of the forest on the other side of the lake, a dark shadow stepped from the darkness and shivering from the cold disappeared from sight.  
A/N: I know that this is short compared to other chapters I've done. But I'll try to post another chapter by Friday to make up for it. Don't forget to review and I hope you like what comes next. For those of you who asked the address for the HP.com site, it is in here: &board=Book 


	39. Part III Chapter 4

A/N: As I said, here is one more chapter for you. I think the next couple of chapters are a little more sadder and maybe darker than previous ones, so prepare yourself, maybe some of you will not be too happy with the outcome but you'll see what I mean when you read chapter 5, which I hope to have ready soon. Hope you like this and thank you for reading.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own nor gain anything by writing this story.  
Chapter 4 ~ Making Arrangements  
Lily was very curious to know why James decided to leave for town so suddenly. James had told her that he wanted to see how things were going on politically, especially with all the dark magic going on and the Ministry not being able to come up with a way to stop it.  
  
The Daily Prophet had reported that the giants had joined Voldemort and his group, everyday there were news of towns being flattened to the ground. The Ministry was having a hard job trying to keep the hysteria that was running through the magical world from spilling into the muggle world. It was hard enough to keep the sightings of giants secret.  
  
The dementors were also being reported to have joined Voldemort. Not that Lily placed a lot of trust in those reports, Azkaban was their home after all, the Ministry would not be stupid enough to keep them as guardians to Azkaban if they had deserted to Voldemort. Only a fool would allow them to stay in such a position.  
  
It took James and Lily a week to move the household to the Potter House in London. Mrs. Potter, Mrs. Evans and the twins would be joining them as well. Roberts and Mrs. Nichols left to the Potter House the day before Lily and James would leave the Manor with the rest of the family and the servants. James wanted to take everyone with him.  
  
The day for the move had finally arrived. It was early in the morning. The sun was trying to shine through the dark clouds that lined the sky. One of the family cars had been brought round to the front door and was being loaded with some of the luggage, but the seats were kept empty for the family. Two moving trucks were behind it, both were loaded with boxes and furniture. A bus was waiting upon the curve, it would take the muggle servants to town. Just before noon, all the trucks had been loaded and the bus was filled with the chatting servants. Lily and the children were already in the car, while Mrs. Evans and Mrs. Potter checked their lists to make sure they were not leaving anything behind.  
  
James walked through the house. Everything seemed so strange now that the house was silent. He hoped that it would not be long when they could return. He had owled to Dumbledore some weeks ago about his concerns and about taking his family to town. Dumbledore had agreed with his plan, he was reading the signs, he had said, something momentous was going to happen and he was sure it would take place before the year was out. James prayed that it would have nothing to do with him and his family.  
  
He finally stepped outside. Everybody had piled into the vehicles and were waiting for him. He pulled his wand from his pocket and waved it before the front door. The house glowed for a second and James turned to enter the car.  
  
Soon, the caravan started toward the lane and the Manor was left behind. Mr. Sanders, the estate manager, and some of the tenants waved goodbye from the end of the lane, everybody hoping to see them back soon.  
  
James turned back to look behind him. The back of his neck prickled, he had a feeling that they were being monitored. He shook his head. Nonsense, he thought, there was no reason why they were being watched.  
  
The trip was shorter than they expected. They only stopped once to have a picnic luncheon, even though it was not the season for picnics, the group was big enough that a picnic was the best choice.  
  
Darkness was starting to fall when the caravan made its way into town toward Rowe Square. The streets were congested as people drove back home after a busy day at work. Lily had forgotten how busy life could be in the big city. It was easy to relax and live one day at a time in the country, but in the city, things were much different.  
  
In the country, wizards and witches could wear their robes and nobody could say anything about it. They could go to solitary places to fly their brooms and have a good game of Quidditch. They were free to do as they wished, as long as they were careful. In the city, wizards and witches had to dress in muggle clothing, their houses had to contain muggle artifacts in order to fool their neighbors. They couldn't fly if they wished to do so, and most of them had to have a blocking charm around their homes to keep their magical pets from escaping and giving a scare to their muggle friends. It was a very confining way of living.  
  
The vehicles finally made it to Rowe Square. The stately houses stood proudly next to each other. In one corner of the Square stood the Regency Hotel, and in another corner stood a large office building, to the muggle eye it was just like any other, to those with magical blood, it was the Ministry of Magic. Rowe Park stood in the middle of the square, blanketed with snow and the light posts shining brightly.  
  
The trucks were quickly emptied, the servants ran up and down the stairs putting things in order, James and Lily stood by the trucks, directing the group of servants as Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans kept the twins and Harry entertained and out of the way. Sirius and Katie walked across the park to welcome them home. By the time the streets were silent and night had fallen, the family and the servants were settled in, taking dinner and looking forward to a good night's sleep.  
They had been in town for two weeks now and the month of January was almost over. James had spent a lot of time in the Ministry in business that Lily knew nothing about.  
  
James had been very secretive for the last couple of weeks. Lily knew that something was happening but didn't know what to do and how to get James to speak with her. She also knew that he had been owling Dumbledore constantly. She hoped that nothing dangerous was going on.  
  
When Harry was born, they had both decided to stay away from dangerous activities, they wanted to help Dumbledore in his battle against Voldemort but at the same time, they didn't want to put Harry in any danger. They had agreed to perform the charm that Dumbledore had required, and in Lily's point of view, that was enough. But she knew that James didn't want to stay safely at home. He wanted to be out there, doing something to help. She knew that he was a good wizard and that he could take very good care of himself, but that didn't keep her from worrying.  
  
On this cold January morning, Lily and James sat around the dining room table. Lily was busy feeding Harry while James sat behind the paper reading the latest news.  
  
Lily turned to look at James when he snorted with disgust.  
  
"What is wrong?" She asked.  
  
"Nothing, just the Ministry making things worse than they should be. The Death Eaters are out there wrecking havoc on our world and they can't seem to find a way to stop them. There are more agents in the Ministry than there are Death Eaters for goodness sake." James growled with anger.  
  
Lily frowned. "Maybe they think that it would be better if they can defeat Voldemort first. If they take his followers out from beneath him, he would still be strong and all he has to do is find others who can be as good as the ones he has with him now."  
  
"Perhaps, but it would do no good for them to go after Voldemort. He is too clever to allow himself to fall into any of the Ministry's traps. He has kept himself out of their grasp for more than ten years, what do they think has changed?" James exclaimed.  
  
"Don't worry James, the magical world has survived many things over the centuries, we will survive this." Lily said in a soothing voice.  
  
"I'm sorry, it just that the Ministry cannot seem to be able to do a thing and it's worrying me." James said with a deprecating smile.  
  
"I know. But things cannot be any worse than it is now, could it?" Lily looked at James with sympathetic eyes.  
  
"I don't see how, but I don't want to know if it can." James said.  
  
He stood from his chair and kissed his wife's brow before kissing his son's hair. He left he room, purposely walking toward the front hall.  
  
Lily watched him go with worry.  
  
Harry whimpered as he tried to grab the spoon in his mother's hand, but it was out of his reach.  
  
"Something is going on Harry, I can feel it." Lily said before turning back to feed her son.  
Everybody was scared. The magical world had become lost in a wave of hysteria and darkness. The Dark Mark was a common sight. It struck horror to the hearts of those who glimpsed it and to some it brought dark memories.  
  
How could things get any worse? Lily had asked, but James now got the feeling that they could.  
  
He was sitting in the library one evening. Lily and their mothers had gone out to the theater. The twins and Harry were under Minnie's care. He was sitting behind his desk with pages of the Daily Prophet were spread before him.  
  
He shook with anger and the sense of helplessness. He wanted to be out there and get his hand on these monsters. But at the same time, he wanted to stay home and keep all this horror from his door and protect his family from any danger.  
  
He was lost in thought when he suddenly heard voices in the front hall. Somebody had come to visit and Roberts was taking care of them. James didn't put much attention to the voices, he went back to his thoughts and was rather taken aback when the door to the library was opened abruptly and Sirius came running into the room.  
  
"What happened, what is wrong?" James asked as he looked at his friend who seemed rather shaken.  
  
"The Bones were killed James, their house totally destroyed and that evil mark floating above it." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"What about the children? They had children." James asked rather worried.  
  
"They were fine, they were staying with one of the grandmothers." Sirius said. "James this is not a coincidence. The McKinnons were killed some days ago and the Prewetts some weeks ago." Sirius said.  
  
"But that means."  
  
"They know who we are, they know who is part of Dumbledore's team." Sirius finished for him.  
  
The two young men looked at each other with worry.  
  
"I'm sending Katie away. I don't want her where she could be hurt." Sirius said.  
  
"It will be a waste of breath Sirius, she will not go. I would do the same with Lily but I know that I wouldn't be able to." James said running his hands through his hair. It was something that he did whenever he was worried.  
  
"I know. But I have to try. I can live without her if I know she is safe, I couldn't if I knew that she died when I could've been able to do something." Sirius started to pace before the desk. "I know that she wants to have a child, but now I'm glad that we don't. I couldn't live with myself if I knew that my child could be hurt." Sirius whispered to himself.  
  
Harry's face flashed through James' mind, as did the faces of his nieces. They had suffered through enough, but to have them in danger was not a thing that he could handle.  
  
"What does Dumbledore has to say about these news?" James asked.  
  
"He hasn't said a thing, he called for a meeting tonight." Sirius said. "We will meet in Hogwarts at midnight."  
  
James turned to look at the clock and saw that it was only fifteen minutes to eight. There was still time, they could Floo to Hogsmeade, that would take less than five minutes, then it would only take them fifteen to walk to Hogwarts, less if they used one of the secret passages.  
  
"Lily and our mothers will be back by then. I'm sure that they will be tired from their night out." James said.  
  
"Does that mean that you're going?" Sirius said with a lifted brow.  
  
"Of course I am." James snapped.  
  
"No reason to snap at me, I just thought that you had given it up when Harry was born." Sirius replied.  
  
"I did, but I can't stay here when I know that something is wrong." James sighed.  
  
"I know the feeling." Sirius sat on one of the chairs set in front of the desk.  
  
"Do you think that you will be able to get Katie to leave?" James suddenly asked.  
  
"I don't know, but I'm hoping that I will."  
  
"Will you tell her about everything?"  
  
"Only if I don't have a choice."  
  
"Good luck." James said.  
  
"I will need it." Sirius sighed with desperation.  
  
"She will be fine." James tried to soothe his friend.  
  
"I hope so." Sirius whispered.  
It was almost eleven when Lily, Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans returned from the theater. James was hoping that they would be ready for bed, but in case they weren't, he had a plan, he only had half an hour at the most before he had to leave.  
  
"Hello dear, you didn't have to wait up for us." Lily exclaimed when she saw James standing by the stairs as they entered the house.  
  
"I know, I just wanted to know about your evening. Did you have fun?" He asked with a charming smile.  
  
"Oh, it was a great evening." Mrs. Evans said.  
  
"Perhaps you are tired and I shouldn't keep you up." James said looking at the three vibrant women before him.  
  
"Oh fiddlesticks! We are not sleepy at all. I think we should have some tea." Mrs. Potter said as they walked toward the family parlor.  
  
James saw Lily nodding to Roberts and knew that a fresh pot of tea and some biscuits would be soon brought to the parlor.  
  
He looked down at his watch. He had twenty-three minutes to get them all to bed.  
  
"Did the children behave themselves?" Lily asked as she took a seat by the French doors looking out to the back yard.  
  
"Yes." James replied leaning against the mantel. "They played the whole evening until they were too tired to stay up."  
  
"Oh good. This change of scenery is good for them." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
James nodded his agreement but said nothing more.  
  
Roberts entered the room a loaded tray in his arms. Suddenly, he tripped, James was just in time to keep the tray from falling to the floor. Roberts looked down in consternation, in all his years as a butler he had never had such an embarrassing moment. He spied a turned corner in the rug, it had been the culprit of his downfall.  
  
"Nothing to worry about Roberts, it could happen to anyone." James said.  
  
"Yes Sir, I'm sorry Sir." Roberts said.  
  
"Don't be sorry. Go to your bed Roberts. I'll make sure that everything is locked before I go to bed." James said.  
  
"Thank you Sir. Good night." Roberts said before he retreated.  
  
"Poor Roberts." Giggled Lily behind her hands.  
  
"Indeed. I'm sure he is feeling horrible at the moment." Chuckled Mrs. Potter.  
  
While the ladies were busy feeling sorry for Roberts, James slipped the clear potion he had hidden in a small vial into the pot. He quickly put the vial into his pocket as he placed the tray on the coffee table. He looked down at his watch, he only had fifteen minutes to get them to bed.  
  
Lily poured the tea into the cups and passed them to the other ladies.  
  
"Do you want some James?" She asked looking up at her husband.  
  
"No, I think I had enough as I waited for you." He laughed.  
  
Lily smiled and sipped her tea.  
  
They had only drank half of their tea when Mrs. Evans began to yawn.  
  
"Oh my! It seems that I'm more tired than I thought." She said sheepishly.  
  
"Hmmm, I'm getting sleepy as well. Perhaps it would be better if I retire as well." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"You are right. We should get to bed." Lily said. Putting down her cup.  
  
James watched his ladies retire to their rooms with a sense of satisfaction. He looked down at his watch, he made it with seven minutes to spare.  
  
He followed Lily up to their room and saw her fall asleep in a matter of seconds. He grabbed his robes and slipped out of the room. He walked through the house quickly, making sure everything was locked and made his way to the library. Because Rowe Square was now protected by a special charm, no apparating could be done in any of the buildings, but Floo would work. He grabbed a pinch of the powder in the china bowl above the grate and threw it into the roaring fire. The flames shot up and shone brightly. He stepped into the flames and with a swirling sound disappeared from sight.  
The Three Broomsticks was rather dark and quiet when James stepped out of the fireplace. A brooding young man was waiting nearby.  
  
"I wasn't sure if you were going to make it." The young man said looking at the clock on the opposite wall.  
  
James turned toward the young man and shrugged. "I had to wait until Lily and the others were asleep. I had to slip them a sleeping potion because they didn't seem to want to go to bed at all."  
  
"Let's go, if we take the passage from the Shack we can make it on time." Sirius said and led the way out of the pub.  
  
The night was bitterly cold. The cloaks of the two young men swirled around them as the breeze took hold of them. Every house they passed was dark and the curtains in the windows drawn. In fact, it seemed that the Three Broomsticks and the pub at the other end of town were the only buildings open at that time. The two shivering men sneaked into a dilapidated house. The lane on which it was located was completely silent and vacant.  
  
"Gods, these place does look scary in the middle of the night. I never really noticed it before." Sirius exclaimed once they were both inside the house.  
  
"I never noticed either, I'm just glad that everybody thinks as you do, we would have a hard time explaining why we were sneaking in here." James replied.  
  
The two men made their way to the entrance of the secret passage. It was clear that both knew their way around the house very well.  
  
"Listen!" James exclaimed stopping Sirius in mid-stride.  
  
"What?" Whispered Sirius.  
  
"I thought I heard footsteps." James whispered back.  
  
"Who else could be in here?" Sirius looked around the darkened room.  
  
The dim light penetrating through slits in the boarded windows cast sinister shadows across the room.  
  
"Remus and Peter could." James also looked around.  
  
"But Peter is not coming, Dumbledore couldn't get in contact with him in time." Sirius said.  
  
"And Remus is supposed to be in Asia." James replied.  
  
"He would've let us know, wouldn't he?" Sirius asked with a hopeful expression. James nodded with an abstracted air . They were silent for a few minutes. The house was silent.  
  
"Maybe it was the wind." Sirius said.  
  
"Could be." James frowned.  
  
"Come, we are going to be late." Sirius pulled James toward the door that would allow them to enter the passage leading to Hogwarts.  
  
The passage was dark and roots seemed to have grown through the cracks of the walls.  
  
James took out his wand and whispered "lumos" the wand tip illuminated his way. Sirius followed suit.  
  
"It feels different somehow." Sirius whispered.  
  
"Just a little." Replied James.  
  
They continued to walk in silence until the back of the Whipping Willow stood before them.  
  
"How are we going to get out? We are too big to press the knot at the base of the tree." Said Sirius.  
  
"Look around. There has to be a log or a root, or something to press it." James said looking around.  
  
Both held their wands high and looked around the floor. Finally, Sirius saw something that could work.  
  
"Here try this." Sirius shoved a crooked root to James. It looked like a misshaped hook.  
  
James kneeled behind the tree and reached the knot in the base of the trunk with the root. The flailing arms of the Willow stood still.  
  
"There, let's go." Said James leading the way out of the passage.  
  
They had taken less time coming through the passage than they would've had if they had taken the longer route to the front of the castle. As it were, they were just in time as a group of cloaked wizards and witches passed through the open castle doors.  
  
Professor McGonagall led them through the darkened corridors of the large structure. The subjects in the paintings were sleeping, and miraculously, Peeves was not in sight.  
  
They were led through the corridors leading up to the closed Transfiguration classroom. As everybody present had attended Hogwarts at one time, they all knew where they were going.  
  
Professor McGonagall stepped aside the moment she had opened the door to her classroom and let the others pass. She nodded in greeting to those present as they passed.  
  
"Dumbledore will be here presently." She said as everybody had taken a seat and left them.  
  
"I don't know why but I feel as if we had been caught for a prank and we are about to find out what our detention is." Sirius said turning to look at James through twinkling eyes.  
  
"She does make you feel that way, doesn't she?" James chuckled.  
  
The door opened again and Dumbledore came, closely followed by another cloaked person.  
  
The cloaked person turned to take a seat behind James and Sirius. Not that they or anybody else took note of it as they had their eyes fixed in their former Headmaster.  
  
Every time James and Sirius had spoken to the Headmaster, he looked serene and strong. Now, he looked worried and the twinkle in his eyes seemed to have disappeared.  
  
"I have a bad feeling about this." Sirius whispered.  
  
Those around him that heard him agreed in silence.  
  
"Welcome, I'm saddened that we had to come together at such a time." Dumbledore said as he took a seat in front of the room. "As you know, two of our members have been killed. If it had been only them, I wouldn't be so worried, we all knew that we could be attacked. But they were the third to be killed in a matter of weeks."  
  
"They know who we are, don't they?" Somebody asked.  
  
"It looks that way." Dumbledore responded.  
  
"But how?" Somebody else exclaimed.  
  
"We have a spy. One of us has betrayed us." Sirius said.  
  
The room fell totally silent. Everybody looked furtively at their neighbors. The same question was on everybody's mind, who could it be?  
  
"I'm afraid that it is true. It's too much of a coincidence." Dumbledore nodded sadly.  
  
"Do you know who it is?" James asked, a sense of anger welling inside him. Who would be so cowardly?  
  
"I'm sorry to say that I don't. My own sources do not know, but whoever he is, he has Voldemort's ear." Dumbledore replied.  
  
"I hate to think that one of our own is responsible for the death of some in our group." Someone sobbed.  
  
"I too, hate the thought. But there doesn't seem to be another answer. Somebody has knowledge of who our members are." Dumbledore looked around the room.  
  
Sirius seemed to be speechless with shock.  
  
James sighed, trying to keep the anger that he felt at bay.  
  
"Is everybody here?" Somebody said from behind James.  
  
James turned around to see who the speaker was and his eyes opened with surprise at the sight of his friend.  
  
"Sirius," he whispered, nudging him on the ribs, "Remus is here."  
  
"Huh?" Sirius asked confused.  
  
"Not everyone is here, there were some that I could not get in contact with, and there are some that have gone into hiding." Dumbledore responded.  
  
"Should we all do that? Should we go into hiding?" A trembling voice said.  
  
"That is your choice." Dumbledore said somewhat saddened.  
  
"We can't go into hiding." James exclaimed. "If we go running to hide, then we have lost and Voldemort has won. He won't stop until he has total control of our world, I don't know about you, but I don't want my son to grow up fearing him."  
  
"We could take precautions." A woman said from the front. James recognized her from that day when the Death Eaters had attacked Hogsmeade, he also remembered her name, Annabella Figgs. "We could only meet when necessary but there should be a core group, a sort of committee that will keep in touch with the rest. Each person in the committee will have the names of a group. Not two groups would be the same, therefore, the names in each list would be different. Nobody would know who belongs to which group and only the committee members would know the names and personal information of their respective groups."  
  
"But we all know each other now, we know where we live, what good would that do?" Somebody asked.  
  
"We can move. We are all thinking of hiding, we could all move, but the new information would only be known to Dumbledore and the committee member heading their group." Somebody else said.  
  
"That could work. I want to keep my family safe, but I also don't like the thought of going into hiding, it's just too risky and it could take forever to take Voldemort down if we don't do anything." A man said from behind.  
  
"That's Fletcher isn't it?" Sirius whispered looking around.  
  
James nodded.  
  
Dumbledore nodded, he was gladdened that almost all present wanted to continue with their work. He knew that they were all scared, but mostly for their families than for themselves. "There are some parchments at the end of the desks, write the name of five of our members you trust the most, the ones with the most votes, will be the committee."  
  
There was a lot of rustling and scratching sounds of quills for a few moments. There was a small box on the desk from where Dumbledore spoke. The parchments were placed inside.  
  
"I think it would be safer if I send the results by owl to those chosen, you will all receive notice to whose group you belong to, you won't know who else is in your group, only the committee member that will head it." Dumbledore said.  
  
The others nodded their agreement.  
  
"We have done a lot tonight, it is time for you to return home. Remember to let me know if you are changing, be careful." Dumbledore said as his listeners left their seats. "James." He called before everybody had left the room. "Could I speak with you privately please?"  
  
James nodded to his friends and watched them leave as the room slowly emptied.  
  
"Take a seat James." Dumbledore said as he sat at one of the desks.  
  
James sat next to him.  
  
"I'm afraid that all this recent activity means that Voldemort has found out about our little arrangement." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Should we go into hiding then?" Frowned James.  
  
"I'm not sure. If he does know, it would be for the best, but if he doesn't know, we would be tipping our hand and he would put two and two together. That would be disastrous." Dumbledore said.  
  
"What should we do?" James was rather worried, should he had stayed in their estate instead of bringing his family to town?  
  
"We wait. You have moved into town, it is the best place to be at the moment. They seem to be targeting those who are rather isolated. Takes less time for the Ministry to get there than to those places in large cities. Just be careful, and vigilant. Voldemort would be after Harry if he does find out."  
  
James was rather worried at the thought that Voldemort, the most powerful Dark Wizard in ages, could be after his son. He knew what they could be getting into when he agreed to Dumbledore's plan, even though Lily was rather hesitant about it. But now, he didn't know if he had done the right thing. His first instinct was to keep his family safe, but his honor and his conscience said that he had done the right thing, that the magical world would be safe.  
  
"Go home James, take care of your family. If anything out of the ordinary happens, let me know." Dumbledore looked sadly at the young man beside him.  
  
James nodded and slowly left the room.  
  
Dumbledore sighed. The door opened once more after James had left through it. Professor McGonagall walked quickly toward him.  
  
"Did you tell them? What is going to happen?" She asked in a hurry.  
  
"Calm down Minerva, sit and I will tell you everything." Dumbledore ordered. Professor McGonagall sat in the chair that James had vacated recently.  
Sirius and Remus had stayed in the corridor waiting for James.  
  
"Where did you come from? We thought you were in Asia somewhere." Sirius said the instant they had left the room.  
  
"I was, but Dumbledore's owl seemed rather important, so I came." Remus said.  
  
"Where you the one who was creeping about in the shack before the meeting?" Sirius frowned at his friend.  
  
"I was in the shack earlier, I thought some of the ghosts had moved in there when I heard voices." Laughed Remus.  
  
Sirius glowered at his friend.  
  
"Do you think that Peter was one of those who went into hiding?" Remus suddenly asked.  
  
Sirius snorted. "He seems most likely to do so."  
  
Remus nodded. "Specially with his mother in tow, he would want to keep her safe."  
  
"I don't think going into hiding would do much good. If Voldemort wants to find you, he will. The bugger, he is like a disease, spreading everywhere with no care of whom he hurts." Sirius spat out his indignation.  
  
"Rather sad news, isn't it?" James said stepping out of the room.  
  
"That was rather quick." Exclaimed Remus.  
  
"There was no need for long explanations." Shrugged James.  
  
"Why did he want to speak with you?" Asked Sirius as the trio started to make their way out of the castle. They passed a frantic Professor McGonagall as they turned from the corridor on which the room they had left behind was located.  
  
"In a hurry isn't she?" Said James turning back to look at his former transfiguration teacher.  
  
"Don't change the subject, why did Dumbledore asked you to stay?" Sirius urged.  
  
James sighed. He knew that Sirius would not stop asking unless he got a good answer. But he really didn't feel like lying to his friend, at least he could say part of the true.  
  
"He says that I might be next in Voldemort's list." He said.  
  
His friends turned to look at him in horror.  
  
"You need to hide."  
  
"Leave the country."  
  
They exclaimed at once.  
  
James smiled. "There is no need yet. We don't know if the reports are true. He says that I'm safe in town for now, but as soon as more specifics are known we will take steps."  
  
"Are you sure, you are safe?" Asked Remus with a frown.  
  
"For now." James answered.  
  
The trio walked in silence as they continued on their way.  
James stole silently into his house. The large, stately building was dark and brooding. He crept up the stairs and undressed in silence. He could see Lily sleeping soundly on her side of the bed. The door leading to Harry's room was open and a dim light shone through.  
  
When he finally finished dressing, he walked silently into Harry's room. One candle lit the room, the flame dancing as James passed by. James approached the crib and looked down at his sleeping son.  
  
Harry was sleeping on his side, his small finger in his mouth. The small ginger kitten snuggled at the foot of the mattress.  
  
James smiled.  
  
"I'll protect you Harry, he won't get you. I'll die if I have to, but he won't get his hands on you." James promised.  
  
Harry continued to sleep silently.  
Lily awoke the next morning feeling a little groggy. She stretched and yawned and turned on her side to look at James. He was awake. He was lying on his back, his head resting on his arms. When he felt her movements, he turned to look at her and smiled.  
  
"Good morning." He said leaning on his arm and kissing her.  
  
"Hmm.good morning."  
  
James smiled down at her. "Slept well?"  
  
"Yes, but I feel strangely groggy." Lily yawned.  
  
"It will pass." James said as he turned to leave the bed.  
  
Harry's cries reached them.  
  
"I'll go." Said James and started toward Harry's room.  
  
"Bring him here, he must be hungry." Said Lily as she sat up on the bed.  
  
A few minutes later, James stepped out of Harry's room with a whimpering infant in his arms.  
  
"Here you go Harry, mum will give you something to eat." He said as he placed Harry in Lily's arms.  
  
Lily laughed but took her son with care. "Morning Harry, hungry are you?"  
  
James stood beside her as she fed Harry.  
  
She looked up at him and smiled.  
The days passed quick for the small family. Now that they lived in Rowe Square, Sirius and Katie could drop every day, they lived across the park from them. The ladies went visiting and shopping often, while the twins were taken sightseeing by Sirius and James on the afternoons, on some occasions, Harry would go along.  
  
The mornings were rather busy for James, even though Lily hadn't been able to find out why. He crossed the park every morning to go to the Ministry, it seemed that he had taken over the work that his father had left behind on his death. The Minister was quite happy with this arrangement, he had missed his friend's Alliaster sense of humor and common sense, he had saved him from committing some horrible errors on his time. Now that James was there, he didn't miss his friend so much, his son had taken the place that the father had left vacant. James became a familiar face on the large building located in a corner of Rowe Square.  
  
Lily had been rather angry at the beginning when James started to leave the house and spend a lot of time in the Ministry. She had a feeling that he was keeping something from her and it made her feel somewhat left out. But when reports of massacres done by the Death Eaters started to appear on the Daily Prophet, she understood the need that James felt of being in the Ministry, if it hadn't been for the twins and Harry she would've joined him.  
  
She then started noticing a pattern emerging in the families being attacked, many of them she had met on the secret meeting at Hogwarts about a year ago, she had given it up after she became pregnant. The pattern worried her, and it scared her as the reports started to grow.  
  
It was after reading one of these reports that she marched determinedly into James' bookroom one afternoon.  
  
James was silently reading some reports that the Ministry had recently acquired when the door was open abruptly. He looked up with surprise as his wife banged the door closed and walked quickly toward him.  
  
"They know about us don't they? Why didn't you tell me?" She exclaimed standing before him.  
  
James blinked in confusion. "Who knows what?"  
  
Lily sighed with exasperation and her anger seemed to grow. "Voldemort. He knows about us doesn't he? About Dumbledore's group." She said. When she noticed James hesitate she exclaimed, "don't lie to me James, I can see that he does know. Why didn't you tell me?"  
  
James sighed in resignation, his wife was too smart for her own good, he thought.  
  
"All right," he said, "come and sit here." He leaned back on his chair and patted his lap.  
  
Lily walked around the desk and sat in his lap, his arms promptly went around her.  
  
"Yes, it does seem that Voldemort has found out about our little group. But there is nothing that should worry you, we have taken steps to keeps us protected, these reports could be worse if we hadn't done a thing." He said motioning to the paper that was still clasped in Lily's hand.  
  
"Why would it be worse?" Lily asked as she leaned to rest her head against his shoulder.  
  
"Most moved or went into hiding, some decided to risk it and stayed. They were the ones who had been attacked." James was stroking Lily's hair, he always liked her hair, he thought.  
  
"Should we move as well? Are we in danger?" She asked quietly.  
  
"As long as we stay here we will be safe, magic does not work in the square unless you live here or work in the Ministry. We are relatively safe."  
  
"Does he know about you know what?" Whispered Lily.  
  
"Not that we know of, it is possible but as he has made no move toward us we must assume that he knows nothing." James replied.  
  
"I'm worried James, and I'm scared for Harry, what if Voldemort finds out?" Lily turned to look into James' eyes.  
  
"We'll go into hiding if needed, Dumbledore mentioned a spell in one of his owls, we might need it sometime. For now, we are safe, he seems to be targeting those less prominent in our society, but he will get bolder, we will take precautions when that happens." James said. Lily nodded and rested her head against his shoulder once more.  
  
Darkness was starting to fall, in the distance, the lights in the park were seen lighting one by one. An owl flew by in direction to the Ministry. The young couple stayed as they were long into the night.  
The talk with James helped Lily relax a little, but that didn't mean that she stopped worrying. James continued to spend his mornings in the Ministry, and Lily had decided that the family would stay within Rowe Square, the trips to the museums and the theaters stopped. If the twins, Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans thought this out of the ordinary, they didn't say a thing, but Lily liked to think that they were safer.  
  
Katie came to visit often and it was during one of these visits that Lily noticed that her friend seemed rather sad.  
  
"What is wrong Katie?" Asked Lily after the two had sat in the parlor in silence from the moment Katie had entered a few minutes ago. That was rather uncommon for Katie, she was known for her talkativeness.  
  
Katie looked sadly at her friend. "Sirius wants to send me away." She said, two fat tears slid down her cheeks.  
  
"What? Why?" Exclaimed Lily.  
  
Katie dried her tears abruptly before answering. "He seems to have gotten into his head that I will be safer if I'm not anywhere near him."  
  
Lily thought for a minute, she understood why Sirius would feel that way, she was sure that if he could James would send her and the others as far away as he could, but because of the spell that was performed on Harry, he would be safer if both she and James were with him.  
  
"You don't want to go." Lily said.  
  
"Of course I don't want to go. If he is in danger I want to be here, but he won't listen to reason, he says that he would only be easy if I'm gone into hiding." Katie sobbed.  
  
Lily sat next to her friend and hugged her. She comforted her, as Katie let the tears that she had tried so hard to hold on to fall.  
Sirius was at that moment venting his anger on James' willing ears.  
  
".And she just won't go, I don't know what else to do, I'll divorce her if she doesn't go. I want her as far away from here." Sirius was running his fingers through his hair as James leaned back on his chair and watched Sirius pace back and forth before him.  
  
"Have you told her why you want her to go?" James asked.  
  
"You mean if I told her about our meeting with Dumbledore." Sirius asked miserably. James nodded.  
  
"No." Sirius replied.  
  
James sighed. "Perhaps you should, it would be easier for her to understand if she knew why you want her gone."  
  
"Maybe." Shrugged Sirius as he continued his pacing.  
  
James said no more, sometimes his friend needed to get things into perspective in order to do the one thing he should've done from the beginning.  
Lily watched her friend leave an hour later. She was sad for her friend but at the same time understanding why Sirius would want to keep her away, she just thought he was doing it the wrong way.  
  
She walked toward the bookroom, she knew that James had spent the hour with Sirius and wondered what had happened, what had been said.  
  
The bookroom was silent when she opened the door. It now February and the weather was cold, a light flurry of snow was seen falling through the window and the fireplace was lit. She looked around until she heard a chuckle from behind one of the couches near the fireplace.  
  
Lily frowned, what was James doing, she thought. She walked silently and looked around the couch. She found James in all fours having what seemed to be a crawling race with Harry. Harry was waddling beside his father and James laughed as he crawled along. Lily smiled.  
  
James knew the moment that Lily came into the room. There was no need for him to look at her to know where she was. His instincts somehow knew where to find her. It was surprising for him that his body was so attuned to his wife's, how many people could say that about their spouses. He supposed it was another proof of how right they were for each other, she was meant to be with him and he was glad that he saw it before he could have lost her forever.  
  
Harry and James crawled along until James came close to crashing against one of the couches. He tumbled as he tried to go around it. Harry was sitting beside him, filled with laughter. Lily was sitting in the couch that he almost crashed against, she was also laughing. James looked at her with a face full of disappointment. "You could have said something."  
  
"That would be cheating! Besides, Harry was doing just fine." Lily laughed.  
  
"Fine, side with your son." Laughed James.  
  
Harry crawled up to the couch and raised his hands. "Up! Up!" He demanded.  
  
"Oh fine, you say up but won't say dad!" Exclaimed James.  
  
Lily laughed as she picked Harry and settled him in her lap. Harry put his finger on his mouth and leaned against his mother.  
  
"How did it go with Sirius?" She asked looking back to James.  
  
James stretched himself on the floor and looked up at her. "Well, considering we are speaking about Sirius."  
  
Lily smiled sadly. "Do you think he will succeed? Will Katie leave?"  
  
James sighed. "I don't know, but I do agree with him. Katie needs to leave, as long as she remains behind she will be his weakness. If the Death Eaters decide to come against us, they will try to get to Sirius through her."  
  
Lily looked down at James with a sorrowful expression. James saw it and quickly stood from the floor to sit beside her. "Don't worry, Sirius will do whatever possible to keep her safe."  
  
"I know, I'm going to miss her. It seems that I'm meant to lose all my friends because of Voldemort. First Emma and now Katie." She whispered with a voice full of tears.  
  
James hugged her tight, but it wasn't for long as Harry wailed his discontent at being held to tight by his parents. James looked sheepishly down at his son. "I'm sorry Harry, I had forgotten you where there."  
  
Harry looked up at his father frowning, and James found himself wondering if his son had understood what he had said.  
  
Lily smiled down at Harry and kissed his dark hair. She laughed as the spot of hair she had kissed stood on end.  
  
"Poor Harry, he inherited your hair." She said as she tried to pat the hair down to make it look tidier.  
  
"It's not my fault, blame all of those people hanging in the family portraits. They gave it me." Laughed James.  
  
Harry had settled himself back against his mother and his drooping eyes were slowly closing.  
  
"I'll call Minnie to ready him for bed." Offered James.  
  
"No, I want to do it." She said and gathering Harry into her arms she left he couch and made her way out of the room.  
  
James saw her leave. He sat back on the couch and turned to look at the dancing flames in the fireplace, thinking about his friend's problem.  
In another house of Rowe Squate, two loud voices could be heard coming from the modest library in the ground floor.  
  
"Why won't you listen to me? I don't want to go!" Katie stamped her foot in exasperation.  
  
Sirius sighed. "Katie, listen to me. If Voldemort comes after me, he will hurt you, I don't want you to get hurt, I couldn't live with myself if I lose you."  
  
"Oh Sirius! I know you want to keep me safe, but don't you see? I prefer to spend my last days with you than without you." She sobbed.  
  
Sirius gathered her into his arms and tried to comfort her. "I know you do sweetheart, but I would feel much stronger if I knew you were safe. You could go to America, or to Australia, anywhere you want, as long as you are far from here. I would even prefer it if you went to your cousin. That ugly git."  
  
Katie chuckled against her husband's chest. "Poor Severus, he wouldn't know what to do with me. But you said that you thought he was a Death Eater, how would I be safe with him if he is one?"  
  
"And he is one, I'm sure of it. But I'm also sure that he loves you and he wouldn't turn you in to Voldemort, if he didn't he wouldn't send you those divorce forms every week." Sirius growled.  
  
Katie chuckled once more. It was true that every week he received a packet of divorce forms from Severus. She knew that there was bad blood between her cousin and husband, but so far she didn't have much trouble keeping them away from each other.  
  
"Why don't you go see him, see what he says, I'm sure he could help to keep you hidden, it would be best that way. Perhaps if I don't know where you are, the safer you will be, there wouldn't be a way to intercept any communication that we might have and they wouldn't be able to find you." Said Sirius.  
  
"Do you really want me to get his advice?" Katie asked with a voice full of surprise.  
  
"I do. He will help you." Sirius said. He didn't like the idea of getting help from Snape, but this was about Katie, and Snape loved her, he would keep her safe, even from himself if necessary.  
  
"If that is what you want me to do, then I'll go to see him." Whispered Katie.  
  
The couple stayed embraced as the room got darker and the flames of the candles around the room extinguished.  
Severus Snape was sitting in his dark library one afternoon. He had met with somebody earlier that morning and he was busy thinking about it that he didn't hear the doorbell ring. He didn't even hear his servant walking by the library door as he made his way to open the front door. He did hear, however, the scratching on the library door a few moments later.  
  
"Yes!" He barked. He was frowning deeply, he had told his servant to leave him alone and not to bother him for anything. He was clearly displeased that his wishes were not met.  
  
The servant opened the door. "I'm sorry Sir, but there's a lady here that says she is your cousin and will not leave even though I told her you were not to be bothered." Explained the servant.  
  
"What name did she give you?" Growled Severus.  
  
"Katie Black, Sir." Said the servant.  
  
Severus' brows went up in surprise, his cousin hadn't visited his home since they were children, even though they had kept in contact. He wondered what had brought her to him and thought that if Black had done something to upset her he would be more than happy to make him pay for it.  
  
"Tell her to come in." He commanded.  
  
The servant nodded and returned some time later with Katie.  
  
The library was lighted as she entered. There were lit candles around the room and the curtains had been drawn to allow the meager sunlight available to enter through the small windows.  
  
"I'm happy to see you cousin, but I'm rather surprised, I haven't seen you since the day you got married to that prankster of yours." Severus said as he walked up to Katie and greeted her with a kiss.  
  
Katie chuckled thinking of the things Sirius had said about Severus before she left home. "Good to see you cousin. Don't worry, Sirius knows I'm here, in fact he sent me to you." She said as she took a seat in one of the couches.  
  
Severus was rather surprised to hear that, he had thought that Black didn't know about her coming to visit him.  
  
"Indeed!" He exclaimed. "Will miracles never end? And why, may I ask, did he send you to me?"  
  
"I need your opinion in an argument we are having." Katie said.  
  
Severus looked at her as if she had grown an extra head. "You want my opinion. About an argument? Are you feeling all right?"  
  
Katie chuckled, she supposed it looked rather surprising to him, considering how he and Sirius hated each other, not that she had ever found out why it was so.  
  
"I do. He says that you would know what to do." Said Katie.  
  
Severus shook his head, I must be hearing wrong, he thought.  
  
"All right," he said cautiously, "what do you want my advice on?"  
  
Katie bit her lips and looked down at her hands, clasped on her lap. "Well," she began. She waited for a moment before continuing. "He wants to send me away, he says that if things happen and Voldemort wants to go after him that I will be the one hurt." She blurted out.  
  
Severus looked at her with surprise. Many of those who spoke about Voldemort didn't say his name, they called him "Him-who-must-not-be-named" or "You-Know-Who", he supposed that he should've known that Katie and her friends would not do so. Even though the Marauders had been such pranksters in school, they did have a streak of courage, they had to if they had to pull off all the tricks they did. Well, almost all of them, except for Petegrew. He always wondered why the others allowed him to tag along, it was true that by the end he had been as strong as the others, but he was still the weakest of them all. And he had proved it several times.  
  
He knew about the orders he had carried out during the time of the Potter's marriage, the information he was meant to gather. But after that first meeting in the cottage after the attack on Hogsmeade, Severus had not seen Petegrew among the Death Eaters, he thought that he must have been frightened off and that would be his undoing, in fact, Severus had been rather surprised that the others had not killed him yet.  
  
But Katie was watching him, he would leave his thoughts for later.  
  
"Why does he think that he would become a target?" He asked. As far as he knew there was no reason for him to be one.  
  
Katie shrugged.  
  
Severus sighed. He supposed that Black would not want him to know what his actions were that would make him a target for Voldemort. But he was right, Severus thought, if he does become a target the others would go for Katie, not for Black.  
  
And he said just that. "He is right Katie, I'm afraid that if he does become a target, the Death Eaters will not go to him, they would go for you. It's not a secret that he loves you, they will try to get to him by hurting you."  
  
Katie looked down at her hands again, she was afraid that he would say that. "Do you think that I should leave then?"  
  
Severus nodeed. "It would be for the best."  
  
"But where would I go? Sirius says that it would be better if he doesn't know, that way any communication he tries would not be intercepted." Katie said  
  
Severus was rather surprised that Black had thought of that. He hated to admit it, but it seemed that Sirius Black was not just a prankster and a ladies' man, he did have a brain after all.  
  
"It is better if you leave the continent, his power is stretching into the depths of all Europe, go across the Atlantic, or to Australia, you could also think about the small islands, nobody would look for you there." Severus said.  
  
Katie nodded, Sirius had said something similar to that.  
  
"You could go to Aunt Mabel." Severus suddenly said.  
  
Katie looked at him in surprised, she had forgotten about Aunt Mabel. "Do you think she will have me?"  
  
"Of course she would, she had been alone in that island of hers for years, I'm sure she is ready for some company. And it is far enough for you to be quite safe. The fact that she has it covered with spells of all sorts would help as well. As you know, magic cannot be used and owls cannot enter." Severus said.  
  
Katie was nodding as he said all this. Now that she knew that Sirius would keep better care of himself if he thought her safe, she was actually thinking about leaving and stay in hiding as long as she had to.  
  
"Thank you Severus." She said. "I see that I'm going to have to do so. Keep an eye on Sirius for me. Please." She leaned and kissed his cheek before leaving the room.  
  
Severus stayed in his chair watching her go. Keep an eye on Black? He thought. He shook his head in disbelief, why would he want to take care of him?  
Sirius was sitting in his darkened library that same night, hoping to catch Katie as she returned from visiting Snape. He wasn't happy that he had sent her to him, for all he knew she could be in more danger than if she was him, but he also knew that Snape loved his cousin and if there was a place for her to be safe, he would know about it.  
  
The bad blood that had emerged as they grew up at Hogwarts had remained as they became men, he knew that he should let sleeping dogs lay but he just couldn't help himself. He didn't know why the rivalry had emerged, it wasn't like he had decided to hate Snape when he first saw him, it just happened, and the pranks that they enjoyed pulling on the Slytherin just reciprocated the feeling.  
  
But it didn't matter, he thought, Katie would be safe, that was all that he cared about. He turned to look out the window, night was falling and he was a little worried that Katie had not returned.  
  
The reports of Voldemort activity were rather disturbing, he had a feeling that something momentous would happen soon and he wanted Katie out of the country before it did. Too bad that Lily and Harry would not go, he thought. He had tried to convince James to send them away with Katie, but he had not agreed to do so. James had said that because of special circumstances, Lily and Harry would be safe as long as they were all together, if they were separated that would bring serious problems. Sirius had not believed that explanation, he had a suspicion that his friend was hiding something. He didn't like to think that his best friend would hide something from him, the fact that Remus and Peter didn't seem to know either didn't soothe his wounded pride.  
  
He heard the front door opened and voices approaching. The library door was opened and Katie walked in.  
  
"Hello dear, shouldn't you light some candles?" She asked as she looked around the dark room.  
  
Sirius snapped his fingers and the candles lit instantly. He had been working lately on simple wandless magic, he thought it would come in handy in case he was in trouble and his wand was not at his reach.  
  
"Much better." Sighed Katie.  
  
"How did it go?" Sirius asked.  
  
"He agreed with you." Was all Katie replied.  
  
Sirius made a face full of distaste, Katie laughed.  
  
"I know, you don't like the idea that you two might think the same way. I got a feeling that the only reason you don't get along is because you two see some things in common." Katie chuckled as she put her arms around him.  
  
Sirius shook his head energetically. "No, we never see things the same way."  
  
"If you say so dear." Katie patted his cheek and left her seat to pour some tea which one of the servants had brought in while she greeted her husband.  
  
"What did he say?" Asked Sirius once more.  
  
"He said that you were right in wanting me to be away, he said he would help me if I decided to leave." Katie was standing by the windows that looked out to the narrow garden in the back of the house. She didn't say anything about her Aunt Mabel, if Sirius wanted to keep her hiding place a secret it was best if nobody but Severus and herself knew.  
  
"Are you?" Sirius asked quietly. He was scared of her answer. He knew it was for the best, she would be safe if she did, but at the same time, he would miss her. They had been together for close to seven years, she had been there for more than half of his life, first as a friend and companion and later as his mate. He didn't know how he would be able to handle life without her. She was the last thing he saw before going to sleep and the first thing he saw each morning. She was his life and happiness and everything would seem bleak and lifeless if she was not there with him.  
  
"What do you want me to do Sirius? Do you still want me to go?" She turned from the windows and looked back at Sirius. Her glance was full of questions.  
  
"You will be safe Katie. I couldn't live with myself knowing that you could be hurt because of me." Sirius exclaimed. He walked rapidly toward her and put her arms around her, pressing her against him.  
  
"How will I know if it's safe to return?" She asked as she leaned her head against his chest.  
  
"Get in contact with Snape after five years, he will tell you if it's safe to return." He put his head on top of hers, wanting to keep the memory of her with him.  
  
"Why not with you?" She stepped back and looked up at him.  
  
"Because it would be too dangerous. It's safer if you contact Snape." He replied.  
  
"What about James and Lily, or any of the others?"  
  
Sirius shook his head. "We might be kept in surveillance, it would not be safe to contact any of us, Remus and Peter are in much trouble are we are."  
  
"But what happens if Severus cannot be contacted?"  
  
"Contact Dumbledore. He will know what to do." Sirius said.  
  
Both remained in each other's arms late into the night, hoping to keep the memory of each other for the rest of their lives. They were scared for each other, but the secret that Katie carried kept her from staying, she was going to do as Sirius asked and at her return she would bring to him the most precious gift she could give him.  
That night, James sat in his bookroom as darkness fell across the land. He was thinking about his friend and how hard it would be for all of them to see Katie go, but he was sure that Sirius would succeed in getting Katie to agree to leave town. He would do the same for Lily and Harry if he could, but they were safe if the three of them were together.  
  
He sighed as he thought about his son. He didn't like the idea that Harry would be in danger if Voldemort found out about their work with Dumbledore. He didn't know what he would do if any danger came to his son.  
  
He wanted to be able to be there when Harry got his letter from Hogwarts, that he would get one there was no question. He would teach his son how to ride a broom and would attend every game that his son played in Gryffindor House Team (James was absolutely sure that Harry would be in Gryffindor and that he would be chosen for the House Team), and even though he knew that Lily wouldn't like it, he would tell his son about the hidden passages in Hogwarts, it would be a shame if his son didn't take advantage of them. He smiled at the memory of all his adventures with his friends, and he was sure that Harry would enjoy some good memories of his own.  
  
He abruptly left his chair and marched out of the room. He took the stairs two at a time but didn't walk up to his chambers where Lily was readying Harry for bed. Instead, he made his way up to the attics.  
  
The attics covered the whole back half of the house, past the servant quarters. The attic was divided into small rooms, all connected by narrow doorways and on the outer walls small windows lit the small room. He walked down to a small room right at the back of the floor, the small window looked out to the back garden, but he didn't pay any attention to it.  
  
He looked around the room. All his things from school was in this place. The walls were lined with bookcases where several books were kept. On top of the cases were scales, cauldrons, vials, and parchments and quills in all shapes. At one hidden corner of the room was a trunk.  
  
He walked to the trunk and pulled it to the middle of the room. He opened it and smiled. Red Quidditch robes, his old broom, candy wrappers and used trick and joke cases and at one side, his old Invisibility Cloak.  
  
"How could I have forgotten about you?" He said aloud as he pulled the cloak out of the trunk. He closed the trunk and with the cloak draped around him, he left the room.  
Two weeks later, on a cloudy march morning, Lily and Katie said goodbye. Among hugs and tears they wished each other happy. By the end of the day, Katie was gone, her cousin had come for her and with help of darkness they disappeared from sight. Nobody knew where she was going, but they all knew that she would be safe.  
A/N: That's the end of Chapter 4, as I said in the beginning, things are going to be a little more difficult for our favorite pair and I'm sure that many of you will not like what happens in the next chapter. I hope you liked this chapter and don't worry, Katie will be safe, for now. Don't forget to review! 


	40. Part III Chapter 5

A/N: Here we are once more, thank you to those of you who reviewed, I truly appreciate all your input. Ok, now for more story, like I said on earlier chapters this is a darker and sadder chapter, so I recommend that you take this time to get some tissues and maybe put some happy tune to cheer you up.  
Disclaimer: HP is not mine.  
  
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Chapter 5 ~ Back in Gryffindor Manor  
Lily was rather sad after Katie's departure. She missed her daily visits with her friend, the shopping trips to Diagon Alley, specially her company. James tried everything he could think of to cheer her up, but even with the help from both their mothers it wasn't enough. Sirius was also going around with a long face. James had his hands rather full with both Lily and Sirius. He took some time off from the Ministry in order to keep his wife and friend company.  
  
Weeks after Katie's departure, James was sitting at his desk writing some letters when an owl flew through the open window. It landed right in front of James. James stroked its feathers in gratitude before taking the letter. The owl didn't stay long after that, it promptly spread its wings and flew out.  
  
James looked down at the envelope and opened it. It was a letter from Remus.  
"I'm returning to keep you company, you might need help with Sirius.  
  
I will be there by the beginning of April, perhaps it would be a good time to start planning your return to the Manor, a couple of months in the country would do a lot of good to Lily and Sirius.  
  
See you soon,  
  
Remus."  
Spring was coming and he would have to return to the Manor for the spring planting, the summer festival would take place on the first day of May and he was sure that Lily would enjoy making plans for it. Perhaps it was time to return to the Manor. He had owled Dumbledore about it. Dumbledore agreed that it would be safe for them to return. The attacks on their members were now few and it didn't seem that Voldemort had them in his sights yet, but it would still be a good idea to contract agents from the Ministry for security as long as they stayed in the country.  
  
The sun was shining brightly outside the windows. He could hear the squeals of laughter coming from the small garden behind the house. He knew that his mother and Mrs. Evans were out there with Harry and the twins taking advantage of the first sunny days in weeks.  
  
Lily had gone to see Sirius, who had stayed in his house since Katie left. She had said that Sirius needed some company. James had agreed, it wouldn't do to have Sirius fall into despondency and depression. He would probably go mad.  
¨¨¨¨ **** ¨¨¨¨  
  
A couple of mornings later a ragged individual appeared on their front step. It was Remus, and James was happy to see him arrive.  
  
"I've been waiting for you." James said as he led his friend into his bookroom.  
  
"I expected that to be the case. I came as soon as I could. How is he taking it?" James knew that he was speaking of Sirius.  
  
"He is rather depressed, I never thought that he would take it so hard, after all, it was his idea to send her away." James said as he motioned a seat by the windows. He took a seat in front of his friend. The windows looked out to the small garden in the back of the house, at the moment it was empty, as Lily had taken the children and their mothers for a visit to Sirius to see if they could cheer him up.  
  
Remus sighed. "I thought he would too. But I suppose we didn't take into account how much she meant to him."  
  
"I suppose so." James said.  
  
"What has Peter said about this?" Remus asked, it had been some time since he had been contacted by the fourth member of their group.  
  
"I haven't spoken to him in the last week but he did visit Sirius the week after she left." James said.  
  
Remus nodded but said no more. The two friends sat in companionable silence as they waited in the sunlit alcove by the windows.  
¨¨¨¨ **** ¨¨¨¨  
  
Lily was quite happy to see Remus after her visit to Sirius' house. Mrs. Evans and Mrs. Potter had taken the twins and Harry to the back garden to give the young people some time on their own.  
  
"Oh, Remus, you don't know how happy I am to see you." She exclaimed when she found Remus with James in the bookroom.  
  
Remus stood from his chair and received Lily's hug with a smile. "How are you doing Lily? Although I shouldn't ask, I can see for myself that you are radiant." He smiled as he looked her over.  
  
Lily smiled. "I'm fine, Harry is good too, you should see him, he will be taking his first steps soon, I'm sure of it. But enough of that, now that you are here we can do something about Sirius."  
  
"How is he doing? James said you had gone to see him." Remus turned serious at the thought of their friend.  
  
Lily sighed with sadness. "He is taking it harder than we thought. He hasn't left his bed from the day she left. He is not eating and he has let his beard grow. He looks so different from the Sirius we know." She exclaimed.  
  
James passed his hand through his hair, as he always did when he was worried or thinking. Remus was biting his lower lip with worry.  
  
"That just doesn't sound like him. I've never known him to be so despondent." James said as he started pacing before the fireplace.  
  
"I never thought I would see the day when Sirius would stop eating and caring about his looks." Remus said.  
  
James and Lily smiled a little. It was a bit humorous if you thought about it, but they really didn't want to see the humor in it.  
  
"What are we going to do?" Lily asked.  
  
"We were talking about going back to the Manor, the country air would do him some good." James said looking at Lily. He was hoping to see the reaction that this news would have on her.  
  
Lily thought about it for a minute. "It would help. But is it safe?" She asked at James.  
  
"I owled Dumbledore, he says it is for the moment, but as a precaution we should ask the Ministry for some agents to take care of security at the Manor." James said.  
  
Remus frowned in confusion. He didn't see what the need was for all of that security but he had a feeling that his friends would not tell him about it if he asked.  
  
Lily nodded her agreement. "When should we move?"  
  
"As soon as I can make the arrangements with the Ministry. Remus and I will go tomorrow. Visit Sirius tomorrow, let him know. We are going to have to care for his packing, I'm not sure he would do so himself." James said.  
  
Lily nodded. "Our mothers would do that, they are the motherly sort." She smiled.  
  
"We are set then. If everything goes as it should, we would be able to leave by the end of the week." James said.  
  
The others agreed, the sooner they moved back to the Manor the sooner they could work on Sirius.  
¨¨¨¨ **** ¨¨¨¨ The Ministry agreed to James' request. Five agents of their security squad would travel with them to Gryffindor Manor. James didn't think that five agents would be enough if Voldemort decided to attack them, but it was the best that he could do, he would just have to tell the tenants and servants in the estate to be on alert.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans took care of Sirius and the arrangements to move his household to the country, not that he paid much attention to what was going on around him.  
  
The servants in the Potter House ran from one room to the other, readying the house to be closed and moving all the necessary items and people back to the Manor.  
  
James made sure to visit with his solicitor and make some final arrangements, while Remus tried to make Sirius to leave his bed and visit his own solicitor. He finally was able to succeed, but Sirius didn't seem too happy about it.  
  
By the end of the week, everything was ready and two cars along with two large trucks stood in front of the Potter House (Sirius' things had been taken care of first because he had less items to move than James and Lily).  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans kept the twins and Harry entertained as Lily and James made sure they weren't forgetting anything. Remus tried to keep Sirius out of the way as they sat waiting in the parlor room for their friends to be done.  
  
"I don't see why I have to go." Said Sirius for the hundredth time that week.  
  
"We don't want to leave you here on your own." Remus replied for the hundredth time.  
  
Sirius snorted his disagreement.  
  
"You know you would do so if Katie was here." Remus said.  
  
Sirius just shrugged.  
  
Remus sighed with exasperation. "Honestly Sirius, you are acting like a child."  
  
"Am not!" Sirius pouted.  
  
Remus laughed. "Yes you are."  
  
Sirius glowered at his friend. He was not acting like a child, he thought.  
  
"Come, cheer up. Katie is safe and sound, you read the owl that Snape sent, she got to her destination and she will be safe for as long as she stays there." Remus said.  
  
"I suppose, but I miss her Remus." Sirius said.  
  
"I know you do. But she wouldn't like to see you like this." Remus said kindly. He knew how hard it was for Sirius to say this, he wasn't somebody who like to talk about feelings.  
  
Sirius sighed. "No she wouldn't." He said.  
  
James walked into the room at that moment. "Let's go. Everything is ready."  
  
The three young men walked out of the room toward the front door. It was chaos outside. Lily was trying to get the servants in order. Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans were sitting in one of the cars with the twins and a young nursery maid, the old nurse that had been with the twins from the time of their birth was not going to go with them this time. She was going to stay behind and retire to go to live with her sister in Wales.  
  
James led Remus and Sirius to the remaining car, Harry was waiting within, sleeping in a pile of blankets.  
  
It wasn't long when the cars where seen pulling from Rowe Square and making their way out of town.  
¨¨¨¨ **** ¨¨¨¨  
  
The trip didn't take too long. Harry slept most of the way while Sirius looked out the windows in silence. James, Lily and Remus kept glancing at Sirius from time to time, but he didn't say a word throughout the trip, which was quite uncommon for him. Usually, Sirius was always exclaiming over every little thing he saw on the road as if he had never seen them before (which in some cases was true as he apparated or flooed more often than drove), but this time he looked morosely out of the window, he didn't even say a thing when Harry awoke screaming in the middle of the drive.  
  
It was late in the afternoon when the small caravan made its way into the village. Townspeople stepped out of their houses and shops to watch the group pass by. Everybody was happy to see the family back in the Manor.  
  
Later that night, Harry and the twins had been taken to their rooms to sleep while the adults finished with dinner.  
  
"What are you planning to do tomorrow James?" Asked Lily as the dessert was served.  
  
"I should go and speak with Sanders. I need to check on what was done while we were gone and how the plans for the planting are going." James replied.  
  
"We should commence and plan for the May Day celebration dear, it is a custom and the tenants will be quite disappointed if we do not do it." Mrs. Potter said to Lily.  
  
Lily nodded enthusiastically. The May Day celebration was a big fair that the tenants had every year to celebrate the spring season and the completion of the planting of crops, it was such an old custom that nobody ever remembered a time in which it had not been celebrated.  
  
"Perhaps we should join you James, I am looking forward to a ride through your lands, I'm sure the fresh air will do us some good. Don't you agree Sirius?" Remus said hoping that the idea of a day out of doors would cheer their friend up.  
  
Sirius shrugged but didn't say anything, he just continued to pick his food and moving it around the plate, none of it seemed to make its way to his mouth.  
  
Remus sighed while the others just looked at Sirius with sadness in their eyes.  
  
The plates were taken from the table and the tray with port and tea was brought in.  
  
"Take the tea to the parlor, Roberts. We, ladies, shall retire there." Lily said leaving the table. Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans followed suit and left the room.  
  
James knew what they wanted, they wanted him and Remus to do something about Sirius. But they simply didn't know what to do.  
  
Remus cleared his throat several times as Roberts poured the dark drink into the goblets in front of each young man. Sirius took his filled glass and drank greedily. James was afraid that his friend was going to try to drink himself into a stupor. He didn't want to explain to Lily if they allowed him to get drunk.  
  
"Do you lot fancy a trip to the kitchens? It has been some time since we visited Otty. I hear he has been working on some wonderful pastries the whole day." James said trying to keep the decanter away from Sirius' grasp.  
  
"A good idea, Sirius here will enjoy them." Remus exclaimed.  
  
"No I won't." Frowned Sirius when he noticed that his friends were trying to keep the port away from him.  
  
"Yes you will, I bet you are hungry." Remus said.  
  
"You didn't eat much, your stomach must be bothering you." James replied.  
  
"I'm not hungry. I'm just thirsty." Sirius growled.  
  
"Roberts will bring you some pumpkin juice if you wish." Offered James.  
  
"I don't want pumpkin juice. Besides, it seems a waste as long as we have that decanter here." Sirius nodded at the port that the others had placed in the opposite side of the table from him.  
  
"Oh no, you would prefer the homemade pumpkin juice that Otty prepares, much better than this." Remus said with a wave of his hand toward the decanter.  
  
"How would you know?" Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Hmmm.James sent me a bottle one time." Remus quickly replied.  
  
James nodded his agreement.  
  
"Fine!" Sirius said giving up, he knew his friends would not allow him to lose himself in alcohol.  
  
James happily ordered Roberts to bring a pitcher of homemade pumpkin juice and to take the port with him.  
  
Roberts did so promptly. He was fond of the young men that had visited the Manor so often, and to see Master Sirius in such a despondent way was making him feel rather sorry for him and he knew that Sirius would not appreciate it if he knew that he was being pitied by the household.  
  
Sirius didn't stay with the others for long. As soon as James and Remus decided to join the ladies he made his excuses and left for his bedroom.  
  
He walked quickly through the dark corridors as he made his way to the west wing where the guest bedrooms were located. He passed the magical portraits without looking at them and didn't bother to light a candle or a lamp as he walked into the dark corridor that led to his room.  
  
The house was quiet and the room dark as he entered. Only one candle lit his steps as he walked to the bed.  
  
He didn't bother to change out of his robes. He just lay on top of the covers and thought. He wondered where Katie was and how she was doing. Was the weather fair where she had gone, or was it cold? He turned on his side and smiled a little. On top of his bed was a small picture, it seemed that the twins had visited his room before they went to bed. The picture was of the twins with Katie, it had been taken that last Christmas. It was a magical picture and he saw the black and white Katie smile and wave to him. He took it and stroked the surface of the picture with his finger. The photographic twins giggled as Katie blew a kiss to him. He turned the picture around and saw written in a childish writing a small sentence. Don't be sad!  
  
Sirius smiled and with the picture clasped in his hand, he fell asleep.  
  
¨¨¨¨ **** ¨¨¨¨  
  
The next day was bright and warm. The birds were singing happily on the treetops and the laughter from the nursery rooms could be heard throughout the house. James was standing in front of the balcony windows of his bedroom as Lily fed Harry on the bed. He thought of the previous night and his friend's dismal attitude. He never thought that the day would arrive when Sirius was not cheerful and in need of making those around him laugh. He had always been the clown of their little group, he was the one that made everybody else forget their troubles and think only of having fun and enjoying the moment. But he seemed a different person now. He seemed like a soulless being, the happiness and hope gone along with Katie. A human version of a Dementor. He had the feeling that if one of those macabre guardians of the Wizard prison of Azkaban got a hold of his friend, they would have no effect on Sirius at all.  
  
Harry was laughing and James turned to look at his wife and child as Lily played with Harry on the bed.  
  
"He is growing too fast." He said as he neared the bed.  
  
"I know, isn't it horrid? He is almost nine months and he has grown so much." Lily said.  
  
"He will be walking soon." James said as he sat on one corner of the bed watching Harry crawling to his mother.  
  
"We need to make the house safe for him. Once he starts walking he will hurt himself if we don't take care." Lily said.  
  
James nodded.  
  
They heard the thunderous sound of running steps. They smiled as the door opened abruptly and the twins care running into the room.  
  
"You forgot to knock on the door, girls." The twins didn't even hear James chide as they ran to the bed as Harry squealed with laughter at the sight of his cousins.  
  
"Good morning Harry!" They greeted before turning to look at the adults.  
  
"Good morning Uncle James!"  
  
"Good morning Aunt Lily!"  
  
"Good morning. Isn't it a little too early for you two to be bursting into rooms?" James asked as both girls climbed onto the bed to join their small cousin.  
  
"Oh, we've been up for hours." Francesca said.  
  
"We were in the kennels earlier, to see the puppies." Cassandra said.  
  
They moved a small bundle that James hadn't seen until now, a small furry face appeared from beneath.  
  
Harry reached for it but one of the girls grabbed it first. A young ginger cat was promptly dumped onto Harry's lap.  
  
Harry tried to pull the tail and put it in his mouth before his mother stopped him. The sleeping cat didn't seem to mind.  
  
"Really, he just likes to put everything into his mouth." Lily complained.  
  
"I thought you said that all infants do that." James laughed.  
  
"They do, but that doesn't mean I like it when he does it." Lily explained.  
  
"Of course dear." Said James as kissed her cheek. "I'm going to take Remus and Sirius around the estate. Hopefully that will keep Sirius occupied."  
  
"Do you think he will get better?" Lily frowned with worry.  
  
"I hope so." James replied before leaving the room.  
  
James thought about his friend as he made his way to the breakfast room. On previous visits, Sirius was the first to arrive at the dining room, hopefully, James thought, this time wouldn't be different.  
  
Sirius was in the dining room, but Remus was there as well.  
  
"Good morning. Slept well?" James asked as he chose his food before he sat at the head of the table.  
  
"Very comfortable." Remus said.  
  
Sirius only grunted.  
  
"I hope the girls didn't wake you. We thought it best if the girls and our mothers stayed here for the night after the trip. They will be returning to the Dower House later today." James said.  
  
"Oh no, they didn't bother me at all." Remus said.  
  
James and Remus looked expectantly at Sirius.  
  
"Nope, no bother." He said.  
  
James nodded.  
  
The three ate in silence. James read the Daily Prophet as Remus sat eating greedily and Sirius picked at his food, but this time, some of the food made its way into his mouth.  
  
It wasn't long when the three were seen riding toward the eastern fields of the estate on their way to see about the spring planting preparation.  
¨¨¨¨ **** ¨¨¨¨  
  
James had been correct in saying that Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans would move back into the Dower House later that day. No sooner where the young men gone than servants were seen taking luggage and supplies to the Dower House a few miles away from the main house. The twins stayed in the nursery with Harry and Minnie trying to stay out of the way.  
  
Things would settle down to normal as soon as things were in order and the planning for the May Day celebration could start.  
  
Everybody was looking forward to this year's celebration. It was on this festival when all the newborn animals and children were presented to the estate. This year, the ceremony would be extra especial as Harry, as the new born heir of the Manor, would claim his place among their people.  
  
Lily's favorite part of the celebration was the maypole dance. Having been born and raised in the city, she had never learned about all the country customs and beliefs, but her marriage to James had opened up a new world to her that she embraced with open arms and she was looking forward to teaching her offspring about all of them.  
  
The twins were also very excited about this year's celebration. This year they would enter the ranks of unmarried maidens (it was tradition for all girls of ten years and older to be presented as maidens in the celebration) and as such, it was their time to dance around the maypole. Special dressed would be ordered for them and a crown of flowers was to be prepared for them.  
  
The family was in a festive mood and they were all prepared to do whatever necessary to pull Sirius along with them.  
  
¨¨¨¨ **** ¨¨¨¨  
  
Things couldn't be any better. They had been back in the Manor for one week and preparations for the celebrations were coming along. Sirius had started to eat once more, even though he still fell into moments of depression. The girls had taken it upon themselves, with the help of Baby Harry, to make Uncle Sirius laugh again and the adults were happy to see that they were succeeding. Sirius was often found in the nursery or the gardens with the children, their innocent chatter and laughter seemed to cheer him up.  
  
James went in search of Sirius on one sunny afternoon. He had gone to the nursery in search of him and Minnie had told him that Sirius had taken the children to Quidditch Pitch. James had found this very encouraging. From the moment they had returned from London, Sirius had given up his usual entertainments. It had taken James and Remus long hours trying to convince them to join them in their daily morning rides about the estate. They had even tried to get Sirius to join them for a fly around the Quidditch Pitch, they weren't very successful.  
  
James walked along the gardens making his way to the apple orchard, behind which the Quidditch Pitch was hidden, in a sunny mood. He looked around at the growing fruit as he passed by the tall apple trees and heard Sirius' laughter as he neared the middle of the orchard. The tall walls around the Pitch hid the sight within, but just the sound of merriment made James smile.  
  
He found Sirius on all fours with Harry on his back and one of the twins walking beside him keeping hold of Harry. Cassie was on a broom (James had bought them one each for Christmas), flying around them.  
  
James stayed by the entrance. It was a good idea to come to the country, he thought, the children's merry spirit was doing much good for Sirius.  
  
Francie took Harry from Sirius' back and put him down on the floor. Harry was laughing and Sirius sat on the floor looking at his godson crawling back to him. Sirius raised him high in his arms above his head after Harry finally reached him. Harry laughed and the twins flew around them on their brooms.  
  
James smiled brightly, it was good to see his friend happy again.  
  
"Care to join us?" Sirius yelled at his direction, it seemed that he had caught sight of James.  
  
James walked up to them. The twins had stopped flying around in circles and hovered above the ground waiting for him to approach the small group.  
  
"I see that you are feeling much better." James said.  
  
Harry heard his father's voice and turned to look at him. His face brightened in a happy smile and tried to reach for him.  
  
"Deserter." Laughed Sirius as he raised Harry toward James.  
  
James took his son in his arms. Harry instantly leaned his little head against him and put his finger in his mouth. Minutes later he was sleeping.  
  
"He had an action-packed day." Sirius laughed.  
  
"I see that."  
  
"Uncle James!"  
  
"Look at us!" The twins squealed as they flew around them.  
  
They were trying to do tricks on their brooms, even though it seemed they had not perfected them.  
  
"Be careful!" James said with a smile.  
  
"Uncle Sirius taught us."  
  
"Before giving Harry a ride." They said hovering before their uncle.  
  
"Well, just be careful, don't fly up too high." James said.  
  
"Ok." They chirped and continued with their flying.  
  
"Were you looking for me?" Sirius asked once James was sure that the twins wouldn't hurt themselves.  
  
"Yes, we are going to the village to look if preparations are going fine. We have just one more week to prepare. We wanted to see if you wanted to come along." James said as he stroked his son's back.  
  
"No I'm fine, I'll keep an eye on them." Sirius said nodding to the girls.  
  
James nodded his agreement. Moments later, he was seen marching through the garden back to the house with a sleeping infant against his chest.  
  
He walked up to the parlor once he had entered the house. His mother and Lily were there waiting for him.  
  
"Oh, poor dear, he must be so tired." Mrs. Potter exclaimed when she saw the sleeping child on her son's arms.  
  
"Yes, they were playing in the Quidditch Pitch with Sirius." Said James as he carefully tried to move Harry toward Lily's waiting arms.  
  
"How is he doing?" Asked Lily as she took Harry in her arms.  
  
"Sirius is fine, he was having fun with them. He says he'll stay behind to keep an eye on the girls." James said.  
  
The ladies nodded and both looked with tender expressions down to Harry as he continued to sleep, unaware of everything around him.  
  
¨¨¨¨ **** ¨¨¨¨  
  
The girls didn't stay long out on the Quidditch Pitch, much to Sirius relief. After James and Lily left to the village with their mothers, the girls decided to play in the garden. As the gardeners were working in full force, Sirius didn't feel the need to stay with them.  
  
Sirius made his way through the house looking for something to entertain him. Remus had been spending most of the day in his rooms resting. The nights were rather long and sleepless as the full moon was getting near. Sirius arrived at the portrait corridor near the family parlor. This corridor was at the end of the long hall, it was rather hidden and could easily be missed if a person didn't know of it. Unlike the portraits and paintings throughout the public rooms of the house, that were clearly expensive and very muggle, these portraits were magical. Painting after painting of Potter ancestors rested and looked out to the present generation. It was always amazing to Sirius that all male Potters looked almost alike, the only thing that differed in some cases was the color of their eyes, it seemed that they all inherited their father's looks but their eyes, that always came from their mothers. The female half was rather different from their male counterparts. All the women looked strong- minded but loving all the same. Everybody was waving and greeting Sirius as he passed looking at each of them. At the very end, new portraits had been hung. Two of them to be exact. One was of James and Lily, painted weeks before they returned to the Manor, and one of the twins, it had been commissioned just before Christmas. Next to James and Lily's portrait was the portrait of handsome couple. It was James' father and mother, painted when James was about the same age Harry was now. Sirius smiled. The Potters had always been rather proud of their heritage and family had always been the most important part of their lives. The fact that they were descendants of Godric Gryffindor didn't make them the important family they were, besides, half the magical population was descendant from one or two of the Hogwarts founders. Sirius himself was descendant from both Gryffindor and Ravenclaw. No, that wasn't what made the Potter family one of the most powerful families in the magical world. It was their talent and what they chose to do with it. No member of the Potter family had even been suspected of using Dark magic, nor had they ever supported anyone who did. If Voldemort ever came after them looking for their support, he would have a rough time of it. Sirius knew that they would rather die than work with him to bring the destruction of the Magical World.  
  
Poor Harry, he thought, he had large shoes to fill when his time came to take over the estate. At least, he would have the support of both his parents to lead him through life. And, Sirius thought with a smile, Sirius himself would be there to help along the way.  
  
After leaving the portrait gallery behind, Sirius made his way to the Game room. He didn't understand why it was called a game room, it looked more like an entertainment room to him. The old billiard table stood on one side of the room, a small bar next to it. There were two card tables as well as electronic games along the middle of the room. The other half of the room was full of new electric devices. A large television stood against the far wall, a video tape recorder was attached to it and a large record player beside it. Several videotapes were shelved along the wall, next to the television. Next to the record player was a large collection of records. Sirius looked around, now was he to do with himself?  
  
¨¨¨¨ **** ¨¨¨¨  
  
The shopping party didn't take long in the village. James hated going shopping, he didn't see the need to look at every window of every single shop if there was nothing that he needed from it. But his wife and their mothers did, and he had to put up with it. At least he had Harry's company, he thought.  
  
"Where are the girls Roberts?" He asked the moment he entered the house. Lily and their mothers had retired to the parlor to talk about their purchases taking Harry with them.  
  
"They are in their room, Master James." Roberts reported.  
  
James nodded somewhat distracted. "What about Sirius?" He asked next as he remembered where he was.  
  
"I believe he is in the game room." Roberts replied.  
  
James nodded again and made his way to the game room. He crossed the narrow corridor toward the private family rooms, he passed the family parlor and he heard the chatter of his ladies as he walked by. He then passed by the family dining room and stepped into the family portrait gallery.  
  
The corridor widened at this point, but unlike Sirius, James passed by without looking at the portraits. He walked briskly toward the room at the very end of the corridor.  
  
Because the room was at the very end of the of the wing, there were windows on three sides of the room. Long French windows lined three of the four walls, each window with an alcove allowing people to seat by the glass. Heavy curtains hanged by the windows that could easily close to impede the light to come into the room. The small bar stood at one corner of two of these windowed walls, the billiard table in front of it. Beside the billiard table were two card tables, four chairs around each and along the wall more chairs if needed. There were also electronic games, his father had bought them for him when they first came to the market. They were in the middle of the room, dividing the game part of the room with the entertainment part. On the solid wall at the end of the room stood a large cabinet, with large oak panes along it. The panes could be open and a television was revealed, below it a video cassette recorder, a device that had first come out to market some seven years ago. Beside the cabinet were shelves. On one side, several video tapes were shelved, on the other, above and beside a record player, was a large collection of records of all types of music. In front of the cabinet was a table and couches. It was in one of these couches that James spied his friend.  
  
"There you are, I was looking for you." James exclaimed.  
  
"I was watching one of these tapes that you have here, not much to do after the girls decided to leave the Pitch." Said Sirius as he stretched on the couch.  
  
The two friends stayed in the game room for the rest of the afternoon. After watching one of the tapes they moved to the billiard table, the bar was promptly opened and a spirited game was underway.  
  
¨¨¨¨ **** ¨¨¨¨  
  
The May Day celebration was upon them. The girls were in a constant state of excitement and the ladies of the house were busy with last minute arrangements. In the middle of the village square was erected a tall pole, several strands of silk ribbon hanged from the top ready for the Maypole dance around it by the maiden girls of the village and surrounding estates. The church and vicarage were adorned profusely with recent blooming flowers. A carpet of flower petals was placed at the front steps of the church. The familiar booths had been placed around the village square, waiting for their owners to place their wares for selling and entertain.  
  
The May Day celebration was a big day for the village, just like the Midsummer celebration and the Harvest Festival. Their ancestors used to celebrate as often as they could and they had continued the traditions, even if nobody could remember how or why they had begun.  
  
The morning of the celebration was complete chaos in the Dower House of the Gryffindor estate.  
  
"Where is my crown, I can't find my crown." Wailed Cassie as she made a mess of her half of their room.  
  
"Well, I can't find my gloves." Her sister wailed from the other side of the room as she threw everything out of her dresser drawers.  
  
"You would be able to find what you are looking for if you calmed down." Their grandmother snapped with exasperation. She was trying so hard to hide her nervousness.  
  
"Why don't we leave your maid to look for them, I'm sure that she can find them." Said Mrs. Evans trying to soothe the fraying nerves of the others. She herself was new to this celebration and couldn't understand what was so important about it.  
  
"Yes, perhaps that would be best. We can breakfast as we wait for James to come for us." Sighed Mrs. Potter.  
  
The girls grudgingly followed the older ladies from the room and left their maid to make order of the chaos they left behind.  
  
Hot porridge, fried eggs, bacon, freshly baked biscuits, cold cereal and hot tea and chocolate awaited them at the small dining room.  
  
The Dower House was really small compared to the Manor house, it could easily fit in the middle of the entrance hall. It consisted of two floor levels, the bottom level was for the public rooms and the upper level for the bedrooms.  
  
The lower level housed a small library, a formal parlor and formal dining room at the front half of the house. A small dance room divided the public rooms from the family rooms. A narrow corridor stood between the side wall of the dining room and the dance room leading to the private part of the house. Against the wall of the library was a staircase leading to the upper level.  
  
At the end of the narrow corridor a door opened to the preparation chamber. It had long tables against the walls, one of the walls had an opening with a wooden panel, it connected to the kitchens and in times of formal entertainments the tables were laden with platters and drinks waiting to be served to the guests. Another door led to a wide corridor, at one end was a spiral staircase, beside it, the door to the kitchen, on the wall beside it were two doors, one opened to the family dining room and the other to the family parlor.  
  
It had a cozy atmosphere, even if it was small. It had originally been built four generations ago for the mother of the Leader of the Potter family, in order to give him and his family some privacy. After that, as each Potter heir married, his mother moved to the Dower House if it was her choice, some would move to Godric's Hollow, others to the London House, but some remained to help their successor with the management of the Manor House and to be near the grandchildren.  
  
The girls ate silently as Mrs. Potter chatted about he celebration and the importance of it to Mrs. Evans.  
  
"It's such an important time you know. It is when the girls become maidens and leave the schoolroom to be trained to become young ladies. I remember the year when Elizabeth danced around the Maypole for the first time. She was so excited."  
  
"Do they dance every year until they marry?" Mrs. Evans asked. Having been born and raised in the city made her a little ignorant about the country ways.  
  
"They used to, in previous centuries. You know that girls used to marry by the time they were eighteen. At that time they would dance around the Maypole until they married, but now girls marry a little older. We decided that they would continue dancing until they turned seventeen. So very few girls marry before then." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"I had heard about the May Day celebrations of course, I just never knew what it was really about." Mrs. Evans replied.  
  
"Well, each region has different ways of celebrating it of course, but the one thing that remains the same is dancing around the Maypole, it's just the why that differ." Mrs. Potter responded.  
  
"I see that I missed a lot of fun growing up in the city." Laughed Mrs. Evans.  
  
¨¨¨¨ **** ¨¨¨¨  
  
At the Manor House, Lily was a bundle of nerves.  
  
"It looks like a dress James, I don't want my son in a dress." Lily exclaimed as she watched Minnie ready Harry for his presentation.  
  
"It is a presentation robe Lily. You know how robes look like." James said with exasperation in his voice.  
  
"Don't speak to me like that, and that 'robe' as you call it, looks like a dress. When have you seen a white robe? Honestly James." She exclaimed.  
  
"Believe me, it is a robe. I wore it when I was presented, my father wore it, so did my grandfather." James said.  
  
"But James-"  
  
"No buts Lily, it is customary for the heir of the Potter estate to wear it at his presentation." James countered.  
  
"Fine, but I don't like it." Lily snapped.  
  
James smiled and put his arms around her waist.  
  
"Lily, don't worry. All we have to do is go to the estate chapel, the vicar will be waiting for us there, he will give a blessing and present Harry as the Heir to the Potter estate to the tenants. Then we will go to the village where the girls will be presented as new maidens and take their place among the others and dance around the Maypole. You have to do nothing, all you have to do is stand there calmly, smile, and look just as beautiful like you always do." He kissed her cheek as he said this.  
  
Lily made a face to him but she was calmer.  
  
"Master Harry is ready, Master James." Squeaked Minnie.  
  
"Thank you Minnie, we will take over now." James said and took Harry from the crib.  
  
Harry looked up to his father's face and smiled.  
  
"See, he doesn't think that it looks like a dress." James said as he placed Harry into Lily's arms.  
  
"Of course he doesn't, he doesn't know any better." Snorted Lily.  
  
"I didn't mind it." James said as they made their way to the family dining room to break their fast.  
  
"Do you actually remember your presentation day?" Asked Lily somewhat skeptically.  
  
"Well, no. But it's only because I was a few weeks old when I was presented." James said. "In fact, mother says that I was baptized on the same day."  
  
"Then don't tell me that you didn't mind it." Said Lily.  
  
James shrugged.  
  
They had arrived at the family dining room. Remus and Sirius were already sitting at the table with their plates full, Peter - who had arrived the night before to take part of the celebrations - was busily choosing from the large array of food.  
  
"Good morning." Lily and James said as they entered into the room.  
  
"Morning." Replied Remus and Peter.  
  
"Mrfink."  
  
"Sirius, don't speak with your mouth full." Lily chided as she sat Harry on his chair and put a large bib that covered the whole front of his robes.  
  
"Sorry. Good morning." Sirius said after swallowing in a hurry. The depression that had taken hold of him after Katie's departure seemed to have lifted and his sunny self was quickly returning, much to the joy of his friends. "That looks like a dress." He commented as he looked at Harry.  
  
"See I told you!"  
  
"It's a presentation robe!"  
  
Remus laughed. "Calm down James. We know that is customary for him to wear it, don't pay Sirius any attention."  
  
Sirius frowned at his friend.  
  
"Why does it have to be white, why isn't it golden or scarlet, those are Gryffindor's colors after all." Said Peter as he sat at the table.  
  
Everybody turned to look at James with questioning glances.  
  
"Don't look at me, I wasn't the one to start this tradition. How should I know why they chose white instead of red or gold?" James exclaimed.  
  
"Well, it is your family tradition, there should be a record of it somewhere." Lily said as she started feeding Harry from a plate that Roberts had placed in front of her.  
  
"Nope, the only thing that the earliest record about the presentation says is that a white christening robe was ordered. I wasn't the only Potter Heir to be christened the same day of his presentation." James replied.  
  
"Oh well, a rather odd color to chose though." Said Peter as he started to empty his plate.  
  
James glowered as the others nodded.  
  
"Never mind James, maybe Harry will decide to change the color when the time comes for him to present his son." Remus said.  
  
James looked shocked at the thought. "He can't do that, it's tradition!" He exclaimed.  
  
Lily giggled as the others tried hard not to laugh. Harry was squealing with laughter and clapping his little hands.  
  
"He seemed to like the idea." Sirius chocked out.  
  
James growled but didn't say anything.  
  
After breakfast, the group was ready to cross the gardens toward the Dower House and pick up the girls, Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans.  
  
The day was sunny and clear and the birds were happily singing as they said hello to the new day.  
  
The ladies were waiting for them at the front of the house. The girls were wearing long white dresses. A ribbon at the waist - Cassie wore pink while Francie wore yellow - with a large bow at the back. Pale flowers were embroidered around the neckline and at the hem of the skirt. The sleeves were short with ribbons of all colors falling down to their elbows. Their hands were covered in white gloves and a crown made of freshly cut flowers adorned their head.  
  
"You look very pretty." Said James at the sight of his nieces.  
  
The girls blushed and shyly said "Thank you."  
  
"I have a gift for you." James said and took out two narrow boxes from his pocket. He gave one to Lily - Harry had been passed to his grandmothers who were busily gushing over him - and took the other and stood behind one of the girls. The box was opened and a golden chain fell to his hand, hanging from the chain was a pendant with the word Francesca engraved in the petal of a daisy, at the center of the flower was a small diamond. After he did the same with Cassandra (hers had her name engraved) he stood back and looked proudly at the two young girls.  
  
"Thank you Uncle James." Both girls exclaimed after studying their gift and hugged him tightly.  
  
"You are welcome. Your mother would be so proud of you right now." He said sadly at the thought of his sister and father who hadn't lived long enough to see this day. He cleared his throat abruptly. "Ready then? Let's go."  
  
The small group walked happily toward the chapel where all the servants and tenants living in the estate had assembled to be presented to their future master.  
  
An arch of flowers adorned the door of the chapel, the vicar stood in front of it with an indulgent smile looking at the assembled parishioners. The tenants and servants stood around the door in a semicircle, each carried a flower, from young child to elder servant. They all smiled and waved as they saw their master and his family walk up the lane to the chapel.  
  
Baby Harry lay quietly in his mother's arms, oblivious to anything around him as he slept blissfully. The twins were skipping along their elders, anxious to start the exciting day. James walked beside Lily, both looking smugly proud of their young charges. Behind them, Sirius led Mrs. Potter and Remus lent his arm to Mrs. Evans.  
  
Those surrounding the chapel stood quietly as James and Lily passed toward the center to stand in front of the vicar. The others followed closely behind.  
  
"This is a merry day, let us thank for the joy that Spring has brought us - " The vicar began. Everybody stood quietly as his voice droned on and on through the sunny, warm day.  
  
Eventually, it was time for Harry to be passed to the vicar. Harry was now wide awake and looked around him as he left his mother's arms.  
  
"With the beginning of Summer, new seedlings bloom, and new starts begin. This is Harry James Potter, son of James and Lily Potter, the next master of the Gryffindor estate and all that entails, may his life be free of tribulation and may he know only happiness and fear no evil." The vicar finished as Harry looked up at him with wide eyes.  
  
The crowd applauded and cheered. Harry looked wildly around him, as the deafening noise filled the air.  
  
Harry was passed back to Lily, who looked smilingly down at her son.  
  
"Let us go to the village and have a good time." James yelled to the crowd.  
  
Everybody cheered once more and slowly the crowd started to make its way toward the village, where the townspeople were ready to start the celebrations.  
  
Colorful flags and streets covered with flower petals greeted the group from the Manor. The usual booths of food and games stood around the village square and a tall pole stood at its center. A small band waited at one corner of the square, testing their instruments, much to the amusement of the young people standing around the square.  
  
The twins were excitedly waiting by their grandmother as they looked forward for the dancing to begin, when they would take their place with the young maidens of the surrounding area.  
  
Flowers seemed to be the choice for adornment on this occasion. Freshly cut flowers, of all kinds and colors were hung in large quantities around the village.  
  
The pole at the center of the square also had an adornment of flowers at the very top, along with a colorful array of silken ribbons hanging toward the floor.  
  
Several young girls, all dressed in white, waited along the square; each sat by their mothers waiting for the time for them to take their place along the pole.  
  
"When is it going to start?"  
  
"Nana, why is it taking too long?" The twins asked their grandmother.  
  
"It will not take too long, my dears. We are just waiting for the Old Mother to arrive." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"Who is that?" Asked Sirius. He had never been in the Manor when this celebration had taken place before, therefore, he was new to it as the rest seemed to be.  
  
"An older lady is chosen every year to represent the Old Mother, or mother Earth if you will, she greets the new maidens and welcomes back those returning and then the dancing can commence." James said.  
  
"How come you had never invited us to come and see this?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Because you prefer to stay in London and attend the social parties than to come to the country." James replied.  
  
"There are no social parties during the summer James, it's to hot for the hostesses. Most people just take their parties to the country." Sirius responded.  
  
"You would know. Anyways, you come for the midsummer and Harvest celebrations and up to now, we haven't had anybody to participate so we have just come as spectators, and before then, we were at Hogwarts at this time of the year." James explained.  
  
"Oh look, is that the Old Mother?" One of the twins squealed and pointed toward the opposite end of the square.  
  
An old lady made her way slowly toward the center of the square. She was dressed in white, just like all the young girls, she carried a wooden rod in one hand and a bouquet of flowers in her other one.  
  
"Yes, that's her. Get ready now, it's almost time to start." Mrs. Potter urged the twins.  
  
Both seemed too high-strung with nerves, but excited all the same.  
  
The old lady stood in the center of the square, next to the pole. All the young girls formed a circle around her and the crowd just formed a circle around them, everybody craning their necks for a better look. The vicar stepped from the crowd, still dressed in his black robes from the ceremony he had performed at the Manor chapel before.  
  
"The end of new spring has begun, and the fruits of our labor are blooming - " The old lady began. Everybody stood attentively, listening closely to what she had to say.  
  
The twins were standing still at their place around in the circle. Lily and James smiled indulgently as they noticed one of the twins twisting one of the ribbons adorning her sleeve. Harry slept in Mrs. Evans' arms, the droning of the old lady's voice soothing him into blissful dreams. Sirius looked around as a curious child, everything seemed so new and innocent to him it was hard to remember, that at one part of the country, a crazed man was bringing pain and horror to their world. Remus stood by his friends, happy that he was invited to participate on this occasion; it didn't matter to him that it was a full moon that night, at least, he would carry a good memory with him.  
  
"Let us pray that these young ladies become excellent, hard-working women, loving beings with merry hearts." The vicar said after the old lady had finished her speech.  
  
Heads bowed, the congregation gave a small prayer. "Let the festivities begin." The old lady said.  
  
The crowd cheered as the old lady and the vicar left the center of the maiden circle and took their places among the crowd. The small band started to play a merry tune. The young girls curtsied and took hold of one of the ribbons hanging from the pole and started to go round and round the pole, skipping and turning as the ribbons formed a colorful tapestry along the pole. The dancing continued for at least half an hour, the ribbons rolled and unrolled along with the steps of the dancing. The crowd applauded and cheered as the young girls danced as the proud families looked happily at their young maidens take part of a long village tradition.  
  
Eventually the music died down and the pole was completely covered by the ribbons. The girls joined their happy families as the dancing commenced once more and the floor was opened for the crowd to dance.  
  
"Oh that was fun!" Exclaimed Cassie as she and her sister skipped back to their grandmother.  
  
"How long do we this?" Francie eagerly asked.  
  
"Until you turn seventeen." Mrs. Potter said as she hugged them.  
  
"You did good girls." James exclaimed.  
  
"You looked so beautiful." Mrs. Evans exclaimed.  
  
"They did look like sprites dancing." Lily smiled.  
  
"Well, what do you feel now that you are young maidens?" Sirius asked.  
  
"I don't feel any different." Cassied frowned.  
  
"Nor do I." Francie said.  
  
"I don't think you are supposed to feel any different. Stop teasing them Sirius." Remus laughed.  
  
"Oh well, I thought that they would feel different." Sirius shrugged.  
  
"Never mind, let's go and see what they have, I'm feeling a little hungry and that smell of grilled corn is beckoning to me." James said as he craned his neck trying to find the booth that had the corn.  
  
"Now you are talking!" Sirius exclaimed.  
  
The others laughed but didn't argue with their plan, everybody was feeling a little hungry.  
  
The group walked among the crowd, stopped now and then as their neighbors congratulated the children. Harry was now awake and sat on his stroller that one of the servants had procured from the Manor for his use. His eyes darted from one side to another looking around at the kaleidoscope of color that greeted his sight.  
  
They finally found the booths with food and everybody ate as much as they pleased. After, they walked among the rest of the booths looking at all the souvenirs and games. James, Sirius and Remus won some prizes for the ladies and bought some trinkets for the girls. Harry was happily entertained by everything in his sight they seriously didn't know what to buy him.  
  
They returned to the Manor later in the afternoon, the servants were away as James had given them the day off to enjoy the fair. The only ones waiting for them in the house were the house-elves, who had happily taken over the chores of their human housemates. Minnie appeared promptly to take the twins and Harry to the nursery, while Lotty bowed the adults into the family parlor and served them drinks as they all tried to relax after a hectic day.  
  
"That went well." James sighed as he leaned back on his couch.  
  
"Indeed, the girls looked so gorgeous and Harry didn't cry one bit." Exclaimed Lily with pride.  
  
Mrs. Evans nodded her agreement as she drank her tea.  
  
"They were all little angels." Said Mrs. Potter.  
  
Remus and Sirius snickered. "You would say so of course, they are your children." Sirius said.  
  
"Are you saying that they aren't angels?" Asked James turning to look at his friends.  
  
"Well, we do admit that today they behaved themselves and were in their best moods, but they are not angels, at least not all the time." Said Remus.  
  
Lily looked hauntingly at them. "I'll have you know that our children are the best behaved children in the neighborhood."  
  
"Oh I believe that. After seeing those boys trying to climb that pole, I don't doubt that they are the best behaved. I thought those young rascals would fall and break their necks." Remus said.  
  
"Oh yes, I'm so glad that the vicar put a stop to it." Mrs. Evans said.  
  
"You must admit, having that pole in the middle of the square was temptation to those boys." Sirius said.  
  
"I'm sure that you wouldn't have done it if you were their age." Said Lily looking at her husband and his friends.  
  
"Oh don't wager on that dear, the four of them got in more trouble than anybody we knew." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
"You were lucky that they were never here at this time of the year." Laughed James.  
  
The afternoon passed, Mrs. Evans and Mrs. Potter went to the nursery to check on the children and they were planning to retire in one of the rooms nearby to rest. Lily went to check with Otty about dinner as the elves worked around the house. James, Sirius and Remus retired to the game room to entertain themselves.  
  
"I have to leave soon, it's starting to get dark." Remus said as he looked out the window and watched the afternoon sun getting lower on the horizon.  
  
"It's still early. You still have lots of time." Said Sirius.  
  
"But I have a long way to walk Sirius. There is no safe place nearby." Said Remus turning to look at his friends as they stood by the billiard table.  
  
"We'll walk with you past the town, if you go on your own, you are bound to be stopped by the revelers and never get there, I know the back roads and lanes. I'll get you there in no time." Said James.  
  
They continued to play. One hour later, they were stepping out of the room when Lily joined them.  
  
"Going somewhere?" She asked.  
  
"We are going to walk with Remus to the edge of town." James said.  
  
"I'll go with you. Harry has eaten and is sleeping in the nursery and the twins are too busy with their dolls. Our mothers are resting in one of the nursery bedrooms." Said Lily as she joined them.  
  
The foursome left the Manor by the front door. The afternoon was cooler after a hot summer morning. The blooming plants sprouted everywhere.  
  
They walked in silence, they knew each other too well that words were not needed among them.  
  
They finally arrived near the town, the laughter and music from the square was hear through the air. They turned to a dirt lane leading to the east of village. They walked without meeting anyone. For half an hour they walked, until they reached a dense forest.  
  
"There is no need for you to come with me, I'll apparate to the other end, that will take me miles away from here and I'll use the empty hunter's hut." Remus said.  
  
"If that is what you want." James said.  
  
Remus nodded.  
  
"See you tomorrow, old man." Said Sirius slapping his friend's back.  
  
"I'll have a large meal prepared for you." Said Lily as she hugged him.  
  
Remus smiled, but said nothing. After shaking James' hand he turned toward the forest and dissaparated.  
  
¨¨¨¨ **** ¨¨¨¨  
  
The Manor was silent. Only the elves could be seen working inside. The grounds were empty and the tall trees surrounding the western side of the estate loomed darkly in the distance. If anybody would have looked closer, they would've noticed that the estate was not as empty as they thought.  
  
"They just left, my lord, I wager they went to get Lupin out of the way, it is a full moon tonight." A voice said.  
  
"I see, it is a shame that the Potters went along, but the child is inside, he is the one that I want." A low, almost a hiss, voice said.  
  
"I don't understand, my lord, what makes him so important. More so than his parents, he is only an infant." Another voice exclaimed.  
  
"Are you questioning me?" The low voiced answered in anger.  
  
"Oh no, my lord, never."  
  
"What do you want us to do, my lord?" Somebody else asked.  
  
"Get me that child, I don't care what you have to do, but get me that child." With a flurry, the dark shadow disappeared.  
  
"You heard him, now is the time, nobody is around but a lot of house-elves and two old ladies. The children are no danger to us." The man who spoke first said.  
  
The others nodded and slowly, black robed men made their way to the Manor.  
  
Mrs. Potter had joined Mrs. Evans, and were chatting as they watched the girls play with their dolls. Harry slept quietly beside them and Minnie was putting some of the toys away.  
  
Suddenly, the air was filled with high-pitched screeches, they were coming from the ground floor. Mrs. Potter ran to the window and looked down.  
  
"Oh, no!"  
  
"What is it, what is happening?" Mrs. Evans asked.  
  
The screeches were getting louder and explosions could be heard. Minnie whimpered in fright underneath one of the tables and the twins looked scared as they watched their grandmother turned nervously around.  
  
"Darn, I forgot my wand, I never thought that I would use it, today of all things." She exclaimed.  
  
"What is going on Susan?" Mrs. Evans asked again.  
  
Mrs. Potter didn't have time to respond as the door snapped open.  
  
The ladies screeched in fright.  
  
"It is Lotty, Mistress Susan, Master Harry must be taken out, they want Master Harry." The small elf said.  
  
"Take him, Minnie, Lotty, take Harry and leave, we'll follow you." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
By this time Harry was crying, he had been woken abruptly from his sleep and now he was being shoved into his nursery elf's arms.  
  
Lotty took hold of Minnie and they flew out of the room with a crying Harry in Minnie's arms.  
  
"Who is it Susan, who wants Harry?" Mrs. Evans asked.  
  
"The Death Eaters, Rose, they are here." Mrs. Potter whispered to her.  
  
"How? Why?" Mrs. Evans was clearly scared, she had heard James and Lily talk about them, but why would they want Harry?  
  
"I don't know. Come girls, we have to get out of here." Mrs. Potter said to the twins.  
  
The girls ran toward the ladies and clasped their hands.  
  
The group was turning toward the door when it was snapped open once more.  
  
"Where is he?" A robed man asked.  
  
"He is not here." Mrs. Potter said as she stepped in front of the others and stood as rigid as a queen would.  
  
"Where is he?" The man asked again.  
  
"We don't know." Mrs. Potter said.  
  
¨¨¨¨ **** ¨¨¨¨  
  
Lily, James and Sirius walked back to the Manor in silence. The afternoon was turning to dusk and the weather had turned rather cool.  
  
"What is that?'' Asked Sirius as he looked up to the sky as they emerged from the dirt lane.  
  
"I don't know, it's coming from the Manor." Exclaimed James.  
  
"Oh no! James, that is the Dark Mark." Lily cried and started to run up the road that led to the Manor.  
  
"Lily! Wait!" James yelled and ran after his wife.  
  
Sirius ran next to James, both fearing what they would find when they reached the Manor.  
  
They weren't the only ones to notice the cloud floating above the Manor. People in the village had seen it as well, some had recognized it and screamed at the sight of it, others didn't and thought that perhaps that the Manor was on fire. No matter what they thought it was, most of them ran up the lane to the Manor and soon joined Lily, James and Sirius. Many brought hoses, buckets and some were seen carrying wands in their hands.  
  
The sight that met their eyes took them by surprise. The house was indeed on fire as the flames engulfed most of the lower level and the upper rooms where the nursery was located.  
  
Some house-elves were trembling in fear and huddled amongst each other among the gardens. Robed men, wearing the Ministry's colors were blasting water from their wands and hoses. It was pure chaos.  
  
Lily screamed.  
  
"Harry! Oh my God James, Harry was in the nursery with the twins and our mothers." Sobbed Lily.  
  
"They could've made it out Lily, I'm sure they did." Said James as he took her in his arms.  
  
Sirius looked around and when he spied a large figure coming toward them, he tapped James by the shoulder.  
  
James turned to look at him questioningly.  
  
Sirius nodded toward the approaching man.  
  
"Professor!" Exclaimed James.  
  
Lily turned to look as Professor Dumbledore joined them, he was carrying something in his arms.  
  
"Lotty and Minnie took him out when the Death Eaters entered the house." He said and passed the bundle of clothes to Lily.  
  
Lily opened the bundle and a sleeping Harry met her sight.  
  
"Oh, Harry, you are safe." She sobbed and kissed his cheeks.  
  
"I put him under a sleeping spell." Dumbledore said as Harry continued to sleep under his mother's ministrations. "We were warned this afternoon that an attack was planned, but we got here too late. We only managed to scared them off."  
  
"Our mothers, the twins, they were with Harry when we left." James said looking around.  
  
Dumbledore shook his head sadly. "Haven't seen them, I fear they may not have made it out."  
  
Lily fell to her knees and sobbed. James sat beside her and together they feared for their lost family.  
¨¨¨¨ **** ¨¨¨¨  
  
A/N: When I originally wrote this, it took me a while to have it done, it was a sad chapter for me to write, but I eventually finished it. That is all for now, please review, I like to hear from my readers. Now there were a couple of questions that some of you submitted and I'll try to answer some of them.  
  
Giggle: I plan to continue until Harry's seventh year at Hogwarts. There are still four or five chapters (I really haven't decided yet) left of this part, so James and Lily are still alive for the time being.  
  
Giggle, rosezgarden, bubblegum*girl, and many others, that I can't think of right now (sorry about that, I really have a bad memory when it comes to names): About Emma and Katie returning, all I can say is that you might see them again but not before Lily and James die, they will probably do so much later; now about Katie being pregnant, I'll just say what I told my readers at HP.com you are going to continue reading to find out ^_~ . 


	41. Part III Chapter 6

N/A: I'm sorry I haven't posted a new chapter for a while but circumstances have made it really difficult for me to ready this chapter, hopefully, with summer coming I will be able to do more.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Harry Potter, they all belong to the wonderful J.K. Rowling.  
Chapter 6 ~ From the Ashes  
The brigade of people worked late into the night to extinguish the flames that consumed the Manor, the structure seemed strong and there didn't seem any danger of the house being destroyed except for the damage that the fire caused in the main rooms of the ground floor.  
  
The women of the village brought blankets and food for Lily and Harry, while James and Sirius worked doggedly with the others.  
  
The House looked like a black tower, with the blackened walls and the open windows and doors charred from inside.  
  
Eventually, the fire was under control and the flames were slowly extinguished.  
  
Unfortunately, no news of Mrs. Potter, Mrs. Evans and the twins were found. Only a small number of the house-elves survived, many were killed inside the house.  
  
Lily watched sadly as the flames died down and only smoke from the ashes could be seen.  
  
The green mark above the house that had alerted all of what had happened had dissipated, with the help of various spells thrown by the Ministry Agents, it didn't help much for the moral of the volunteers to have it looming above them.  
  
Lily didn't wail or screamed, only silent tears were seen running down her face. Harry slept peacefully in her arms, James and she had thought it better to let him under the spell's influence, there was nothing that he could do but cry.  
  
As the fired died down and the people started to disperse among the grounds in search of further damage, James and Sirius approached Lily.  
  
"Anything? Did you find something?" She asked as they sat by her.  
  
James shook his head dejectedly from side to side. "No, we can't find them among this crowd, nor anyone who may have seen them."  
  
"Oh, James! What if they are still there and they couldn't make it out?" Lily turned her tearstained face to him.  
  
James kissed her lips tenderly. "If they are, I just hope that they killed them before they set fire to the house, I don't like the idea of them being burned alive."  
  
Sirius didn't say it, but he feared that the Death Eaters would be quite capable of doing just that.  
  
Professor Dumbledore joined them soon after. He looked sadly at the young couple with their sleeping infant and was saddened that after all they had gone through, that the Death Eaters had taken their last living relatives.  
  
"When were you owled about this?" Asked Sirius when he noticed their old Professor standing by them.  
  
"I got the warning this afternoon. I sent an owl to the Ministry as soon as I received it and came here, the Ministry agents joined me seconds after my arrival, but it was too late, the house was already on fire and some of the house-elves were making their way out of it." Dumbledore said.  
  
"How did Minnie and Lotty get Harry out?" James asked.  
  
"You know that the elves have their own brand of magic, but they can use it only for their duties and to help themselves, they can apparate and levitate on their own but not when humans that cannot do it on they own, muggles and magical children, but if they do it as a group, they can do it. Lotty and Minnie combined their magic to get Harry out of the house and hid in the orchard. They came to me when they saw me, and the Ministry agents. They had a hard time trying to keep Harry quiet and stay hidden." Dumbledore reported.  
  
"He was scared." Lily said as she looked down at her son.  
  
"I would be too. To be abruptly taken from my home. He probably sensed there was trouble." James said.  
  
Dumbledore nodded. "He probably did. Children have an acute sense of perception that most of us lose as we get older."  
  
"What will happen now? We cannot stay here." James said.  
  
"I doubt they will return for the next months, they know that the Ministry will make an investigation and agents will be surrounding the area. For now, you are safe, but I think it will be better for you to return to London as soon as you can make arrangements, we will make further decisions then." Dumbledore said.  
  
James nodded while Lily looked sadly at the smoking house.  
  
"We can stay in the Dower House for now, while search for the ladies and the twins is finished. Then we can move to London." Sirius said.  
  
Night had fallen, and work still continued. The smoldering remains were slowly cleared and order was eventually restored.  
  
James had taken Lily to the Dower House to care for Harry and to rest before returning to help with the work. But Lily couldn't rest at all.  
  
She had lifted the spell from Harry, who had cried nonstop for a few minutes before eventually falling silent in his mother's arms. Lily looked down at him with sorrow and relief. She felt sorrow that she had lost her mother and mother-in-law along with the twins at the end of what had started to be a wonderful day, and relief, that she hadn't lost her son as well. That made her feel guilty as well, but she couldn't help feeling happy that her son had been spared.  
  
"Oh Harry!" She sobbed as she watched her son falling asleep in her arms. "What are we to do now?"  
  
She was sitting in one of the unused bedrooms, she had left her mother's and Mrs. Potter's as they had left them, in case good news could be found even in if everybody said that it was impossible.  
  
She looked out the window and saw the Manor House in the distance. The charred façade was dark, only the outline of the house against the full moon could be seen in the distance. It was strange to see the edifice in such a way. Usually, the house was bright with candlelight and people were always running from one place to another setting for the night, but this time, everything was quiet and black, as if in mourning.  
  
She turned her face from it, she didn't want to think that among the ruins the bodies of those whom she had thought very special laid lost and burned.  
  
"Why did they do it? What have we done?" Lily asked to the darkness.  
  
There were no answers of course, but she couldn't help feeling forgotten and alone.  
  
"I have to let Petunia know." She suddenly said.  
  
She worried about what her sister would say of the matter, it was enough that she had cut all ties from Lily and her mother because of who Lily was, but how would she react to these news. It had been some time since they had been in the same room. She smiled at the irony that the after more than a year apart (they had last met at their father's funeral) it would be at their mother's service when they would see each other once more.  
The sunrise stained the sky red, dawn was warm and the insects buzzed along from flower to flower. But the morning didn't bring any good news to the remaining Potters.  
  
James had stayed up late with the tenants and Ministry agents looking through the remains of the Manor, looking for signs of the ladies. What they found plunged their spirits into an abyss of desperation and sadness. Matters were left for the next day, when light would allow them to see things better. James had retired to the Dower House with Sirius. He didn't join Lily but chose another bedroom to rest in. He didn't know how to console his wife when his own grief was just as strong.  
  
Dumbledore had stayed as well, along with a whole battalion of Ministry agents. The peaceful land of the Gryffindor Estate had transformed itself into a battlefield. At least that's what Remus thought when he finally reached the border of James' land.  
  
He was taken by surprise when a couple of Ministry Agents stopped him the minute he stepped into the lane leading to the Manor. He was taken to a tent and questioned by several people before Professor Dumbledore stepped in and cleared him of all suspicion.  
  
"What is wrong Professor? What are you doing here? What are they doing here?" He asked angrily motioning to the vast number of Ministry agents patrolling the land.  
  
Dumbledore walked beside him in silence as he allowed the young man beside him to express his anger for the treatment he received from the Ministry.  
  
"I don't understand Professor, I leave for one night and it feels like an invasion was on its way." Remus exclaimed.  
  
"In a way, it has." Dumbledore said sadly.  
  
"What do you mean? And you haven't answered my question about what is going on here." Remus said.  
  
"Let me show you." Dumbledore said.  
  
They were walking along one of the lanes among the large gardens, everything seemed peaceful and the house was hidden by a maze of bushes. When the wall cleared, Remus yelled in anguish.  
  
"NO!" He started running toward the blackened house calling the names of his friends. "James!"  
  
"Remus." Dumbledore made to follow but Remus was too fast for him.  
  
"Sirius! Lily!" Remus was yelling as he neared the house.  
  
"Remus! Remus!" He heard his name called behind him, he turned quickly to see who was calling. Two men were running toward him, it was a little difficult to made them out in the distance, but eventually they came into focus and Remus cried happily at the sight of his two friends.  
  
"James! Sirius! You cannot know how glad I am to see you!" He exclaimed.  
  
"So are we, in a way, you saved our lives." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
Remus looked confusedly at him but only motioned toward the house. "What happened?" He asked.  
  
"As we walked with you yesterday, the Death Eaters attacked the house." Said James sadly.  
  
"Harry and the ladies?" Remus quickly asked.  
  
"Minnie and Lotty took Harry out before the house caught fire, Mother, Mrs. Evans and the twins weren't so lucky." James replied looking at the upper floor of the house where the bodies of his remaining family were found.  
  
"I'm sorry James." Remus whispered.  
  
James didn't say anything more, he just stood by his two friends looking up at the house. Remus and Sirius looked at each other with concern.  
  
"Where they caught?" Remus asked.  
  
"Dumbledore and the Ministry agents came as soon as they got warning of what would happen, but they were too late and the Death Eaters made a clean escape." Sirius said.  
  
"I see. What about Lily? How is she holding up?" Remus asked.  
  
"As well as could be expected. She and Harry are at the Dower House." Sirius said nodding toward the lane that led to the Dower House a couple of miles away from the big house.  
  
"She is writing a note to her sister. She didn't have the courage to make a call." James said.  
Lily was indeed writing a note, or at least trying to. There were so many things that needed to be done. She wanted to have the support and help from her sister, but she didn't know if she could count on it. The last time she had heard from her sister was a rather formal note, wishing them all a Happy Christmas, rather like a card written for business contacts instead to a family member.  
  
There were many scraps of paper around the desk on which she was writing containing her many attempts to let her sister know of their mother's death.  
  
Harry slept peacefully beside her.  
  
Lily looked down at him and smiled. "Don't worry Harry, everything will get better, there is no way it could be any worse, right?" She said.  
  
She took up her pen once more and began once more. She was using Muggle stationary and pens, she knew that her sister wouldn't even touch her note if she sent it by owl.  
  
"Dear Petunia  
  
"There is no easy way to say this, so I'm just going to come out and say it. Our mother lost her life when our estate was attacked yesterday, James' mother and his nieces were with her and also were lost in the attack. We will be planning the funeral services for them all, please come, Our mother would've liked to see you here with us. If you prefer that we do not bury our mother in the cemetery here in the estate, I would like to know what your preferences are, I'm sure we could work well together.  
  
Please come, with love  
  
Lily"  
  
Lily read the note several times, and sighed. It seemed too formal and pleading at the same time, but it was the best one so far. She made up her mind, Petunia needed to know and the note would be sent off as soon as it could be done.  
  
She put the note aside and prepared an envelope. Harry slept obliviously by her side.  
  
She heard the front door open and close. James and Sirius were back, she thought. She left the note and the envelope on the desk, ready for Roberts to send it off with the rest of the mail, and stood to welcome her husband and friend. Maybe, she thought, they would have good news.  
  
She took Harry and walked toward one of the couches at the other side of the parlor. The parlor room in the Dower House was rather cozy, a little smaller than the one in the Big House - as the tenants called the main house - but it was sunny and large enough for their needs.  
  
Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans had worked so hard in putting it all together before they moved in, it was now hard for Lily not to notice those special little touches they both made to make the house feel hospitable.  
  
The door to the parlor opened and, she thought, James and Sirius came in bringing with them a saddened Remus.  
  
"I'm so sorry Lily." He whispered as he hugged her tight.  
  
"Thank you Remus, I'm just glad that our friends are here with us." She said.  
  
"How are you doing?" He asked looking at her closely.  
  
"Better than I thought." She smiled weakly.  
  
Remus smiled and turned to look at Harry who had started to fuss.  
  
"He seems to thrive after his ordeal." He said.  
  
"Hopefully there will be no lasting effects from being under the sleeping spell for too long." Said James.  
  
"Sleep never hurt anyone, I'm sure he will be fine." Said Sirius.  
  
"You should know, you have been known to have slept for more than twelve straight hours." Said Remus.  
  
"You should talk, you have slept for hours with no end as well." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"Well, of course he has Sirius, his monthly ordeal takes quite a bit of energy from him." Said Lily.  
  
"Humph! It takes a lot of energy from us as well, at least, it used to." Winked Sirius.  
  
James shook his head as he helped Lily into one of the chairs with a fussing Harry in her arms.  
  
"Did you finish your letter?" He asked.  
  
Lily gave him a deprecating smile. "I tried, but I can't say that I came up with a very poetic letter."  
  
"I don't think your sister deserves any better." Sirius said.  
  
"She is my sister, Sirius, she has the right to decide how things will be settled." Lily said.  
  
"I don't think she will say a thing." James said.  
  
"Why should she? Allowing Mrs. Evans to be buried in the family plot will save her quite a bit of money." Sirius said.  
  
"Sirius, honestly! You make her sound so mercenary and unfeeling." Lily chided.  
  
"That's because she is Lily. To have cut ties from you and your mother just because she doesn't like magic is not an excuse. As you said before, she was mother to both of you, but Petunia didn't bother to remember that now did she?" James exclaimed.  
  
"I bet she will when it comes to your mother's will." Remus said to Lily.  
  
"Oh really, she cannot be that bad." Lily said.  
  
The three men looked skeptically at her.  
  
"Speaking of which, did your mother talk to you about her will? Somebody with as much wealth as her own should have a solicitor to take care of that." Said Sirius.  
  
"She never spoke of such matters to me." Said Lily with a shrug. "It never came out in the conversation, and why should it?"  
  
"We are going to have to look through her personal things and see if we can find anything about it." Said James.  
  
"But why the hurry, that can wait, can't it?" Asked Lily looking around at the three men.  
  
"We could, but it wouldn't do to leave it to your sister to get to him first. The solicitor has to be informed of her demise." Said Remus.  
  
"I doubt Petunia knows, she hasn't been in much contact with us since father's death except for a few letters here and there." Lily responded.  
  
"With that piggy husband of hers, they are going to go searching for him as soon as news of your mother's death is received. I don't think they will stay put until they are contacted by the man." Said Sirius.  
  
"You are really painting a bad picture of my sister, she is not like that, I'm sure she wouldn't do as you say." Exclaimed Lily.  
  
Harry started to fuss once more, putting the current discussion on hold as Lily tried to quiet him.  
  
"He is hungry, I'm going to feed him." She said and quickly left the room, it was very obvious that she didn't want to continue their conversation.  
  
"What do you think? That hag is going to make problems for her." Sirius said nodding toward the envelope waiting to be sent.  
  
"I wish I could be optimistic like Lily, but I'm afraid that you are right. That woman doesn't strike me as the mourning sort, look at the way she reacted at her father's death. This is not going to make things any easier." Said James.  
  
"It's going to be difficult for Lily to go through her mother's things to look for information about the solicitor. It won't be any easier for you, James, to do so as you have to take care of your mother's things as well." Remus said.  
  
"But I know where my mother kept such things, we used the same solicitor." James said.  
  
"Perhaps we should start there, maybe he knows who was Mrs. Evans' solicitor." Sirius said.  
  
"It is a start." Remus replied.  
  
James nodded and sighed. His friends were right, this wasn't going to be any easier, specially if Petunia was involved.  
  
The three men stayed in the room, waiting for Lily to join them soon.  
  
Lily walked up the stairs to the set of rooms she had chosen. It was an spacious room, a large four-poster bed set against one of the walls, couches and daybeds were scattered around the room, a large fireplace was set against the wall opposite the bed. Two doors were located in the adjacent walls - one on each - one led to the dressing room where both Lily and James shared the space for their personal items that had been salvaged from the Manor, the other room led to an adjoining room, that had been hastily readied for Harry. A crib, some blankets and toys and a chair furnished this room. Within, Minnie was patiently waiting for her services to be required.  
  
Lily walked briskly into Harry's little room, Minnie appeared instantly before her ready to take care of anything that Harry might need.  
  
"He just needs to be fed and perhaps a change of diapers." Said Lily.  
  
"Yes, Mistress Lily, Minnie will take care of Master Harry." Minnie nodded and bounced around the room getting things ready.  
  
Lily stayed only for a minute, looking at Minnie preparing Harry. She left the room and returned to her own. She didn't want to join the men, she knew they were going to begin talking about her sister. She knew that Petunia was a hard person to get along with, she didn't denied that, but she didn't want to think that the only thing her sister would feel from the death of their mother would be greed.  
  
They're exaggerating, she thought, nobody could be so unfeeling as they make her sound. Lily shook her head. There were so many things that needed to be done. So many things to arrange, before they could move on with their lives and raise themselves from the ashes in which the Death Eaters had tried to destroy them.  
  
"That monster will not touch my son." She said aloud. "I won't allow him, even if it means that I should die for it."  
  
Full of determination she left the room, prepared to face any problems that may come her way.  
The following days went rather fast for James and Lily. Remus returned to the forest two more nights before he could return and give a hand to his friends. Sirius had forgotten all about his loneliness and threw himself into helping James and Lily to put things in order.  
  
The Ministry agents continued on the estate, no reports of Death Eaters anywhere in the vicinity were gathered and the tenants helped with the renovation of the Manor House, even if the family would not be returning to it any time soon.  
  
Dumbledore returned continuously to the estate to see how matters progressed. He avoided the subject of the attack and their move to the city as James and Lily busied themselves with preparations for the service for their family.  
  
Things were slowly settling down, even if things would never return to be the same.  
  
It was three days after the attack when Lily received an answer from her letter to her sister.  
  
They were all sitting in the small dining room - Sirius was quite happy that it was rather close to the kitchens - when Roberts came in with the mail in a silver tray. He put a stack in front of James and another in front of Lily, there were a few notes for Sirius and Remus.  
  
Since the day when the attack was reported in the Daily Prophet they had been inundated with mail from all over the magical world with condolences. Lily was happy to think that so many people offered them succor but James wasn't as pleased.  
  
James scoffed at the sight of the mail.  
  
Roberts cleared his throat. When James turned to look at him questioningly he answered. "I took the liberty of putting aside those letters than can wait, these are only from close friends or from business associates."  
  
James sighed with relief. "Thank you Roberts, remind me to give you a raise." He said.  
  
"I will do so Sir." Replied Roberts before he left the room.  
  
James turned eagerly for his mail knowing that he would not have to read any from people he didn't know.  
  
Lily had started opening her mail, most where from her old Hogwarts classmates and she smiled as she read along. Finally, a crisp, white envelope grabbed her attention. Unlike the others, which had clearly arrived by owl, this one had arrived by mail.  
  
She turned it and looked at the name at the top. It was from Petunia.  
  
Lily quickly opened the envelope and took out a sheet of stationary. Like the envelope, it had engraved petunias around the border and at the top it said "From the Desk of Mr. and Mrs. Vernon Dursley".  
  
Lily smiled, it was so like her sister to have engraved stationary. She started reading and her smile slowly died from her lips.  
  
James was busily reading over his mail, as Sirius and Remus lost themselves sampling the food that Otty had prepared. Suddenly, they heard a sob from Lily.  
  
"Lily?" James started to leave his seat when Lily left her chair rather abruptly that it crashed to the floor. "Lily!" James called as Lily ran out of the room.  
  
The letter fluttered innocently to the table.  
  
"What happened?" Asked Remus somewhat confused.  
  
"Don't know, but I wager it was that letter." Said Sirius pointing to the letter.  
  
James went round the table and grabbed the letter. He knew that he should go and look for Lily and comfort her, but he wanted to know what had caused her to leave the room. He started reading and swore.  
  
"What?" Asked Remus.  
  
"It cannot be any more bad news." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Worse, it's from Petunia. Listen to this."  
  
"How dare you write to me and hope to get any help from me. It was your fault that mother died, if you had not been born she would still be alive. Father and mother were naïve to think that your witchcraft was harmless and would do some good; well, look at us now, both are dead and it is your fault.  
  
"I have no need to hear from you, mother's solicitor will take care of things from now on. Vernon has friends in the profession and was able to find out who he was. He will go and see you.  
  
"I won't go to the service, you may do as you wish, but don't think that you will see me any time soon.  
  
"Petunia Dursley."  
  
Sirius and Remus were silent as James read the letter, but it was rather hard to contain their indignation.  
  
"How dare she! I'm going to apparate to that house and transfigure her into a worm and then stomp on her, see if I don't." Exclaimed Sirius with anger.  
  
"I have to find Lily." James said and ran out of the room hoping to find Lily.  
  
"The nerve of her. Can you believe she actually blamed Lily for their father's death? He had a bad heart for goodness sake!" Exclaimed Remus.  
  
"At least now Lily will face the fact that her sister is no more than a hag. Good riddance I say." Sirius said as he took the letter and threw it out the window.  
  
"What good will that do?" Asked Remus.  
  
"Well, mother always said, out of sight out of mind." Sirius shrugged.  
  
"You're such and idiot sometimes." Renus shook his head with exasperation.  
  
"Hey!" Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Now is not the time to argue we have to think about what we are going to do." Remus said.  
  
"I told you what we are going to do. We'll go to her house and transfigure the lot of them into worms before stomping on them." Said Sirius.  
  
"That would only serve to throw you into Azkaban, you would break so many rules that you would probably never see the light of the sun again." Said Remus.  
As Remus and Sirius argued in the dining room, James searched all over the house for Lily, without success. He had gone to Harry's room, hoping that she would go to it for comfort, but he only found a sleeping Harry as Minnie cleaned the room.  
  
"Does Master James want something from Minnie?" The elf asked the moment James stepped into the small bedroom.  
  
"Has Lily been here?" James asked as he looked around.  
  
"This morning Master James, Mistress Lily came before Mistress Lily went down to breakfast." Minnie reported.  
  
"But not since then?" James asked eagerly.  
  
"No master James, Minnie has not seen Mistress Lily." Minnie replied.  
  
James nodded and promptly left the room to resume his search.  
  
After looking through all the rooms, including Mrs. Evans', he knew that she must have gone to the gardens.  
  
He walked down the kitchen gardens, vegetables and fruit grew profusely in their tended beds surrounded by thick shrubbery. He turned toward the lane that led to the Manor, small beds of flowers lined the lane.  
  
James looked around, he couldn't help but think how calm and sunny everything looked, just like it was on the morning of the May Day celebration, if he would've known what would happen at the end of that day he wouldn't have left the women behind.  
  
The wide lanes opened up at each side of him and around the bend, the dark house rose before him.  
  
So different from what it had once been. Dark and morose, there were no children playing around the lanes, no gardeners working on the gardens, only workers, getting rid of the burned furniture and others in scaffolds painting over the black signs of the fire. But Lily was not in sight.  
  
James looked around, where could she be? He turned toward the enclosed gardens, maybe she has gone there, he thought. He nodded to the workers as he passed, and looked saddened at the meaningless destruction that was put to rights. He felt a wave of anger invade his body. If he ever found out who had led the Death Eaters to his door, that person would be very sorry to have messed with the Potters.  
  
He had avoided Dumbledore's visits for the last days. He knew that his former Headmaster wanted to talk about going into hiding, it was clear that Voldemort had decided to target the Potters and the fact that they went after Harry let them know that Voldemort had found out about the charm performed when Harry was newly born. His head was telling him that it would be for the best to listen to what Dumbledore had to say and go into hiding, but he couldn't help but feel that it was the wrong time to do so.  
  
He had been lost in thought as he walked into the enclosed gardens that he didn't pay attention to what was around him. All the plants had bloomed, the gardens were a kaleidoscope of color and pleasant aromas. Insects buzzed around the flowers collecting nectar and the fountains and pools glistened with their clear water.  
  
He finally arrived to the last garden. Their garden. He pushed against the door to see if it was closed, it opened easily. He stepped into the garden. The walls were covered in what looked to be ivy, but James new that it was not ivy at all, it was a plant that looked like ivy to the common eye, but if you had magical blood then it would look so different. The leaves changed color as the sun warmed them, they danced as if a breeze passed them by, but there was no breeze, and the aroma that emerged from it made one think of spring nights dancing with fairies.  
  
Tall bushes of different magical plants were arranged around the garden. Small gnomes played around the dark soil and flowers bloomed everywhere. The garden was dressed in its best suit to greet the summer, it always did.  
  
Lily was sitting on a bench next to the pool at the center of the garden. James sighed with relief as he spied her. He walked slowly toward her so not to startle her as she seemed to be oblivious to his presence.  
  
"Lily?" He whispered as he got nearer.  
  
"I was wishing that she would put things aside and be here for mother's service." She whispered back.  
  
"I know." James sat beside her and put his arms around her, bringing her face to rest against his shoulder.  
  
"Why does she hate me James? What is so bad about being a witch?" She sobbed.  
  
"There is nothing bad with our talents Lily, never think that because of who we are and what we do, we are any different from the rest of the world. You were born with a special talent that belong only to a small community of the world. You can do great things with your talent, never let a person like your sister and her husband tell you that it's wrong." He said as he stroke her back.  
  
"What are we going to do now?" She asked as her tears ceased to fall.  
  
"We'll go on, Lily. We have to, for our son. He needs us to be strong." James replied.  
  
"He knows, doesn't he? That's why they came for Harry. He knows." Lily shivered with consternation, were they really safe?  
  
"I'm afraid that he does. I just don't understand how he knew that nobody was going to be home. They waited until we left with Remus, but how did they know that we would?" James asked the question that had been bothering him from the moment he learned of the attack.  
  
"Where they watching us?" She asked looking up to him.  
  
"They still wouldn't have known how long it would take us. They knew that we were going to leave, and they knew for how long, it was as if they knew about Remus." James said.  
  
"How could they have known?" Lily asked sitting up straight.  
  
"There is no way, only we know about it, and the Hogwarts staff but I don't think they would've said anything about it." James shook his head in denial.  
  
"Did somebody betray that secret? But who?" Lily asked.  
  
"I don't know. It could be that it was all a coincidence and I'm seeing more than there actually is." James smiled at Lily.  
  
"We have to talk to Dumbledore." Lily said.  
  
James sighed. "I know. I was wishing that it could be put aside for a while."  
  
"We can wait until all the preparations are done and we return to London." Lily said more calmly. "Do you think we will be safe there?"  
  
"Yes, the Ministry has taken precautions around the square, unless somebody within the Ministry wished to betray sensitive information, there is no way the Death Eaters can attack in the Square." James replied.  
  
"James, not everyone that works in the Ministry is honest. There are corrupt officials in every level of a government, no matter if you are muggle or wizard." Lily said.  
  
"I know, but there are so few that know how to get past by the protecting charms and I'm sure that the Ministry studied every aspect of these persons' character to take them into their confidence." James said.  
  
Lily shrugged. She didn't really believe that, she thought that Voldemort would have taken care to have a high level Ministry agent working with him, otherwise there would be no way that he could've escaped from the Ministry this long. But she didn't want to say so to James. Having grown up under the shadow of the Ministry and having a father who worked exhaustedly for the well being of that Ministry made him blind to some of the defects that the Ministry of Magic possessed. The Ministry was more than a building, it was people, and like any person they all made mistakes, and some of those mistakes could become costly.  
  
"Come, let's go back to the house, I'm sure that Harry is awake now and wishing to see you." James said.  
  
Lily smiled and allowed James to help her up to her feet. Together they walked past the gardens and turned down the lane leading to the Dower House.  
James was right. Harry had woken up while his parents were away and Minnie was having some problems trying to calm him down. Hearing the wails coming from his room, Remus and Sirius tried to help but that didn't seem to be enough.  
  
When Lily and James came into the house, they found the servants quietly working as loud wails could be heard throughout the house.  
  
Lily and James looked at each other and smiled.  
  
They quickly climbed the stairs and walked toward Harry's room. They found Remus and Sirius sprawled on the floor while Minnie was clasping her ears against her head.  
  
"What are you doing?" Asked James looking down at his friends.  
  
"Trying to figure out a way to quiet Harry." Said Sirius.  
  
Lily laughed. "That's not going to help you." She took Harry out of the crib and Harry eventually stopped crying.  
  
"I know you are hungry, don't worry, I'll take care of you." Whispered Lily as she left the room and walked toward the backstairs that lead to the kitchens.  
  
Sirius and Remus sighed with relief.  
  
"I'm not getting married." Said Remus.  
  
"I'm not having any children." Said Sirius.  
  
James laughed.  
Preparations for the service for their mothers and the twins continued. Although Lily was still saddened that Petunia had chosen not to take part on it, she accepted that her sister would not change her mind and planned everything on her own.  
  
A plot of the family cemetery was put aside and the chapel was inundated by flowers, that the gardeners had cut from the freshly blooming gardens, and that the people of the town had brought up to the Manor.  
  
The Manor House was looking better as the days passed. Slowly the signs of the attack started to disappear and everything started to look as if had never taken place, except for the arrangement of the service of course.  
  
The day it was to take place arrived. The sun was out and the lawns of the estate couldn't look any better. It seemed as if nature had arrived to say its goodbye.  
  
Many people started to arrive early in the morning. Some coming all the way from London and Godric's Hollow.  
  
Lily and James were in the chapel very early, and started to greet people soon after. Harry was sleeping in a small carriage set beside Lily's seat at the very front.  
  
"Thank you for coming." Lily was saying to the people as they entered.  
  
People hugged and sobbed as they stood before them, some were very well known to them, others were just passing acquaintances. The chapel was soon full and no more room was available for more, but the latecomers didn't seem to mind it as they stood outside the doors trying to hear everything that was said inside.  
  
Four coffins stood in front of the altar surrounded by flowers of every color and every kind and the vicar stood beside them.  
The birds sang and the insects hummed. The leaves danced upon the trees and the flowers bloomed in the sunlight. In the family plot, four coffins were lowered into the ground as a somber crowd surrounded them in silence.  
  
Lily stood by James, Harry lay quietly in his mother's arms. He was awake but somehow seemed to sense that it was time for silence. Sirius and Remus stood by James, both looking on as the four coffins were slowly covered by dirt.  
  
It was soon over and it was time for everybody to retire to the ballroom in the Manor House, which had been opened for the occasion, chairs and sofas were brought to the large room and people walked among them forming groups to talk about those they had come to say goodbye to.  
  
James and Lily sat by the large French doors that opened to the formal gardens and people approached them often to talk.  
  
"I knew your mother quite well. She was an exceptional woman."  
  
"Thank you sir, I'm sure she would be pleased that you held her in great esteem." James would answer.  
  
"Young lady, your mother was a sweet woman, I'm sure she would be pleased at the way you chose to celebrate her life."  
  
"Thank you sir, I believe so as well." Lily said many times.  
  
Finally, an old gentleman approached them. He looked quite somber dressed in black, but he had a kind face.  
  
"I'm sorry to have heard about your mothers' death, Mr. and Mrs. Potter. I knew your mother, Miss Lily, for many years, it had been my privilege to care for her and your father's estate for many decades." The old man said looking at Lily.  
  
"Oh, did you work with them?" Lily asked, she had never met her father's business partners and her mother had kept everything separate from her own family life that she never mentioned business at all.  
  
"In a sense, I was their solicitor." The old man bowed. "Mr. Adolphus Nikolei, at your service." He said.  
  
"I am very please to see you sir, we were just talking the other day that I didn't know who my mother's solicitor was and that we needed to find out." Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"Indeed, specially since her sister Petunia wasn't to be present." Said James.  
  
Lily glared at James but Mr. Nikolei didn't seem to notice.  
  
"Indeed, I was aware of that. She spoke to me a few days ago and said that she would not attend."  
  
"She told you that?" Lily asked surprised.  
  
"She did." Mr. Nikolei nodded. "She wanted to warn me in case I was planning to read your mother's will after the service."  
  
"Of course she did." James said in a sarcastic tone.  
  
"I told her of course that it had been your mother's wish that her will be read a week after her service, she made several articles in her will for every contingency." Mr. Nikolei responded. "In fact, I wished to ask if you prefer to have the will read here or in town, your mother told me to make sure that I adhere to your needs."  
  
"We will probably be in town by the end of this week." James said.  
  
"Should we go to your office?" Lily asked.  
  
"No, we can do it in your town house. Your mother said that she wished it to be read in your house. I will let your sister know." Mr. Nikolei said.  
  
"Of course." Nodded Lily.  
  
Mr. Nikolei bowed to them and wiggled his fingers to Harry who laughed happily as he did so.  
  
"Petunia will not be too happy to go to the London house." Lily said.  
  
"She will be there if she wants to know what your mother's will says." James said.  
  
Lily didn't say anything but James knew that she was worried about what would happen in one week.  
True to his word, the remaining Potters left Gryffindor Manor at the end of the week, both Sirius and Remus accompanied them and Peter, who had arrived late the day of the service and had stayed with them for the remaining of the week, returned to his mother's side.  
  
The servants had moved to the city the previous day to make the house ready for their masters. Mr. Sanders, along with the tenants and gardeners who were staying behind, lined the lane leading to main road out of the estate to wave them goodbye. Nobody knew how long the Masters of the Gryffindor Estate would be away from the Manor and everybody hoped that it wouldn't be for too long.  
  
The ride to London was short and silent. Harry was asleep much of the way as the sounds of the motor and the motion of the car lulled him into a deep sleep.  
  
Lily spent the ride looking out the window and letting the scenery pass by. James sat next to her looking forward his brow frowning as he thought things over. Sirius and Remus kept their silence, even if both had so many things to say.  
  
The day was almost over when the car drove past the streets of London and eventually arrived to Rowe Square.  
  
The building that housed the Ministry of Magic was well lit and people were coming and going out of its principal entrance. The park was full of children playing and laughing as their guardians looked indulgently around them. The Regency Hotel on the opposite side of the square from the Ministry stood proudly in the waning sunlight and the houses around the square were being lit to greet the evening.  
  
Roberts stood by the open door of the house as the car stopped in front. Remus and Sirius quickly got out as Martin, the driver, helped Lily out.  
  
"Good evening Roberts." Said James as he led Lily and the others up the front steps.  
  
"Evening Sir, Mistress Lily." Greeted Roberts, bowing to them. "Everything is ready for you."  
  
"Oh good, I think I will rest a little before dinner." Said Lily as she carried Harry across the threshold.  
  
Minnie instantly appeared before them, ready to take Harry while James and Lily settled down after the trip.  
  
"Any visits while we were away?" They were now settled in the bookroom and Lily had left them to themselves as she took some time to rest.  
  
"None Sir, but this owl arrived earlier today." Said Roberts giving him a sealed parchment.  
  
"Thank you Roberts, let us know when dinner is ready to be served." Said James.  
  
Roberts left them after making sure that the decanters were full and empty glasses were placed beside them.  
  
"It's from Dumbledore." James told Remus and Sirius after reading the short note. "He is coming to speak with us tomorrow."  
  
"What is going on James?" Remus suddenly said.  
  
"And don't tell us you don't know. The Death Eaters attacked for a reason." Sirius said.  
  
James shrugged, he was still hoping not to involve his friends into the situation that he and Lily had themselves embroiled on. "It could be that we were not as careful as we hopped when we decided to protect the members of our group." He said.  
  
"That won't do James, we heard Lotty telling you that the Death Eaters were looking for Harry." Remus said.  
  
"If it had been as you say, they wouldn't have waited until we left with Remus, they would've attacked the moment we returned from town. But they waited until they knew that the only ones left were the ladies and the elves, Harry was technically unprotected." Sirius said.  
  
"I cannot tell you, it's not my secret to tell." James said.  
  
"James, you know us, we would never betray you." Remus said.  
  
"I'm sorry." James replied.  
  
Both Sirius and Remus sighed with exasperation, they knew that if James put his mind into something they would never get it out of him.  
  
"What can we do?" Sirius asked.  
  
"There is nothing to be done. We'll see what Dumbledore has to say." James said.  
  
"Will that help?" Remus said.  
  
"I don't see how it could not." James smiled sadly.  
  
There was no further discussions as Lily soon appeared looking rested and calmer as she told them that dinner was almost ready.  
  
The three men left the bookroom and followed her to the family room to await dinner to be served.  
  
The first evening back in town was carefree and silent as they tried to continue with their lives after the event that had turned many of their dreams and plans to ashes in the smoldering fire.  
A/N: I know is shorter than other chapters and a little sad, the next couple of chapters feel a little dark as well, I'm working on Chapter 8 now and I think there is only one more chapter after that and this part of the story is done. Thank you all for reviewing, I'm glad that many of you are enjoying it.  
  
Kirbee: Thank you, I like yours as well, although I haven't read the one you are working on now, but I'll take some time to do so.  
  
Ice Princess: There might be some mistakes I know, I thought I had fixed that one though. When I first started this story I put a description of them in chapter 2, by the time I got to chapter 3 I changed my vision of them, that's when I did the dolls, so I could keep a concrete vision of them. I went back and changed the description, at least it is changed in the copy I have, but I may have uploaded the original chapter without noticing. I'll have to go back and see where the changes are needed, thanks for pointing that out though. 


	42. Part III Chapter 7

N/A: Thank you all for reviewing, I'm very glad of the good things you have to say and it makes me want to write a lot more.  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter nor any characters or places related to it.  
Chapter 7 ~ Taking Precautions  
The day after their arrival to town, Dumbledore paid them a visit. James, Lily, Remus and Sirius met him in the family parlor where the men were sprawled in the floor urging Harry to stand on his own.  
  
"Come Harry, come to daddy." James was urging.  
  
Harry was standing against the couch, looking at his father with a smile.  
  
"Go on Harry." "You can do it." Remus and Sirius were urging Harry on.  
  
Lily looked indulgently on and laughed at the sight of her husband in such a state. He is like a child, she thought and chuckled.  
  
"It's not funny Lily, he is old enough to walk on his own." James said.  
  
"I know he is James, and he will, eventually." Lily said.  
  
"But I don't want him to be left behind, I know a lot of children that have begun to walk much younger than Harry." James exclaimed.  
  
"James, each child is different. He will walk, there is nothing that will keep him from it. Besides, I'm sure that once he does start to walk we are going to miss this time when we can actually keep track of him." Lily said.  
  
"Oh, Harry is not going to be any trouble. Are you Harry?" James had turned to look back at Harry who was still standing against the couch.  
  
It was then when the doorbell rang. They heard Roberts walking to the entrance and then voices were heard.  
  
James looked at Lily, the fun seemed to have gone for the moment.  
  
"Professor Dumbledore." Announced Roberts some minutes later.  
  
"Thank you Roberts. Welcome Professor." Said Lily as she stood to greet Dumbledore.  
  
"Hello, my dear. I hope I didn't come at a wrong time." His eyes twinkled at the sight of the three young men sprawled on the floor.  
  
"Oh no Professor." Said James quickly coming to his feet to greet him.  
  
"We were just trying to get Harry to walk." Explained Sirius.  
  
"Indeed? And did you succeed?" Asked Dumbledore as he looked at Harry who was smiling up to them from the couch.  
  
"No. He doesn't seem to be interesting in walking yet." Said Remus.  
  
Harry plopped down on the floor and laughed as if agreeing with Remus.  
  
"Please sit Professor, do you wish for some refreshment?" Lily asked as she motioned toward an empty chair.  
  
"Thank you my dear, but I have need of nothing." Professor Dumbledore said as he sat.  
  
"Do you wish us to leave?" Remus asked as he tried to get Sirius to stand up, but Sirius didn't seem to notice that this was a time when Lily and James might prefer to be alone with their old Headmaster.  
  
"There is no need." Said Dumbledore.  
  
James and Lily looked at each other with surprise, even Sirius and Remus looked surprised that Dumbledore wanted them to stay. He had never done so before when he came to talk to Lily and James, and they certainly had never asked them to stay in those meetings. But Dumbledore didn't seem to mind that the young people were perplexed at his change of mind.  
  
Minutes later, everybody was sitting and Harry had been taken by Minnie for his nap. Drinks had been brought for James and Sirius while the rest preferred to wait.  
  
"We are rather concerned about the attack, it seems as Voldemort has decided to go after you." Dumbledore was saying. "What is rather confusing is the fact that they attacked at the time they did. You said that the fair would take place the whole day, and it indeed did so, there was no reason for them to be there if they had heard of it."  
  
"We think they were watching for us." James said.  
  
"It does look that way." Agreed Dumbledore.  
  
"But I don't understand why they waited until we were gone, if it is as you say and Voldemort has decided to make them a target, why wait until we left and only the ladies and Harry were left behind with the elves?" Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"And how would they know that we would leave, if it hadn't been a full moon that night, we would've stayed in the village until dark." Lily said.  
  
"They knew that you would return before it got dark and that you would choose to accompany Mr. Lupin out of the estate." Dumbledore said.  
  
"But how would they know? Only a few know about my condition?" Remus said.  
  
"Is it possible that we have a spy?" Asked James, it was a question that resided in the mind of everybody present but none had the courage to say.  
  
Everybody fell silent, a feeling of dread and anger running through their bodies, for all they knew the person responsible could be one of them.  
  
Dumbledore took a deep breath. "It is a possibility." He finally said. "They seem to be very well informed about our steps."  
  
"What do we do now?" Lily asked. She didn't want to think that one of their friends could be the one responsible for the death of their mother and the twins.  
  
"For now, it is better if you stay here. I'll try to see if any of my operatives can find out more about what Voldemort's plans are. We'll make further plans as we find out more." Dumbledore said.  
  
"I suppose it would do no good if I say that it would be best if they hide." Remus said.  
  
"It would make no difference, if they hide he is bound to find them one way or another." Said Sirius.  
  
"Not if we do the Fidelius Charm." Dumbledore said rather suddenly.  
  
"The What Charm?" Asked Sirius confused.  
  
"The Fidelius Charm." Dumbledore repeated with a smile.  
  
"How does that work?" Lily asked.  
  
"It involves the concealment of a secret in a living soul. The secret in this case would be your hiding place. Voldemort could look everywhere even in your own house and not find you as long as the Secret-Keeper retains the secret, it is only broken if he decided to give up the secret willingly." Dumbledore explained.  
  
Everybody was silent, it did sound like the perfect choice.  
  
"We'll discuss it if the need arrives." Said James.  
  
Dumbledore nodded.  
  
Sirius and Remus looked surprised at him. "Why?" Both asked.  
  
"James, it is the perfect thing. If Voldemort has made up his mind to come after you, he will." Said Sirius.  
  
"Think of Harry and Lily, James, it is for the best." Remus said.  
  
"How do we know that? For all we know, this was a fluke. Our group has been systematically attacked during the last months. Sirius wouldn't have sent Katie away if we didn't know that. The fact that the others haven't is because they hid and it is harder for the Death Eaters to find them. But we didn't hide, we stayed. Our family has lived in the same house for generations, everybody knows where we live, it never was a secret." James said.  
  
"But James, haven't you been listening! This is different. They didn't come just to attack, they wanted something else." Sirius said.  
  
"Leave it Sirius. If Dumbledore finds reason for us to use the charm, we will. For now, we'll stay put." James said.  
  
Sirius looked like he wanted to continue arguing but Lily spoke before he could.  
  
"He is right Sirius. We are safe for now, as long as the charm protecting the square holds, we will be safe. I don't want Harry to grow up in hiding Sirius, he deserves better." Lily said looking imploringly at him.  
  
Sirius held his tongue. They were right, Harry did deserve better, but he also deserved to live safe.  
  
The meeting didn't last long after that. Dumbledore stayed for dinner and everybody tried to make the most effort to look cheerful although all knew that the next day they would have to remember their sorrow as Mr. Nikolei read Mrs. Evans' will.  
The day was sunny and the street was silent. Privet Drive was one of the newest rebuilt suburbs in Surrey and many of the new neighbors to the quiet community were middle-class businessmen trying to keep their children out of the bad influences found in the big cities.  
  
The residents at number 4 were no different.  
  
"Ohh, look at our Dudleyinkings, he is eating on his own now." Gushed Mrs. Petunia Dursley as the small family sat around the table for breakfast.  
  
Mr. Vernon Dursley looked over the paper and his flushed face broke into a smile. "That's my boy, he is going to be successful, mark my words." He boomed.  
  
Petunia's expression changed in matter of seconds. "Are we doing right in going Vernon, I see no reason why we need to go to 'her' house." She said gloomily.  
  
Vernon knew exactly who 'she' was that made her wife so upset. If he were in her shoes, he would be upset about it as well. Thank God for Marge, he thought, at least I don't have to worry about my sister.  
  
"It was your mother's wish, dear, if we want to know what it says we need to go to their London House." Vernon said trying to soothe his wife.  
  
"Humph! There was no need for her to wish for that, there is a large house in London where we could all meet if the solicitor's office wasn't big enough. The thought of my precious baby getting involved with their sort just bothers me greatly." She exclaimed as she hugged Dudley tight, an action he didn't like as he started to fuss and whimper among his mother's arms.  
  
"Don't worry Petunia, it won't be for long, but if you prefer, we could leave him with Mrs. Figgs for the day." Vernon said.  
  
"No, I don't like the thought of leaving my little baby behind; besides, she doesn't like me very much." Petunia's face turned sour at the thought of the belligerent old lady, who lived in a small house around the corner from their own.  
  
"Whatever you wish dear, but we must get ready if we want to be there on time." Said Vernon looking at his watch.  
  
Petunia nodded and quietly took the screaming Dudley in her arms and left the kitchen.  
  
Vernon watched her go and started to think of the many things they could buy with the money his mother-in-law left them, starting with a new car and a house in Majorca.  
Lily was in a state of agitation.  
  
"But what if they don't like each other? They are cousins, so far, he might be the only cousin he may have." Lily was saying as she watched Minnie getting Harry ready for the day.  
  
"Lily, Harry will not mind if he doesn't get along with your sister's son, he will have lots of friends, he might not even remember he has a cousin." James said, and if he is lucky, he won't have to see him after today, James thought.  
  
"Oh but - "  
  
"Lily, your sister might not want them to meet at all, he is best not worrying about them." James said taking Lily by her shoulders and looking her straight into her eyes.  
  
"I know you are right, but I can't help but wish you weren't." She whispered.  
  
"I know. Don't worry Lily, Harry will be fine without the Dursleys." James said hugging her.  
  
Lily smiled sadly but said no more.  
  
Minutes later they were sitting in the parlor room with Sirius and Remus waiting for Mr. Nikolei to make an appearance.  
  
They held their breath when the doorbell rang and they heard Roberts going to open it. Moments later, the parlor door was opened.  
  
"Mr. Nikolei, Sir, Ma'am." Announced Roberts.  
  
"Thank you Roberts, see that refreshments are served please, the Dursleys should be here soon." Said James as the solicitor entered the room. "Welcome Mr. Nikolei, do you wish for something to drink?"  
  
"Good day Sir, I'm fine for now, thank you. Good day to you Mrs. Potter." Mr. Nikolei said bowing to Lily.  
  
"Good day Mr. Nikolei, I hope you have the time to eat luncheon with us after the reading." Lily said as she motioned the solicitor toward a chair.  
  
"We'll see Ma'am, we'll see." Mr. Nikolei said. "Did I hear you say that the Dursleys are not present yet?"  
  
"You did, Mr. Nikolei, they have not arrived." James said as Roberts entered the parlor followed by a troop of footmen carrying drinks, pastries and plates of appetizers that Otty had prepared with care.  
  
Sirius quickly made his way to the refreshments and was happily munching on his selection when the doorbell rang once more.  
  
Lily looked intently toward the door, while James tensed by her side. If that woman does something to upset Lily, I will turn her into a rat, James thought as they heard Roberts walk toward the front door.  
  
Moments later the parlor door opened once more.  
  
"Mr. and Mrs. Vernon Dursley." Roberts said as he moved aside and allowed the couple behind him to enter.  
  
Petunia didn't seem too happy as she looked around the room. Her feelings seemed to be shared by her husband.  
  
"Ah, about time you got here." Exclaimed Mr. Nikolei.  
  
Vernon nodded curtly toward him and didn't even turn to look at the rest of those present. Petunia just pinched her lips and said nothing as she sat in one of the chairs further from the assembled group, the bundle in her arms fussed and wailed.  
  
"Hello Petunia, is that your son?" Asked Lily looking at the small pink face emerging from the bundle of clothes in her sister's lap.  
  
Petunia didn't respond, she just turned all her attention to her son.  
  
Lily sat back rather dejectedly on her seat while James glowered at Petunia.  
  
"Well, yes." Mr. Nikolei said as the tension in the room grew. "We should start then." He said as he opened his briefcase and started to take out his papers.  
  
"Wait a moment here!" Vernon exclaimed abruptly. "Why are they here? They are not family." He said glowering toward Remus and Sirius.  
  
"Family! You! We were more a family to her than you ever were." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Please, take a seat." Said Mr. Nikolei in a loud voice. Once everybody took a seat he continued. "Mr. Black and Mr. Lupin were mentioned in Mrs. Evans' will, they are here because I asked them to be." He said looking at Vernon over his small glasses.  
  
Vernon's face became flush in anger but didn't say anything. He took the chair next to Petunia and turned to look toward the solicitor.  
  
Mr. Nikolei nodded and looked through his papers. "I will read the last will and testament of Mrs. Rose Evans as she dictated it to me on the first day of November this past year.  
  
"I, Rose Adelaine Evans, being on sound mind, hereby allocate my estate in the following manner:  
  
"The London House, I leave to both my daughters to do as they wish.  
  
"To both my grandchildren, I leave a trust with the amount of 1 million pounds each, to be awarded to them at the age of 21.  
  
"To Sirius Black and Remus Lupin, for being a constant source of amusement and companionship, I leave the amounts of 100,000 pounds each.  
  
"The rest of my belongings, the paintings, jewelry and remaining monies, will be distributed as follows:  
  
"In the event that both my daughters put aside their differences and came together for my service, the remaining of the estate will be divided in equal parts.  
  
"In the event that one of my daughters was not present, the remaining of my estate will be presented to the other.  
  
"This is my last will and testament:  
  
"Signed, Rose Adelaine Evans and Adolphus Nikolei."  
  
The solicitor read into the silent room.  
  
Everybody seemed very surprised, but nobody seemed to have the breath to reply to it.  
  
"Wh - wha - what does that mean?" Petunia stuttered.  
  
"It means, Mrs. Dursley, that because you were not present on your mother's service, you forfeited most of your inheritance. The one thing you can count on is whatever comes out from the house." Mr. Nikolei replied.  
  
"WHAT! WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL US WHEN WE CONTACTED YOU?" Roared Vernon making Dudley cry and Harry, who was in a carriage sleeping by Lily's seat, started to fuss.  
  
"Because it was to be your wife's choice. What happens between a solicitor and his client is confidential." Mr. Nikolei frowned at Vernon.  
  
"YOU DID THIS, YOU FILLED HER WITH YOUR HOCUS POCUS AND DID THIS!" Vernon turned to Lily, his face flushed with anger.  
  
"DON'T YOU BLAME THIS ON LILY, YOU TWO HAVE MADE YOUR HIPOCRACY AND GREED QUITE CLEAR FROM THE BEGINNING. Personally, I don't blame Mrs. Evans for making her will as she did." James got control of his temper at the end, lowering his voice to his normal tone.  
  
Remus and Sirius were nodding vigorously their agreement. Lily was just silent, it hurt her that her sister would think like that, Vernon wouldn't say it if Petunia didn't agree with him.  
  
"Of course you do, you probably do the same with anybody who comes near you, you wouldn't have this house if you didn't." Snapped Vernon.  
  
That was the last straw for James.  
  
"I'll have you know that my family has been in possession of this house and the others for several generations, our vaults in Gringotts has been filled with gold for more than two hundred years and we do not waste our coins in rubbish, now, you have insulted my family for the last time, I'm asking you to leave my house, any arrangements needed after this can be done through Mr. Nikolei." James said, nodding to Roberts, who had come in running into the room when the screaming started to see if anything was wrong, and watched as the butler opened the door for the Dursleys and relaxed as they made their way out of the room.  
  
"I'm sorry I lost my temper." Apologized James some minutes later.  
  
"No matter. I had been asking myself why Mrs. Evans had made such provisions, I now see that she was looking ahead." Mr. Nikolei shook his head in disbelief.  
  
"Yes, well, they had it coming." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"Indeed they did, since Mr. Evans' death. I'm just surprised they lasted this long without bothering Mrs. Evans about what he had left behind." Remus said.  
  
"I think I will retire, I have a headache." Said Lily taking Harry with her and leaving the room without waiting for anybody to say anything.  
  
James sighed. He wished he could have been able to protect her from such scene, but he knew that she needed to see it for herself.  
  
"I will leave you then, there are some papers that Mrs. Potter will need to sign in order to transfer her inheritance into her own accounts and to your solicitor, but I can get in contact with him if you wish. You know how to contact me if you need my help. Gentlemen." He bowed to them and he left the room soon after.  
  
The room was silent as the solicitor made his way out of the room. Roberts led him to the entrance and the three young men were left behind pondering what had just happened.  
  
"Can you actually believe that? I thought he was going to pop." Chuckled Sirius at the thought of Vernon's reaction to the will.  
  
James and Remus couldn't help themselves, they laughed too.  
  
"That sister-in-law of yours is a nightmare James, I would've chucked her out the door the moment she came in." Said Sirius returning to the refreshment table once more with his empty plate.  
  
"I would too." Nodded Remus as he looked at the food with curiosity.  
  
"Don't think that I wasn't tempted, but Lily wanted to see her sister." Shrugged James.  
  
"The way they acted, as if it didn't matter that the death of Mrs. Evans brought us all together today. All they cared about was what she left behind." Exclaimed Sirius with disgust.  
  
"Indeed. She left them enough, even if they don't deserve it." Said Remus as he gave way to his instincts and joined Sirius next to the refreshment table.  
  
"I'll say, one million to that kid of theirs and whatever comes from the house, that is more than enough." Said Sirius.  
  
James nodded. He was still angry at the way the Dursleys had reacted to the news, but what made him angrier still was that they blamed it all in Lily, don't they know that that kind of magic they accused her of is against Magical law? Maybe not, they should take some magical awareness class in muggle schools to avoid such bigotry, he thought. Then he thought of Lily, she had been clearly upset by what happened. "I'm going to see Lily." James said and quickly left the room.  
  
Sirius and Remus looked at each with worry.  
  
"How do you think she is doing?" Asked Remus.  
  
Sirius shrugged.  
Lily was a little upset. After she left the others behind in the parlor, she quickly made her way to their chambers, with a fussing Harry in her arms.  
  
"Shhh! Harry, there is nothing to worry about." She whispered to her son as she made her way down the corridors toward their room.  
  
The moment she reached her room, she walked briskly to Harry's small room connecting to her own. Minnie was inside putting the laundry away.  
  
"Put him to bed Minnie, he needs to rest." Said Lily as she placed Harry into his crib and quickly returned to her own room. She didn't think she was able to stay and take care of Harry in her state.  
  
She had known that Petunia wasn't too happy to have her as a sister, when she was younger she could think of it as sibling rivalry, but now she knew that her sister hated her. What was so wrong about being a witch in the first place? She stood looking out the window as she thought over the events of the day. She had a nephew that she could honestly say she never met. They didn't even bother to ask about Harry! She thought in anger. Perhaps James was right. Harry didn't need them, he would be happy with James and Lily and all their friends, they would love him and watch him grow full of happiness.  
  
She stayed in front of the window as she heard Minnie taking care of Harry. Oh yes, she thought, Harry would grow up loved and happy.  
  
She started to dream about all the things they could do as the years passed by. James would teach Harry to fly and be the best Quidditch player Hogwarts had ever seen, they would take him shopping at Diagon Alley when he got his letter from Hogwarts, she would enjoy that, she thought, shopping and taking him around the stores as James and Sirius spent most of his time in the Quidditch Supplies store looking at brooms and the latest in Quidditch technology. Maybe their friends would have children by then, Harry would have lots of friends and they would look proudly as he played in his house team. She knew that James was certain that Harry would belong to Gryffindor (How could he not! Every Potter has been in Gryffindor! James always said) and secretly, she agreed with him.  
  
She was so lost in her own thoughts that she didn't hear the door open and close behind her. She looked out of the window until she was startled by a hand touching her waist.  
  
"What are you thinking of?" Asked James as he turned her softly to look at him.  
  
"Just about what we are going to do when Harry grows up." She said with a smile.  
  
"And what is that?" Queried James.  
  
"Oh, how we are going to take him shopping when he gets his letter, and that you are going to teach him to fly." Lily replied.  
  
"He will be the best!" Exclaimed James.  
  
Lily laughed and leaned her head against him.  
  
"I was worried that what happened with your sister upset you." James kissed her hair and stroked her back. If they hurt her, he thought, I'm going to turn them into a pair of mice.  
  
"I was hurt, but you always say that they don't matter, so I won't let them worry me. If they don't want to see me, that's fine. We are happy together." Lily said as she hugged him tight.  
  
"Yes, we are, Harry doesn't need them and neither do we. Besides, with all the friends that Harry will have, he won't even notice that his cousin exist." James said.  
  
Lily smiled somewhat sadly. "What if we are not there for him?" She whispered.  
  
James was silent for a moment, he knew that she was thinking about Voldemort and the attack on their family. "Sirius and Remus will be there, and in case they are not, Dumbledore will know what to do." He replied eventually.  
  
"I don't want him to be alone, James." Lily said.  
  
"He won't be, we'll always be there with him, one way or another, he will be taken care of." James hugged her. Both feared for the future of their son.  
  
Voldemort has to be defeated, James thought, Harry shouldn't have to grow up fearing a man that he had never met.  
The days passed and Harry continued to grow. It was now the middle of June and Harry was almost a year old.  
  
"I wished we could go to the Manor and celebrate his birthday there." Sighed Lily one afternoon.  
  
"I know, I wish so as well, but we'll make it one of the greatest events of the year." James replied.  
  
James, Lily and Harry were in the family parlor. Lily was sitting in a chair near the windows, while James sat on the floor beside her. They both were watching Harry crawl on the floor, playing with his Quidditch balls and trying to reach everything that grabbed his attention.  
  
They both smiled indulgently as Harry spotted something over a small table at one corner of the room. It was a small figurine of a dancing couple, it was made of crystal and it shone against the sunlight. Harry crawled steadily toward the shinning object that had attracted him.  
  
"Harry!" Exclaimed Lily as she made to stand up.  
  
James put his arms against her lap. "Leave him, it won't break." James said.  
  
"Are you sure?" Lily frowned as she watched her son continue on his quest without any of the worry that belonged to his mother.  
  
"Of course." James replied.  
  
They watched as Harry sat up by the table and looked up to the figurine, as if he was trying to figure out how to reach it. He pushed against the legs of the table and pulled himself up, as he did so, the figurine toppled and fell a few feet away from him.  
  
James chuckled and Lily smiled, but didn't move as they watched their son standing on his own looking at the glittering object. Then he moved, James and Lily held their breath as Harry took one step, then another, and another, slowly Harry made it to the side of the figurine with a look of triumph in his small face as he reached down. As he did so, he fell. Before he started to cry, James swooped him up into his arms.  
  
"Yes! You did it Harry!" He exclaimed as he raised Harry up over his head and turned toward Lily who was clapping and laughing.  
  
"Did you see him, he walked." James exclaimed.  
  
Harry had forgotten everything about crying and squealed with laughter as his father raised him high.  
  
"Oh, isn't he clever." Lily said looking happily at her husband and son.  
  
"Of course he is, he's a Potter." James exclaimed.  
  
Lily laughed, every time Harry did something surprising he would say: He is a Potter.  
  
That is how Sirius found them some moments later.  
  
At their return to town, it was decided that Sirius should stay in the Potter house instead of opening his own, it would be too lonely if he was left on his own. After the reading of Mrs. Evans' will, Remus returned to his travels in his search for a cure to his troubles.  
  
"What are you lot going on about?" Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"He walked Sirius, Harry walked!" James shouted.  
  
"Did he? Oh, and I missed it. Ata boy Harry, I knew you could do it." Sirius run to James and took Harry from him as he said so. "All you need now are some lessons in flying and you are set to take Hogwarts by storm."  
  
"Honestly, you two can be so idiotic sometimes. My son is not going to be some jock, he is going to be a good student also and be Head Boy someday." Lily said.  
  
"I was Head Boy, I wasn't just a good Quidditch player." Exclaimed James.  
  
"Well, but you were an exception." Replied Lily.  
  
"What are you saying? That I was a jock!" Exclaimed Sirius. Lily knew he wasn't angry as she noticed the happy twinkle in his eyes.  
  
"You know what I mean." She said. "Now give me my son, he needs to eat." She took Harry from Sirius and quickly left the room.  
  
James and Sirius were left shaking with suppressed laughter. It took them a couple of minutes to manage to get a hold of themselves.  
  
"I suppose this means that we are going to have to make everything safe for him. Can you imagine how long that is going to take in a house this big?" Sirius exclaimed as he looked around.  
  
The house was indeed big. The ground floor housed the public rooms, the parlors, dining rooms, ballroom, library and kitchens. These were by no means small, they were quite large, enough to hold up to twenty people at once, except for the ballroom, which was the biggest room in the house and it could hold up to five hundred people. The second floor was divided into two wings, the East Wing was designed for the comfort of guests. There were fifty guest rooms, each with a sitting room and its own bathroom. The West Wing housed the private, family rooms. There were twenty chambers, each with a sitting room and walking closet along with a dressing room and bathroom. The largest of these bedrooms was, of course, the master bedroom. This room was as big as the public rooms, walled sized windows at one end with a balcony facing the back garden, fireplace, two dressing rooms and walking closets, and two bathrooms. It also contained a sitting room and a door connected to a smaller room, which had been turned to a nursery.  
  
Every room in the house was furnished with the best, designed for comfort and to show the wealth of the family. In every single public room were little adornments that could easily attract the attention to an eleven- month-old toddler. There was a lot to do if everything was going to be guarded from him.  
  
James shrugged. "That's why we have wands." He said.  
  
Sirius laughed. "Yes, that is rather convenient isn't it? But I thought magic couldn't be used anywhere in the square."  
  
"It can't, but I have clearance." James grinned as Sirius looked astonished by those news.  
  
"How did you manage to get it?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"It was only one of the few good things that came out of the attack. The Ministry thought that my household would need it." James replied. His expression turned serious and Sirius knew that it was a subject his friend didn't want to speak about.  
  
"Well, yes. When are you going to work on it then?" Sirius asked turning back to the previous subject.  
  
"I think I'll leave it for the staff to do it. Mrs. Nichols is more acquainted with that charm than I am. She performed it when I was Harry's age after all." Said James.  
  
Sirius nodded his agreement. "So what do we do?" He had come into the room in search of entertainment in the first place, now that they were all alone, he felt the boredom oppress him sometimes.  
  
James looked toward the door, he knew that it would take a while for Lily to return with Harry. He shrugged and started to walk out of the room, Sirius quickly followed him. Both men could be found later in the game room having a loud game of pool.  
Harry's birthday was getting close and both, James and Lily, were really looking forward to it. Sirius also got into the spirit of things, and accompanied James and Lily to Diagon Alley in search of the perfect gift.  
  
"A set of Quidditch robes." Said James one morning as they were discussing what to buy for Harry.  
  
"That would be perfect!" Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Honestly! I want Harry to grow up with much more than Quidditch." Lily said glaring at the two men.  
  
"But exercise is good for children." Sirius said.  
  
"I agree, but there are a lot more than just Quidditch. Why, he could learn to play soccer, baseball, basketball, well, there are a great number of sports, aren't there." Lily said.  
  
"But Harry is a wizard and Quidditch is our sport." James replied.  
  
"And I was born in a muggle family, I say he needs to learn about that side of his heritage as well." Said Lily.  
  
James and Sirius looked at each other with resignation.  
  
"She is right." Sirius sighed.  
  
"I know." Said James.  
  
"Now that it's all settled. I say that we get him some muggle toys as well, I won't have him grow up sheltered from that sort of things." Lily said happily.  
  
"Should we buy one of those com - compi - compiters?" James looked confusedly at Lily. Lily giggled. "Computer. No, I don't think so, he is too small for it." She managed to say after a few moments.  
  
"Oh, I was hoping we could." James looked crestfallen that they wouldn't buy one.  
  
"We can if you want one." Lily said with a smile.  
  
"I should say, it is your money after all." Said Sirius.  
  
"They are rather costly." Lily looked at James with a frown.  
  
"We have the money." Said James.  
  
"And where would you keep it, it does take up a lot of space." Lily replied.  
  
"In my bookroom." Said James.  
  
"Oh, very well, if you want one, you can have it." Lily said.  
  
James grinned. Lily couldn't help herself and laughed, he looked like a child being told that he could have his favorite toy.  
  
"We could get him a motorcycle." Sirius said rather suddenly.  
  
"Are you crazy! I'm not having my son in a motorcycle, it is enough that I allowed you to give him rides in your own." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"There are small ones for children Lily." James said.  
  
"Are there really?" Lily looked surprised.  
  
James nodded. "And they don't run very fast, it would be safe, but I think he is too small for one, he wouldn't be able to use it until a few years from now."  
  
Sirius shrugged and returned his attention back to his food.  
  
Lily and James continued with their plans, while Sirius ate and listened in silence.  
  
A couple of hours later, they were crossing through The Leaky Cauldron on their way to Diagon Alley.  
  
"Good day, Mr. Potter, Mrs. Potter." Greeted them the bartender.  
  
"Hello Tom, how is business today?" Smiled James.  
  
"Rather good, many parents are in town shopping for Hogwarts' term." Said Tom.  
  
"Oh yes, just six weeks for the term to begin." Said Lily as she looked around the pub at the small families looking over their purchases and those who were just there to pass a good time.  
  
"Oh yes, and with the assignment of a new teacher, new books have to be bought." Reported Tom.  
  
Sirius entered the pub at that moment and pushed a stroller in with him. He had stayed behind putting Harry into his stroller and told James and Lily to go ahead of him.  
  
"What took you so long?" Asked James.  
  
"Harry was fussing." Said Sirius.  
  
Lily bent to check on her son, who sat silently among plush pillows and small toys.  
  
"Well, he seems fine now." Said James looking at Harry smiling up at his mother.  
  
"Oh, he is a handsome boy." Exclaimed Tom.  
  
"Thank you." Smiled Lily.  
  
"Are we staying here for a bit or are we going in?" Asked Sirius as he looked around the pub.  
  
"We are going in, we have a lot to look for." Said Lily. "Good bye Tom, we'll see you when we are ready to go."  
  
The small group walked toward the back of the pub and after tapping the wall with a wand, the entrance to Diagon Alley was disclosed and they entered.  
  
Tom was right, the Alley was full of people shopping with young children, everybody seemed to be carrying a Hogwarts list of materials.  
  
For a moment, James and Lily thought sadly of the twins, it would've been their time to go to Hogwarts and they would've been buying their supplies now along with Harry's present. Now they wouldn't have that joy, Voldemort had taken it away from them.  
  
Their sadness didn't last long as Harry giggled at the sight of the caged owls overhead a sign that read Eeylops Owl Emporium. James and Lily smiled and stepped across the threshold and made their way toward the shops losing themselves along the sea of people shopping.  
  
They went to Gringotts first. A goblin led them to one of their vaults where they filled their sack with golden Galleons, silver Sickles and bronze Knuts. It was in Flourish and Blotts where they spent some time, looking around books for Harry, even though it would be a while until he would be able to use them.  
  
Lily was reading through the 'Early Readers' section when a small commotion behind her called her attention.  
  
A pregnant, red headed, woman was standing behind her, and to Lily's surprise she seemed to have all her children with her. Six of them! Thought Lily, and with another in the way? She has been busy.  
  
"George, Fred, leave that! Don't you touch a thing! Charlie dear, help Percy, he wants to see that book. Now, Bill give me your book list and look after Ron." She was saying at the six boys around her.  
  
Lily looked at her. "Oh, my, six boys!" She exclaimed.  
  
The woman looked at her and smiled. "Yes, a bit of a headache sometimes but I love them all the same."  
  
Lily smiled, happy to see that she wasn't offended. "And you are brave enough to have another?"  
  
"Well, yes, I'm hoping it will be the girl. Mind, I have been hoping for the same for five times now." The woman replied.  
  
Lily smiled and looked down at the carriage beside her, were Harry was silently playing with one of his Qudditch balls that James had insisted on bringing with them.  
  
"Oh, is that your little boy? Will you look at him, so handsome." The woman exclaimed.  
  
Her sons must have noticed that their mother was not paying them any attention because they turned to look at her to see what was keeping her. Two small boys, whom seemed very clear to Lily that were twins, walked behind her mother and clutching her skirts, looked curiously at Harry.  
  
"He must be the same age as my youngest." The woman said pointing at the small red-haired boy being entertained by one of the older boys. "Bill, bring Ron here." She called, and the boy promptly pushed what looked like an old carriage to her.  
  
Lily looked over all the small boys, all of them seemed to have inherited their mother's hair, a deep, fiery red.  
  
"My word! I forgot to introduce myself." The woman exclaimed. "I'm Molly Weasley." She put out her hand and smiled.  
  
"Lily Potter." Said Lily shaking her hand. "And this is Harry." She said taking Harry out of his stroller.  
  
"Are you really?" Mrs. Weasley sounded surprised. She knew, of course, about the Potters, they were well known in Wizard society. "This is Bill, that one looking at the Quidditch books is Charlie, Percy is that one sitting on the floor, these two rascals are Fred and George, and of course Ron." Mrs. Weasley pointed at each boy as she named them.  
  
The oldest boy, Bill, nodded to Lily before turning to his mother. "Should I get those books mother?"  
  
"Oh, yes, here you are." Mrs. Weasley said as she gave the list back to him. "He is going to Hogwarts this year." She said turning to look at Lily.  
  
"How exciting for you. Do you wish him to get into your house?" Lily asked with curiosity, she didn't remember a Molly Weasley when she was at Hogwarts.  
  
"Oh yes, specially my husband, we both were in Gryffindor." Mrs. Weasley said.  
  
"Really? So was I and my husband, we met there." Lily exclaimed.  
  
Mrs. Weasley laughed. "I'm not surprised, it seems that Hogwarts is usually were our kind meets their mates."  
  
Lily smiled but said no more as at that moment James and Sirius came through another aisle looking for her.  
  
"There you are, we found the perfect thing." James exclaimed the moment he saw Lily.  
  
"James dear, this is Molly Weasley." Lily said in a chiding note.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't see you there." Exclaimed James turning to look at the short, plump woman standing by Lily.  
  
"That's all right." Mrs. Weasley said with a smile. The twins were clinging to her skirts looking attentively at the two tall men before them.  
  
"Nice to meet you of course." Said James. "You don't happen to be related to Arthur Weasley, are you?"  
  
"As it happens, he is my husband." Mrs. Weasley said, pleased to note that such a distinguished personage as James Potter would know her husband.  
  
"You don't say." Exclaimed Sirius.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry, this is Sirius Black." James motioned to Sirius.  
  
"Nice to meet you." Said Sirius.  
  
Mrs. Weasley nodded and smiled.  
  
"Do you know my husband then?" She asked.  
  
"Oh, indeed, he works in the Ministry doesn't he? I'm sure I saw him there recently." James said.  
  
"Yes, he does. He is a Junior Officer, of course, but I'm sure he will get a promotion soon enough." Said Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"Father always had great things to say about the Weasleys." James said.  
  
"That is nice to hear." Mrs. Weasley replied, she couldn't wait until she got home and tell her husband about this.  
  
The small twin boys started to pull on their mother's skirts. Ron was getting bored and started to fuss in his carriage.  
  
"I need to get them home. Nice meeting you." Said Mrs. Weasley. "Come boys. Charlie, Bill, help me with your brothers." She called to the older boys. The two promptly took the hands of one or two of the younger boys while their mother pushed the stroller out of the bookstore.  
  
"Can you imagine, six boys!" Exclaimed Lily looking at the family cross the street to another shop.  
  
Sirius and James shrugged. "Why not?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"The Weasleys were always rather prolific." James explained.  
  
Lily shook her head but didn't say anymore.  
  
"What was it that you found?" She asked them.  
  
"Oh, come and see." James said with excitement and started to pull her as Sirius pushed the carriage to one corner of the store.  
  
It was a section dedicated to the study of muggle sports.  
  
"You said that you wanted Harry to learn about muggle sports." Said Sirius as he and James started to pull some books from the shelves and look through the pages.  
  
"Well, yes, but I was thinking more in the terms of him actually playing the sports, not read about them from a book." Said Lily.  
  
"Well, what is the difference, he will know of them at any rate." Said James.  
  
"But I want him to know how they are done by doing not by reading, besides, wizards never know the correct way of doing anything muggle. I want him to do exercises and be a strong boy and playing sports is the right way to do it." Lily replied.  
  
"That's what Quidditch is for." James and Sirius said in unison.  
  
"Oh honestly!" Lily exclaimed and marched off pushing Harry's carriage along with her.  
  
"What?" Called James after her before turning to look at Sirius with confusion. "I thought this was perfect."  
  
Sirius shook his head. "Women!"  
They stayed in Diagon Alley the whole day. At noon they went to Fortescue's for a light luncheon before continuing shopping.  
  
By the end of the day, they were carrying large bags full of purchases. James had gotten his way and Harry now had a set of Quidditch robes and new broom, even though the one he got at his baby shower was still fully functional, a complete new wardrobe from Madam Malkin's, food for his cat - who had fully grown by now but still spent his days following Harry around - a complete set of children stories.  
  
Lily had decided that if she wanted her son to know about his muggle heritage, it would be up to her, therefore, she would shop for him what he needed without the help from Sirius and James, they were bound to thwart her every movement if she took them along.  
  
They arrived back to the house full of packages that the servants had to bring into the house after unloading the car. James and Lily were planning a big day for Harry and nothing would keep them from giving their son all the love he needed while keeping him away from the trouble that seemed to follow his every step.  
Screams filled the air of a moor, away from any town or village, deserted in the middle of the countryside.  
  
"Fools!" A raging voice was heard to say among the sobs of pain.  
  
"Master, please!" Pleaded one of the men twisting with pain on the ground. Over them stood a tall figure, cloaked in darkness and frustration.  
  
"You beg?" The man laughed cruelly, making the men at his feet cringe with fear. "Very well." The man said and put his wand into one of his robes' pockets.  
  
The silence was eerie, only the sobbing of the men in the ground could be heard. The tall figure towering above them moved away, turning his back to them.  
  
"You have failed me. One would think that once the Potters left their Manor it would have been easy to get closer to them." He hissed.  
  
"We are sorry Master, but the Ministry has kept close watch on them since we attacked the Manor." One of the men said.  
  
"Another failure. Only defenseless women and children and elves were between you and that child, but you couldn't get him."  
  
"We are sorry Master, we didn't know that Dumbledore would arrive with the Ministry agents." One of the men sobbed.  
  
"That foolish old man! He has been a thorn in my side for decades." The tall man growled.  
  
"But what do we do now Master, as long as the Potters stay in Rowe Square we cannot get to them."  
  
A cold smile spread over the pale face of Voldemort. "But they don't know that, for all they and the Ministry know we might have powers that they are not aware of, we must not disappoint them. We must make the Potters leave Rowe Square, make them think they need to go into hiding."  
  
The other men looked at each other, what could they possibly do to scare the Potters away from their house?  
Harry's birthday was sunny and warm.  
  
Lily and James woke up very early and went into Harry's room to see their son. He was already awake. He sat calmly on his crib, playing with some of the toys that had been left there overnight. A large, ginger fur-ball was hidden among the blankets at the feet of the crib.  
  
"Oh, Happy Birthday Harry!" Exclaimed Lily at the sight of their son.  
  
"Happy day my boy." Boomed James.  
  
Harry turned his head toward the door when he heard the voices of his parents and smiled.  
  
"Ma - ma!" He cried.  
  
"I still can't believe he won't say Dad." Pouted James.  
  
Lily laughed. "Don't worry dear, he will say it one of these days." She said, kissing his cheek.  
  
"Da - da, Harry, da - da." James urged.  
  
Harry looked up at his father and squealed with laughter.  
  
James sighed. "Oh well, I tried."  
  
Lily coughed as she tried not to laugh.  
  
James stuck his tongue at her.  
  
"Childish, James." Chided Lily, shaking her head.  
  
"Oh, come on, let's open his presents." Urged James.  
  
Lily smiled and turned to pick Harry from his crib.  
  
Harry watched at his parents as they walked back into their room and crossed to the small sitting room connecting with the corridor. Sirius, was waiting for them there.  
  
"What kept you so long?" He asked.  
  
"James, acting like a child." Lily said.  
  
"I was not!"  
  
"You were too!"  
  
"Children, not in front of the child, please!" Exclaimed Sirius with mock horror.  
  
"Fine, lets get this over with." Said James and promptly several wrapped packages levitated to them.  
  
Lily put Harry on the floor and Sirius, James and she sat next to him.  
  
Harry looked with curiosity at the brightly packaged boxes floating to him. His small finger inside his mouth and his eyes widely open.  
  
At last, the packages were set in front of him.  
  
"Here, let him open this one." James said putting a long, thin box in Harry's lap.  
  
Harry looked down at the box before turning to look at his father.  
  
"Come Harry, open it." Urged James.  
  
Harry just sat there looking around the room.  
  
"He doesn't know how, James, we are going to help him." Said Lily with exasperation, honestly, she thought, they should know better.  
  
James took Harry and sat him in between his legs. He reached for the package and put it in front of Harry.  
  
"See this Harry? You are going to like it, I know it. It's the latest kiddy broom version from the Cleansweeps Company." James was saying as he eagerly opened the box.  
  
Inside was a brand new broom. The handle shined and vibrated as James took it out of the box. Harry didn't seem to pay much attention to it. He just took some of the wrapping in his chubby hands and promptly put it in his mouth.  
  
James sighed with a little sadness. "No Harry, that's not your gift, the broom is."  
  
Lily laughed but Sirius seemed to share James' feelings.  
  
"I never thought to see the day when a Potter thought something else was better than a racing broom." He lamented.  
  
"Of course he does, now. He is too little to understand. Just open the rest of the presents." Said Lily.  
  
"Oh, all right, but the fun is lost now." Said James but he returned to open the presents with energy.  
  
Harry sat with his father as each gift was opened and watched with curiosity as James turned from one package to another. The ginger cat had emerged from the bedroom and lay down next to his small master, not paying much attention to what was happening in the room.  
  
Eventually all of the gifts were opened and Minnie was clearing the wrappings and boxes and getting all the things together to put them away in Harry's room.  
  
James, Lily, Harry and Sirius were dressed some minutes later and sat around the table eating a hearty breakfast that Otty had prepared for them. Bacon, eggs, toast, cereal, hotcakes, biscuits with butter, warm milk, coffee and tea awaited them.  
  
Harry could now eat solid foods, even though he still needed help from his mother. He banged his plate against his chair and laughed when the food went flying to the floor, Lily sighed trying to not lose her patience as Roberts directed a footman to stand behind Harry to clean every time he made a mess.  
  
James and Sirius didn't seemed to be put off by the mess Harry did, they just piled their plates full and were lost in their own thoughts.  
  
"What are we doing later?" Finally said James.  
  
"I thought we could have a picnic in the park." Said Lily turning her attention from Harry to James.  
  
"That sounds like fun." Said Sirius.  
  
Lily nodded eagerly.  
  
"Remus said he might come before noon." Said James.  
  
Everybody turned to look at the clock, it was still early.  
  
Breakfast was soon over and visitors started to arrive.  
  
The first to arrive was Peter, much to the surprise to his friends as he had been rather busy taking care of his mother and hadn't spent much time with them.  
  
"Thought to see how the small Potter was doing." He said when the others expressed their surprise.  
  
"Oh, he is not so small anymore." Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"Come Peter, let me show you what we got for him." Said James pulling Peter and Sirius out of the room.  
  
"We'll return in no time." Called Sirius as they left the room.  
  
Lily shook her head and laughed.  
  
"Your father is so much like a child some times." She looked down at Harry who was quietly sitting beside her with a ball in his hands.  
"What have you heard Peter, what is going on?" Asked James the moment they left the parlor behind.  
  
"Not much, things are just getting so confusing." Peter said.  
  
Sirius looked from Peter to James in confusion, it was getting clear that James wasn't as surprised to see Peter as he had let on.  
  
"I asked him to check on some rumors about Voldemort." James said as he noticed his best friend's confusion.  
  
"Why?" Asked Sirius. The real question he wanted answered was, why send Peter to look about this rumors and not him or Remus?  
  
James shook his head. "I thought I had read something in the Daily Prophet about Death Eaters activities around the town he is living in.  
  
Sirius nodded, that made sense.  
  
"And what did you find?" Sirius asked Peter.  
  
"I told you, not much." Peter seemed a little nervous but his friends thought that it was because he was not too happy about getting involved with anything that had to do with Voldemort, he didn't like to be in danger.  
  
"That's all right Peter, it was probably nothing." Said James.  
  
They continued to the bedroom to see the gifts, it wouldn't do for Lily to find out that they hadn't shown them to Peter, she would think that they were up to something.  
  
When they returned to the parlor, they found Remus waiting for them. Harry was crawling in the floor, happily, and Lily sat by the windows looking out to the park.  
  
"How long have you been here?" Asked James as they entered.  
  
"Only a few minutes." Said Remus.  
  
He looked a little pale and thin, but as the full moon had recently passed, it was very common for him to look like that.  
  
"About time you got here." Said Sirius pushing Peter into the room.  
  
"Yes, now they can leave me alone, I think that too much together is making them feel sick of each other." Said Peter.  
  
"How droll of you Peter." Said Sirius as he rolled his eyes at him.  
  
Peter just shook his head and turned to sit next to Lily.  
  
Roberts, like the good butler he was, promptly led his footmen to serve small refreshments and cakes, he knew how hungry the four young men as he had known them since they all were in diapers.  
  
Some minutes later, only Lily was having a light tea while all the others were busily emptying the platters that Roberts had brought in. James had to hold on to Harry as he kept trying to get his little chubby hands into the plates full of puddings and cookies.  
  
"You are going to ruin your dinner." Said Lily.  
  
"Lily, my dear, we could never have enough food." Said Sirius.  
  
"That's true enough." Scoffed Lily. "But be careful that Harry doesn't eat any of it, I want him to eat when the time comes." She warned.  
  
"A few pieces won't kill him." Said Peter.  
  
"Besides, with a father like James, how could he not be a great eater as well?" Exclaimed Remus.  
  
Lily shook her head in exasperation. Soon, the young men had to stay away from the food, as visitors started to arrive in order to wish Harry a Happy Birthday. The first to arrive was the Minister of Magic himself, he had never had the opportunity to meet the next heir of the Gryffindor Estate. He brought along with him, other Ministry officials, whom all remembered their fallen comrade, Alliaster Potter. They brought gifts and good cheer to the young Potter, who looked around him with wonder as he was presented to a myriad of new people. His grandmother's solicitor also made an appearance. Mr. Nikolei had been impressed by the way the Potters got through the loss of their loved ones and wanted to give a little cheer to the young boy who would grow up with no memory of the women who had doted on him so much.  
  
Soon, other people made an appearance, even a reporter of the Daily Prophet had tried to get in to make a report about the next Potter. She wasn't successful, she was promptly put out by Roberts and a couple of his footmen, the woman left with a wounded pride and a photographer with a broken camera.  
  
Lily couldn't help but notice that the one who should've sent word, didn't do so. Petunia didn't call, didn't send a card, not even a brief visit. She knew that James was right, that they didn't need her sister, Harry would grow up around people who loved him and wanted the best for him, but she still didn't loose hope that someday, Harry would meet his aunt and uncle and play with his cousin, they were the only family left now that Voldemort had taken care of the rest. But at the moment, Harry didn't need to know of that, he was happy as he was, and both Lily and James were there with him and would do anything to keep him safe from harm.  
  
The morning passed, with visitors coming and going, most were friends of both James and Lily from Hogwarts, others were family friends, but all had to pass the focused inspection of Roberts and his small troop of footmen opening the door to all. The last visitor to arrive was Dumbledore.  
  
The old Hogwarts Headmaster brought parcel of sweets and small toys for the small toddler who liked to pull his beard every time he saw him.  
  
"Nice to see you Professor, was your trip uneventful?" James greeted him.  
  
"Indeed yes, quite a nice day." Professor Dumbledore said as he shook hands with all those assembled in the formal parlor room. "Well, hello there young man." He said as Harry crawled up to him.  
  
Harry looked at him and smiled. He grabbed the hem of the older man with his chubby hands and pulled himself up. "Up!" He squealed.  
  
Dumbledore laughed along with the rest and picked him up and sat him on his lap.  
  
"He is trying to show off." Laughed Lily.  
  
"I'm surprised he didn't walk toward you, even though he has barely started to do so." James said.  
  
"Is that so?" Exclaimed Professor Dumbledore.  
  
Harry was playing with the long silvery hair of the Professor's beard.  
  
"Yes, he will be flying all on his own soon." Said Sirius.  
  
Dumbledore chuckled while Lily disagreed. "Honestly Sirius!"  
  
"Will you be joining us for supper Professor? We are planning a small picnic in the park." Intervened James.  
  
"If you want me to."  
  
"Of course we do Professor." Exclaimed Remus.  
  
"Of course, it wouldn't be same with you Professor."  
  
"Ah, Mr. Pettigrew, how is your mother doing?" Dumbledore peered closely at Peter who grew a little uncomfortable about it.  
  
"Oh, fine, couldn't be better." Said Peter.  
  
Dumbledore nodded and Peter sighed with relief, Dumbledore always made him feel like he knew what everybody thought or did.  
  
"I'll tell Roberts then, Otty will need to make enough food." Lily said.  
  
Visitors had stopped coming but the afternoon was still early and the day was warm and sunny. The Park looked festive with children playing and couples wandering through the gardens. Lily wished that they were in the Manor, but knew that it would've been unwise for them to return. She missed the clear air, the tenants and specially the gardens. She knew that if they had been in the Manor, the village would've turned festive, games would've been played and James was sure to have put together two teams in order to have a good game of Quidditch. Harry would've liked it, specially the sight of the zooming brooms and balls, he had never seen it before, he had only played with the balls and flew at a slow pace.  
  
Yes, it would've been better at the Manor.  
  
An hour later, the group left the house, followed by a pack of footmen with baskets, chairs, blankets and buckets of ice. They made their way through the maze of hedges and trees until they found a nice spot near the large fountain that had replaced the deep pool after the attack on the Square some years ago.  
  
Lily directed the footmen to spread the blankets, while Sirius and James were busy keeping Harry from tumbling into the food baskets. Professor Dumbledore stood on one side with Remus, talking about the latest finds in potion making and charm work. Peter stood by himself, looking around the park, he seemed tense and wary as if he was waiting for somebody he was not pleased to see, but nobody paid any attention to him.  
  
Finally, the blankets were spread and Lily started to pull the food platters from the baskets. You wouldn't think there was much to eat by looking at the size of the baskets, they were small and narrow and didn't look as if anything large could be stored within. But that would only be to muggle eyes, anybody who knew who the Potters and his friends were wouldn't have been surprised to see a whole turkey, two small cakes, pies, fruits, salads, soups and tubs of ice cream being pulled out from the small baskets.  
  
Everybody ate hungrily, even Harry was busy with his food, even though most of it ended up on the floor than in his mouth. Wine and cool pumpkin juice flowed, as children played not far away and the sound of laughter and song permeated the air. Lily had no reason to miss the Manor in that instant.  
  
They spent several hours in the park. After eating and singing "Happy Birthday" to Harry, they finished the cakes and played with Harry. First they got him to walk among each of them, when Harry tired of walking from one to another, he sat on the floor and played with an overlarge Snitch under the eyes of Professor Dumbledore and a sleeping Sirius, while James and Lily went toward the northern part of the park walking with clasped hands. Remus and Peter had decided to stay by the fountain, trying to catch up in the latest news.  
  
It was getting dark by the time the footmen were back putting the empty platters into the baskets and folding the blankets. Harry was sleeping in his father's arms and everybody else was happily resting in the cooling air.  
  
Professor Dumbledore left as soon as they returned to the house. Peter left soon after. Sirius and Remus were staying overnight and retired to play in the game room while James and Lily put Harry in bed.  
The Month of August passed quickly. Harry was now walking and Lily was in constant state of concern that he would hurt himself. James and Sirius were found most mornings in the book room with parchments and several issues of the Daily Prophet around them.  
  
The Magical World seemed in a constant state of wariness. The Dark Mark had become a familiar and dreadful sight. The Death Eaters seemed to be more active since the end of July and everybody seemed to think that something was about to happen. The name of Voldemort had become so menacing that nobody liked to speak his name except for a brave few.  
  
The Ministry of Magic seemed to have lost control of the situation, reports of double-crossing and spies were heard through its hallowed passageways. The Minister himself had lost half of his following and his re-election didn't seem to be in his future. The new candidates, Mr. Cornelius Fudge and Mr. Bartimus Crouch had more to worry about than their predecessors.  
  
Things couldn't get any worse, everybody hoped, and watched carefully as events unfolded throughout the country.  
The night was dark. Everybody in the Potter House was asleep and the rooms were empty. At least, that's what everybody thought.  
  
James couldn't sleep. He sat in his bookroom looking out the window across the park where the tall towers of the Ministry of Magic appeared above the trees.  
  
The park was brightly lit by the shining lamps. After the attack on the square some years past, every precaution to keep it safe had been considered, even bright lights in the park under the supervision of Ministry agents every night.  
  
Everything seemed calmed and silent. But James knew that somewhere in their vast island, a family was grieving and the Death Eaters were celebrating.  
A/N: Sorry it took me a while to update the story, but things have been rather busy lately. Thank you all for reviewing, hopefully you will not forget to do so again after reading this chapter. I have only two more chapters to go, I am working on chapter 8 at the moment and it might take a while for that one to get ready. Thank you all again, hope you liked this one. 


	43. Part III Chapter 8

A/N: Well, this it's almost over for James and Lily. This chapter was a little hard for me to write because I want to keep my story true to the Harry Potter books, but as we don't know much about Lily and James it has been really great having to come up with characters, places and events that might have taken place. I just hope what I wrote won't prove false once the OotP comes out. We'll just have to wait and see.  
  
Disclaimer: HP characters, places and special words are not mine, I gain nothing by writing this story except the opportunity to let my imagination flow.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Chapter 8 ~ Into Hiding  
  
September had arrived and the fall along with it.  
  
The days were getting colder and the dried leaves fluttered to the ground with the swish of the breeze. In Hogwarts, classes had started, and in the city families were returning from long vacations on the beach or abroad. A time for new beginnings was near but the Magical World didn't seem to think so.  
  
The summer had been one of fear and darkness. Many families had been hurt and some had ceased to exist. The Ministry was full of people trying to find help, but the Ministry didn't seem able to find the help they needed. The hand of Lord Voldemort seemed to be getting tighter and tighter around the throat of the community.  
  
James didn't like what he saw, he felt helpless and weak against the danger. Dumbledore and his team worked constantly to help but sometimes even that didn't seem to be enough. Sirius and Remus were out at all hours of the day and night, working for Dumbledore. James envied his friends. He wanted to be there with them, but he knew that he also wanted to protect his family. Harry deserved to grow up without the terror of Voldemort, he thought.  
  
He missed the simpler times of his youth, when the name of Voldemort was unknown and when the only thing he had to think about was what candy and broomstick to buy when his mother took him to Diagon Alley every year. There were so many things he wished he could've done then, and so many others that he regretted.  
  
But if he had to do everything again, he would probably do the same.  
  
On this windy September night, James stood by the bookroom windows. The house was dark and the household had settled for the night. Lily had retired early with Harry, who had been fussy after dinner and Lily had decided to take him to his bed. The candles floating around the room behind him lit the chamber. He didn't know what he was waiting for, but somehow he felt that something would happen, and soon.  
  
James wasn't the only one to feel wary about things. People around the Magical World seemed to be waiting for something to happen, things just couldn't continue to be same for long.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
A gentle breeze blew through Rowe Square, the sound of cars and pedestrians clashed with the songs of the birds and the laughter of children playing in the park. It was an ordinary day in London, a day like any other, to everybody except perhaps the inhabitants of the Potter House.  
  
"What do you mean they attacked? They couldn't have, there is no way they could've known!" James was yelling as he closeted himself in the library with his three closest friends.  
  
"I know James, but they knew!" Sirius said.  
  
"Only us and Dumbledore knew where he was, how could they have attacked him if we were the only ones to know." James exclaimed.  
  
"It seemed that our knowledge is not safe." Remus said.  
  
"That is saying that one of us is a traitor." James glared.  
  
Peter grimaced and it was obvious from the expression on Sirius and Remus' faces that they didn't like the idea either.  
  
"What did Dumbledore say?" James asked.  
  
"He was saddened, his contacts didn't report to him that an attack was planned, it would've been intercepted otherwise." Peter whispered.  
  
"What is to be done next?" James sighed. The news that one member of their group had been killed by the Death Eaters didn't sit well with him.  
  
"There is nothing to be done for now, all we can do is wait and see." Remus said.  
  
"I don't like that, I don't like it one bit. There should be something that we can do. Anything at all." James exclaimed.  
  
"There is nothing that can be done with no knowledge of what Voldemort will do next." Sirius said.  
  
"What about Dumbledore's spies?" James urged.  
  
"James, we don't know who they are, and even if we knew, if we contacted them and pushed them further we would only put them in danger. Voldemort would find out who they are in no time." Remus said.  
  
James ran his fingers through his hair. His black locks seemed untidier than usual, it was very clear that he was really agitated.  
  
"Will you tell Lily?" Peter suddenly asked.  
  
James sighed. Lily. This bit of news would only scare her. The member that had just been killed was the only member of Emma's family that had remained in contact with Emma since she had left and the only bits of news that Lily could get of her friend came from him.  
  
"I don't know." James said. "She will find out when she reads the Daily Prophet tomorrow morning."  
  
"It would be easier coming from you." Remus said.  
  
"How are you doing?" James asked his friend. Remus was the only other person besides Lily who received news of Emma from her relative. Now that tie that had kept her in their lives was gone.  
  
"I'm fine. I'm just glad that Emma is not here." Remus smiled sadly.  
  
James nodded. He turned to look out the window. The park was full of playing children. The lanes were filled with promenading couples and children running around the bushes and play areas.  
  
The others kept silent, they knew that James was more angry of the circumstances than of what had happened. He felt the same every time an attack was reported in the newspapers. Even the muggles had started to notice a significant rise of deaths in the last year. There was no explication that accounted for it, but it certainly made for interesting news.  
  
The door of the bookroom opened. The men turned to look at that door, there was nobody there. At least, that's what they thought until they heard a gurgle in the floor and they saw Harry crawl into the room.  
  
"How did he get in?" Peter asked.  
  
"The door must have been ajar." Remus said.  
  
"Most likely, the knob is too high for him." Said Sirius.  
  
James frowned and walked around the desk and walked to his son. Harry sat on the floor and watched his father coming toward him. He clapped his chubby hands and laughed. "Up!" He squealed.  
  
The others laughed, while James smiled and reached down for his son.  
  
After Harry was settled comfortably in his father's arms, James walked back and sat behind the desk and sat Harry on his lap.  
  
Harry instantly reached for the quill and parchment on the desktop.  
  
"No Harry, that's daddy's." Said James pushing the items away from him.  
  
Harry looked at his father and tried to reach for them again with a grunt.  
  
"Harry!" Said James.  
  
Harry looked at his father again. His eyes started to tear up.  
  
"Oh lord." Said James.  
  
Sirius laughed, while Remus and Peter chuckled.  
  
"He is just like his father, using his charm to get what he wants." Said Remus.  
  
"I never did that." Exclaimed James.  
  
"Of course you did, both you and Sirius. Why do you think you two had so many girlfriends at Hogwarts?" Said Peter.  
  
"Could it be because we are cute?" Said Sirius.  
  
The others laughed.  
  
Harry obviously didn't like that the attention was no longer on him and started to whimper as he tried to reach for the quills once more.  
  
"No Harry, let's find you something else." Said James.  
  
Harry continued fussing in his lap.  
  
"Where are his toys?" Asked Sirius as they all started to look around the bookroom for something to entertain Harry with.  
  
All seemed to be glad to have something to do other than speak about the latest news of Death Eater activity.  
  
"In his room." Said James. "I never remember to keep something here for him."  
  
"You should, specially if he is going to start crawling into every room." Said Remus.  
  
They searched but nothing seemed to be appropriate for Harry.  
  
Harry started getting bored, just sitting in his father's lap and started to twist and turn.  
  
"Down!" He whimpered.  
  
His father and friends turned to look at him.  
  
"Oh fine, you say 'down' now but won't say 'dad'!" Exclaimed James.  
  
Harry just looked at his father with his chubby finger in his mouth. His eyes were wide and trusting.  
  
James sighed. "Oh, all right." He said and put Harry on the floor.  
  
Harry promptly started to crawl toward the door. He hadn't reached it yet when the door suddenly opened.  
  
"Oh thank God!" Exclaimed Lily at the sight of her son.  
  
"He came wandering in here." Said Remus as he sat on one of the armchairs near the cold fireplace.  
  
Sirius crossed his arms and leaned against the wall watching as Lily picked Harry from the floor.  
  
"I put him down for only a moment and when I reached down for him, he was gone." Said Lily. She seemed really upset and worried.  
  
"I should've thought of letting you know Lily, I'm sorry." Said James. He was attuned to Lily's moods and he clearly sensed that she was unhappy.  
  
Lily just nodded but didn't say anything. She hugged Harry tight, until Harry whimpered with discomfort, her eyes were tearing up and she was fighting hard not to let the tears fall.  
  
None of the men noticed this of course, they all assumed that she had been worried and that she probably pulled the house apart looking for Harry.  
  
But Lily wasn't upset just because of that. Some minutes ago, she had come looking for James, Roberts had informed her that Remus and Peter had come to visit and as she couldn't find Sirius anywhere, she thought that they were probably together in the bookroom. She had opened the door a little, when she heard the discussion going on inside. The news of a new attack saddened her, but the identity of the victim shocked her. She didn't hear anything more. She had put Harry down by the door and flew to the parlor room to recover. She had known that Harry would be safe in the corridor, he would go straight into the bookroom, following his father's voice.  
  
Harry was oblivious to the currents in the room, he was busily playing with his mother's locket, which hung heavily from her neck.  
  
James went around the desk and approached his wife. He took Harry and passed him to Peter, who was nearby, and put his arms around her. Lily leaned against his chest and silently, her tears started to fall. James stroked her hair, letting her cry in silence.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Similar news were heard around the Magical World. The Death Eaters had picked up their activities. The Ministry had clearly lost control of the situation, and Mr. Crouch, Head of the Magical Enforcement Department, was working overtime trying to make progress.  
  
Lily stayed in the house all day, she had stopped going shopping on her own, or taking Harry to the park, she was scared. She knew that Voldemort had a perfectly good excuse to come after them, only the fact that they lived so near the Ministry was keeping them safe. She feared every time James left the house. He went to the Ministry constantly to find out what was being done.  
  
The Ministry departments seemed to be submerged into chaos. Everybody was working furiously trying to keep control of what was going on, but everybody was ordered to do the same thing while other chores were left undone and brought more confusion. The Minister himself was not helping. He had been so shaken by what was happening he had clearly lost his wits, he wasn't the man that James remembered any more. When James was growing up and his father worked as advisor to the Minister, the Minister was a robust man, easy going and witty, he was always on top of everything and that is what had made the Ministry a strong government. That was not the case anymore. The Minister's office was chaos itself. People were running to and fro doing things that had already been done or that didn't need to be done. The Minister had lost weight and he seemed sickly, there was no laughter coming from him anymore and he sat slumped in his chair, lost in his own thoughts.  
  
James felt sorry for the older man, and at the same time, he was glad that his father was not alive to see his old friend in this way.  
  
When the door opened, the Minister looked up to see who else had come into his office. The room was full of people talking and pacing with maps and newspapers in their hands, discussing the latest reports. When he saw James come into the room, he sighed with relief.  
  
"Well young man, what do you think your father would say now?" He asked gruffly.  
  
James noticed the empty glass on the desk and the half-full decanter by it. The Minister had clearly been drinking, and it angered James that the many people in the room didn't seem to care what was happening to the person who was elected to lead the Magical Community. When the Minister took the decanter to fill his glass once more, James noticed that his hands were shaking, the glass decanter was in danger of falling from the Minister's grasp. James walked to the desk quickly and took the decanter and the glass from the Minister and put it on top of a file cabinet nearby.  
  
The Minister slumped in his chair and covered his face with his hands. James saw his shoulders shake but no sound came from him. After a few moments, the Minister sat up and uncovered his face. His eyes were dry and bloodshot and his hands still shook.  
  
"What is going on Minister?" Asked James.  
  
"One of my aides was attacked last night." The Minister said somewhat sadly.  
  
James sighed, he had heard rumors of it as he crossed the corridors of the building, he had been hoping that it was not true.  
  
"Where is Dumbleodore?" James asked next. The old Headmaster of Hogwarts had a way to make one feel safe.  
  
"He is on his way. There were some things to be taken care of at the school." Mumbled the Minister.  
  
The others in the room had stopped to listen, hoping that the young man, the son of one of the most loved advisors of the Ministry, would be able to help their present leader.  
  
James looked at the silent bunch. "You, go get some coffee in here." He ordered a young man who looked young enough to still be in Hogwarts. "You there, go to the mess hall and bring some foods stuff." He ordered to another.  
  
One by one, each person in the room, had something to do and the office fell silent once more. The Minister seemed more calm and his senses back in place.  
  
By the time Professor Dumbledore arrived to the Minister's office, pots of hot coffee cooled on a table, platters of food were placed on one side, people were coming and going with orders for the Heads of each Department and the Minister was trying to explain to James what the latest plans were and what had been learned from the latest intelligence.  
  
"You made it Albus!" Exclaimed the Minister the moment he saw his old friend standing by the door.  
  
"I did. Good day James, helping I see." The Professor smiled.  
  
"Yes, Professor. How are things at Hogwarts?" James asked.  
  
"As good as they could be. Many students in need of counseling at the moment." He replied sadly.  
  
"Who is taking care of that?" Asked the Minister somewhat concerned. He hadn't thought of the children who had lost their families while they were safe at Hogwarts.  
  
"At the moment, Professor McGonagall is." Professor Dumbledore said.  
  
James had been drinking some coffee, at the mention of Professor McGonagall as counselor to students, he choked.  
  
Professor Dumbledore chuckled. "I know, she doesn't seem the type."  
  
"You can say that again." Said James.  
  
The Minister shook his head. "That won't do Albus, these children need a professional."  
  
Dumbledore nodded. "They do, but I haven't been able to find one."  
  
"There are a few in the Magical world, muggles have them of course, but we need a wizard or a witch with the training." Said James.  
  
"Or a wizard or witch with a kind heart." Said Dumbledore.  
  
The Minister nodded. "But who could do it?"  
  
"We'll have to find somebody." James said.  
  
The two older men looked at him with a questioning glance.  
  
"What?" Asked James. "You are not thinking of me as a school counselor, I can't do it, not enough patience." He said shaking his head.  
  
"Oh, we know that, the Potter men were never known because of their patience, although their temper is another matter." Said the Minister.  
  
"Good." Exclaimed James.  
  
"But your wife, does have the training." The Minister replied.  
  
"Who? Lily? You want Lily to be a counselor?" James seemed aghast at the thought.  
  
"She has the training James. She took the course when she was with us for her training as a Hogwarts teacher." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"But Professor, you know how things are right now. You yourself said that as long as we were all together, the safer we would be." James said.  
  
"That is true." Nodded Dumbledore. "But it wouldn't be for long."  
  
"And Hogwarts is one of the safest places in our world." The Minister said. "Voldemort would never attack it."  
  
"I don't know." Said James.  
  
"Just talk to her and see what she says." Said the Minister.  
  
"All right, but don't get your hopes up. She would never agree to leave Harry behind." James warned.  
  
"That is no problem, she can take him along."  
  
"Minister, I wouldn't like her to take him along." Glared James but the older men just chuckled.  
  
The hours passed, and people came and went from the office. A meeting with all the Heads of each department took place. During all of this, James sat in the office listening, nobody thought much of it, they all thought he had as much right to be there as they all did, if not more.  
  
By the time James returned with Sirius and Remus (who had spent the day helping in the Department of experimental Charms and in the Department of Magical Enforcement) night was falling and the windows of every home were shining bright in the falling darkness.  
  
Roberts opened the door to them and led them to the family parlor where they could hear Lily laughing.  
  
When the door of the parlor opened, they saw Lily on the floor, with Harry walking slowly toward her. One of his quidditch balls clasped tightly in his hands.  
  
Lily looked toward the door as it opened. She smiled at the sight of the three young men.  
  
"How was your day?" She asked.  
  
"As good as could be expected." Said James.  
  
"Oh?" Lily looked curious about his response.  
  
"I'll tell you later, now, I'm hungry." James replied. Harry had stopped and watched his father and friends as they sat sprawled into nearby couches.  
  
"We all are." Sighed Sirius.  
  
Lily nodded to Roberts, he in turn nodded to one of the footmen, who promptly disappeared from the room.  
  
Harry looked from his mother to his father and making a decision started to walk toward James.  
  
"Hello Harry!" Said James as he picked his son and sat him on his lap.  
  
Harry smiled up to his father and offered his ball to him.  
  
James laughed. "Thank you, I guess."  
  
Harry leaned against his chest and put his thumb into his mouth. Lily and James smiled.  
  
"He is a bit tired. He had a busy day." Lily said. She started to sit up and reach for Harry, but James shook his head.  
  
"Leave him." He said as he started to stroke his son's back.  
  
Harry slowly closed his eyes. Minutes later, he was fast asleep and Minnie had appeared to take him to bed.  
  
Dinner was served and the three young men eat heartily as Lily looked at them with amusement. She could never understand, how after so many years, the three young men didn't seem to change. They were all grown up now, both James and Sirius married, Remus almost married, if it hadn't been for Voldemort and his attack on the Ministry that is, and Peter, well, Peter seemed to be the same as well, taking care of his mother living in a faraway location.  
  
She couldn't believe that so much had happened since they first met in Hogwarts Express on their first year. Lily smiled at the memory.  
  
**~**~**~**~**  
  
It had been an unusual warm day. Lily had gone through the barrier with the help of an older boy, who had noticed the bewildered little girl looking from her ticket to the signs over platforms 9 and 10.  
  
"Do you need help?" He had asked.  
  
"Please. I don't know how to get to platform 9 ¾." Lily had said. She wasn't scared that this boy would look at her as if she had lost her wits, as the guard had done when she asked about the platform some time ago, because she noticed that his cart carried a tawny gray owl asleep in a cage above his trunk. Her parents had gone to look for a map or something to help them.  
  
"Oh, it's really easy." He had said. "All you need to do is walk up to the barrier between platforms 9 and 10."  
  
Lily looked at the spot with bewilderment. Walk to the barrier between platforms 9 and 10? Wouldn't she crash into it?  
  
The boy seemed to read her mind. "Don't worry about crashing into it. Everybody with magical blood will be able to cross it. Are you muggle born?" He suddenly asked.  
  
"Muggle born? Oh, you mean if my parents are not magical? Yes, I am." Lily said proudly and stood up straight. She had met some wizard born children in Diagon Alley that had made fun of her because of her parents and she wasn't about to let this boy do so.  
  
"Nothing to take a pet about, I just wondered because you don't know how to get on. Nothing wrong with being muggle born." The boy said.  
  
Lily smiled at him. Finally, somebody with some sense. She didn't say anything because at that moment her parents walked up to her.  
  
"I'm sorry dear, there doesn't seem anybody who can tell us how to get to the train." Rose Evans had said.  
  
"It's all right mum, he knows how and has told me." Lily replied.  
  
Edward and Rose Evans turned to look at the young man standing nearby with a cart full of luggage, including a sleeping owl.  
  
"Oh, sorry, didn't see you there. Thank you for helping." Mr. Evans said shaking the young man's hand.  
  
"No problem, it is my pleasure." The boy said.  
  
"We are the Evans of course, and our daughter Lily." Mrs. Evans smiled down at the young man.  
  
"Weasley, Arthur Weasley." He said. "We should be crossing the barrier if we don't want to miss the train."  
  
"Oh, of course. Take care dear, write to us and tell us all about it." Mrs. Evans kissed her daughter's cheek as Mr. Evans waited his turn to say good bye.  
  
"And Princess, if there is any problem let us know, we will come for you instantly." Mr. Evans instructed.  
  
"Yes daddy. Good bye." She waved to her parents and followed Arthur Weasley to the barrier.  
  
"All you need to do is walk toward it, but if you are scared just run, and don't stop until you see the train." He instructed.  
  
Lily nodded and did as he said. She pushed her cart toward the barrier, she closed her eyes and picked up her pace. She ran and ran; finally, she opened her eyes and stopped in her tracks. In front of her stood a large, scarlet engine. Children stood in groups waiting to say goodbye to their parents, who stood patiently, giving advice and directions to their offspring. Lily looked away quickly, she wished her parents could be there with her and didn't want to feel sad that they couldn't.  
  
"Are you going to stand there all day?" Somebody asked from behind.  
  
Lily turned to look back. A young boy, the same age as her, stood behind her looking impatiently at her.  
  
"You have to move, you know. The train won't take you anywhere if you stand there." He said.  
  
Lily was ready with a retort but a woman stood behind the boy before she could say anything.  
  
"James, really! I wonder about you sometimes. I think Sirius is being a bad influence on you." She said. "Now apologize."  
  
"Sorry." Whispered James.  
  
"I didn't hear it James, and I'm sure that this young lady didn't either." Said a stately man as he stood by James.  
  
"I'm sorry." Said James once more, loudly.  
  
"That's all right." Said Lily.  
  
Arthur Weasley came to her. "There you are, I thought I had lost you. Better look for a compartment. Oh, hello there Mr. Potter." He exclaimed as he noticed at the trio standing in front of Lily.  
  
"Ah, Mr. Weasley's son right?" Said Mr. Potter.  
  
"Yes, Sir." Said Arthur.  
  
"Your father was bragging about you the other day. Last year at Hogwarts isn't it?" Mr. Potter smiled down at the shy young man.  
  
"Yes, Sir." Arthur said once more looking down at his shoes.  
  
"Go along now, take this young lady to her friends." Said Mr. Potter, he seemed to notice that he was making the young man uncomfortable.  
  
Arthur nodded and pulled Lily with him at a fast pace.  
  
"Who are they?" Lily had asked.  
  
"The Potters, a very important family in our world." Said Arthur. "Mr. Potter works for the Minister of Magic himself, he is one of his most important advisors. There is nothing that the Minister will not do without speaking with Mr. Potter first. He is also a school governor, and his wife, Mrs. Potter, is one of the most famous hostesses of Magical society. Invitations to her parties are much sought after. The boy was James Potter, only son and heir to the Gryffindor Estate, there is a sister, Elizabeth, she is in her sixth year now. I suppose she must be in the train with her friends."  
  
Lily digested all this with curiosity. She had never imagined that like muggle world, the magical world would also be divided into social classes, although it didn't surprised her that it did.  
  
Arthur had stopped in front of the train. "You better look for a compartment, they are going to fill up soon."  
  
"Thank you for helping me." She said.  
  
"No problem." Said Arthur before walking away to a group of older boys calling his name.  
  
Lily looked around her. She was very excited. This was the first time she had left home and gone on a trip without her parents. She pulled her trunk and the basket with her pet cat and started to look for an empty compartment.  
  
She had reached the end of the train without finding a suitable compartment. Finally, she decided to see if someone didn't mind sharing. She opened one of the doors and found a small girl inside. She was blond, blue eyed and obviously bored as she sat throwing a ball against the opposite seat.  
  
"Hello. Do you mind sharing this compartment?" Lily asked rather shyly.  
  
"Oh, no, I would enjoy it." The girl said. "I'm Katherine, but everyone calls me Katie."  
  
"I'm Lily."  
  
"Well, Lily, what do you say we put your trunk away?"  
  
Lily smiled and the two girls pushed and heaved until they had the trunk and the basket with the sleeping cat in place.  
  
They started talking and it wasn't long when another girl joined them. Katie had introduced her as Emma and Lily was glad that she had made friends so fast.  
  
As the ride progressed, they heard noises coming from the compartment across from them.  
  
"What do you think it's going on in there?" Lily asked to the others.  
  
"Boys." Said Katie.  
  
"How can you be sure that they are boys?" Asked Emma.  
  
"Who else would make such a racket?" Exclaimed Katie.  
  
Lily and Emma couldn't say a thing as an explosion was heard and the door of their compartment snapped open. Smoke started to flow into the compartment.  
  
The girls started to cough.  
  
"Open the windows." Somebody yelled and Lily sensed somebody throwing the two windows of their compartment open.  
  
The smoke started to dissipate and Lily could see around her once more.  
  
Katie and Emma sat on their seat coughing and four boys were trying to clean some green slime from the floors and walls.  
  
"I told you that you had thrown more than what you should've." One of them said.  
  
"You said four sticks, I threw in four sticks." Another said.  
  
"You put eight, Sirius."  
  
"What were you trying to do, kill us?"  
  
"Will you tell us what you were doing?" Katie asked, stopping the quarrel that was clearly starting between the boys.  
  
The boys looked at the girls for the first time.  
  
"Sorry about that." Said one of the boys whom Lily quickly recognized as James Potter.  
  
"We were trying to brew a potion." A sandy haired boy said.  
  
"It didn't work." A portly blond haired boy replied.  
  
"That is obvious Peter." A dark hair boy replied. If Lily hadn't known about the Potter family, she would've thought that James and this boy were brothers.  
  
The girls glared at the boys.  
  
"I'm James." He smiled.  
  
"Remus."  
  
"Sirius."  
  
"Peter."  
  
Lily took pity on the boys as her new friends didn't seem to want to forgive them just yet. "Lily." She said and pointed to the others. "Katie and Emma."  
  
"Nice to make your acquaintance." James said.  
  
The seven looked at each other, and started to laugh. They were all covered in green slime and all looked funny with it running down their hair.  
  
**~**~**~**~**  
  
Lily hadn't noticed that her mind had wandered down memory lane and that she was chuckling while James, Sirius and Remus looked at her with surprise.  
  
"Lily, dear, are you all right?" Asked James.  
  
Lily looked up at him. "Hmm?"  
  
"You are laughing." He said.  
  
"I am?" Lily seemed surprised.  
  
"Yes, what is so funny?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"Oh, I was just remembering the first time I met you." Lily laughed.  
  
James started to chuckle. "You looked so funny with all that slime running down your neck."  
  
"What about you James? Your glasses were dirty with the stuff for days." Laughed Sirius.  
  
"You should talk, you had slime all over your clothes, including your school robes. Professor McGonagall wasn't impressed." Said Remus.  
  
The four started to laugh, the memory of that far away day lightened the mood and made them forget all about Voldemort and the darkness that seemed to be falling over the magical world. But it didn't stop them from remembering what had happened to their friends in the years following that meeting as they lay on their beds late that night.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
James couldn't sleep. He could hear Lily breathing lightly beside him and he could also hear the snores from Minnie, coming from Harry's room. How Harry could sleep through that was a mystery to James. Mind, he thought, I slept through it when I was Harry's age.  
  
The soft moonlight permeated the room, it was mid September now and things didn't seem to be getting better. He was angry at what was happening in his world. There had been a lot of talk about war and attacks, and he didn't like the idea that innocent people would be hurt by what was being planned.  
  
"We need to take action!" One of the Ministry members had said. "We cannot just seat here and wait for them to cripple us."  
  
"But we cannot just attack. That would make things worse; besides, we don't even know where to attack." Somebody else had replied.  
  
"Well, what about those agents that had been deployed to go undercover?" Some one else had asked.  
  
"Nothing came of it. There was nothing they could do. The Death Eaters seemed a close-mouthed lot and sent our agents on their way, and those that could get through were found dead some days later." Mr. Crouch reported with some anger.  
  
"How did the Death Eaters know they were spies?" Somebody asked aghast.  
  
"We don't know. But it seems that we didn't take enough precautions." Said Dumbledore sadly.  
  
"We have spies on our own." Whispered James.  
  
"It is a possibility." The Minister said.  
  
Argument broke out among those present. James shook his head at the memory of it. How could things get so bad in so little time?  
  
He looked at Lily as she slept peacefully beside him. He remembered that Dumbledore wanted her to go to Hogwarts and counsel the students there. He hadn't mentioned it to her yet, and he was dreading her response. He knew that Lily would want to go, how could she not? But, he was also sure, she would like to take Harry with her.  
  
He knew that it would be for the best, they would be in the best protected place in the world and nothing would happen to them as long as they stayed there, but for how long would they be gone? James didn't like the idea of being separated from his small family, in fact, his only remaining family. He felt they were safer as long as they were together, but his instinct was telling him to let them go.  
  
He sighed. It made no sense getting troubled by something that hadn't been decided yet.  
  
He turned on his side. He couldn't sleep. He heard Harry fuss and promptly left the bed. He didn't want Lily to wake, she needed the rest, he thought.  
  
Harry was sitting up on his crib, Minnie was nowhere in the room.  
  
Harry smiled at the sight of his father. "Up!" He said.  
  
James smiled. "You are getting a bit spoiled, Harry. I don't want you to turn out like that cousin of yours." He said.  
  
Harry looked at his father, who stood by the crib with his arms crossed and looking down at him.  
  
"Da - da!" Harry squealed.  
  
James laughed. "Such underhanded tactics!" He exclaimed as he leaned down to take Harry.  
  
Harry laughed up at his father.  
  
James walked to the window, a rocking chair stood beside it.  
  
They were silent for a moment. Harry had reposed his head against his father's chest, the beating of his heart lulling Harry to sleep.  
  
"I'll protect you Harry. Nothing will happen to you." Whispered James kissing his son's head as Harry was falling asleep.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The light was bright when Lily woke up the next morning. She turned to look beside her and saw that James wasn't in bed with her.  
  
She could hear Minnie in Harry's room and the sound of Harry's laughter; he always seemed to laugh when Minnie was around.  
  
Lily groaned and fell back onto the pillows. It wasn't that she felt tired or lazy, but it seemed to her that her days had become routine.  
  
Wake up, eat, play with Harry, consult with Mrs. Nichols about house chores, eat, wait for James to return from the Ministry, play with Harry, eat, and sleep. She needed something to do!  
  
She was thinking about it when the door opened and James entered the room.  
  
"Good morning, love." He said, giving her a quick kiss.  
  
"Morning." Smiled Lily. "What are you doing today?" She asked even though she knew that he was going to go to the Ministry again.  
  
"Ministry." James said simply. "But I wanted to discuss something with you first."  
  
Lily sat up on the bed. This sounded serious.  
  
"Something wrong?" She asked.  
  
"No, nothing like that. It is just something that Dumbledore and the Minister wanted me to ask you." James quickly said.  
  
"What is it?" Lily was curious. What could the Minister and Dumbledore have for her to do?  
  
"Well, you see, there are many students at Hogwarts that need a counselor, with all the attacks lately, many of them have been affected. So far, Professor McGonagall has been doing it." Lily giggled at this. "Yes, not her style is it?" Smiled James. Lily shook her head. "Anyway, Dumbledore and the Minister thought that you might want to do it. Dumbledore said that you had the training when you were at Hogwarts as teacher assistant before you came to us."  
  
"Indeed, I did." Exclaimed Lily. "Oh James, I would love to do it."  
  
"I thought you would." Smiled James somewhat sadly.  
  
"Aren't you happy for me?" Frowned Lily in consternation. She couldn't understand why James would be sad about such an opportunity, and they would all be safe in Hogwarts.  
  
"I'm just going to miss you." James whispered.  
  
"Miss me? But, surely you are coming along. Harry would love it there." Lily said.  
  
"I know he will, and you will take him along with you, of course, but I can't go. I have much to do here in the Ministry." James said.  
  
"Oh James!" Exclaimed Lily.  
  
"It won't be for long." James said even though he wasn't sure how long they would be separated. "You'll be back soon. I dare say that you will be back by the end of the month."  
  
"Do you think so?"  
  
"I do." James smiled.  
  
Lily seemed thoughtful for a moment. "Very well, but you will owl me everyday, won't you?"  
  
"Of course I will, and you will tell me all the latest gossip from Hogwarts." James laughed.  
  
"When do they want me to go?" Lily asked.  
  
"We didn't discuss it. If you want, I can invite Dumbledore and the Minister for dinner so they can discuss it with you." James offered.  
  
"Certainly, I'll talk to Mrs. Nichols and prepare a menu, let me know if they accept." Lily left the bed in a hurry and ran to the dressing room.  
  
James smiled as he heard her order Lotty to prepare a bath and to bring fresh towels. He was still smiling as he left the house and started crossing the park toward the Ministry. Sirius and Remus had left earlier, but James didn't mind walking on his own.  
  
The leaves were turning brown and the breeze was cool. He smiled at the sounds of children playing and couldn't wait until all this trouble ended so he could bring Harry out and play. But above all, he wanted to go back to the Manor and see winter arrive.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Harry was silently playing in the floor under the watchful presence of his mother, who sat in an armchair close by.  
  
Night was falling and the setting sun turned the sky crimson as it said goodnight for the day.  
  
Roberts stood by the door, waiting for any orders from the lady of the house; out in the corridor, an army of footmen was lined up. The household servants and elves were very excited this evening. Even though the Potter family was considered one of the most important families in the Magical World, they didn't entertained as often as their ancestors did, when the Ministers and Kings were constant visitors and parties took place twice a month. But tonight, it was different, the Minister of Magic would cross the threshold of the Potter house, an event that had not taken place since the death of Aliaster Potter, some seven years past.  
  
Lily had received a note from James earlier in the day, with the news that Dumbledore and the Minister of Magic had accepted his invitation for dinner. The note had been brought to the house by a Ministry official in uniform, something that had been noticed by many a passerby crossing the park.  
  
Lily knew that many members of their local society had noticed it as well, and many had invented excuses to call on the Potter House that afternoon. Lily was circumspect and dealt with their curiosity well enough. Many of the afternoon visitors left the house in disappointment.  
  
Everything was quiet now, and the servants were ready to receive the Minister.  
  
Lily had dressed for the occasion, it had been a while since she had been in the presence of the Minister and the fact that James was in speaking term with him didn't mean that the Minister should not be received with the protocol that his position required. Even Harry was dressed for the occasion, something that he clearly didn't like as he fussed with his clothing as he played in the floor.  
  
The formal parlor room at the front of the house was lit with long tapers, and the candlelight let an atmosphere of warmth and cheerfulness to the room. Lily sat on one of the armchairs in front of the windows that faced the Park. Other armchairs were set on the opposite side of the window while a long sofa was set against an adjacent wall. Small tables stood throughout the room, a colorful, flower arrangement stood on each and small figurines were set among the mantel and tables. A large table was set at the far corner of the room, where it stood almost invisible in the shadows. On top of this table stood a variety of drinks and fruits for the refreshment of the visitors.  
  
Lily sat peacefully watching her son play. She smiled and looked around her, the house certainly looked pleasant, not that it didn't look so every day, but it was nice to entertain for a change. Since their return from the Manor some months past, their life had been quiet and quite boring in her point of view. The only outing she could remember was their trip to Diagon Alley to buy Harry's birthday presents, and not until today had she had any visitors to entertain. She had reveled in the sight of many visitors that afternoon. Many of the Magical Upper Society had kept themselves from the Potters, in the mistaken idea that the family preferred solitude after the attack on Gryffindor Manor. At the beginning, James and Lily would have agreed with them, but as the time passed they had started to feel that their solitude was not as good as they had previously thought. James had started to go to the Ministry and use his talents aiding the Minister himself. Lily on the other hand, was left with nothing to do but play with Harry and stay indoors the whole day. She didn't feel safe leaving the confinement of the house.  
  
She was lost in thought when, suddenly, the sound of a car nearby broke through her thoughts. She looked out the window and saw a Ministry car stopping in front of the house. The servants took their places and Roberts walked quickly toward the front door, ready to greet their visitors.  
  
Lily turned back to the room and with a swish of her wand Harry's toys disappeared from sight and everything looked tidy.  
  
Harry looked at his mother with surprise and hurt in his eyes as she reached down for him.  
  
"I'm sorry Harry, you will get your toys back later, now we have visitors." Lily said in a soothing voice.  
  
The parlor door opened and Roberts appeared.  
  
"Professor Dumbledore and Mr. Trent, the Minister of Magic."  
  
Lily stood and greeted her visitors with a smile as James, Remus and Sirius walked in.  
  
"Very nice to see you, my dear. Your young man here, tells us that you will help us in this little matter." Mr. Trent said after all greetings were over.  
  
"Indeed Sir, it will be my pleasure." Lily replied.  
  
Harry was quietly looking at the visitors from his mother's arms. One of them he knew, but the other one was somebody new and he looked with curiosity at the portly older man.  
  
He leaned his head against his mother's neck and put one of his chubby fingers in his mouth as he looked intently at the visitors.  
  
Dumbledore chuckled. "Curious are you Harry?"  
  
Harry smiled at Professor Dumbledore.  
  
"Say hi to professor Dumbledore Harry." Lily said.  
  
"Dowe!" Shouted Harry.  
  
The others laughed.  
  
"Well, he got part of it right." Chuckled Sirius.  
  
"Siwis, Siwis, Siwis." Harry squealed happily.  
  
"Not Siwis, Harry, Sirius. Say, Si-ri-us." Sirius said.  
  
"Siwis." Harry clapped.  
  
"You have to be careful what you say around him, you know that, right?" Said Remus as everybody took seats around the parlor.  
  
"Papa!" Harry yelled and strained his little arms toward his father.  
  
Lily promptly passed Harry to James.  
  
"At least he says papa now." Said James with a smile. "It seems that after his initial silence he just decided to talk as much as he wants." He laughed.  
  
The Minister looked at the small family with a smile. He could remember the time when he first entered the Potter House more than twenty-five years ago. He had come as a secretary to the Minister of the time to talk with the young Aliaster Potter about working for the Minister's staff. The scene that was engraved in his mind was that of Aliaster with a five-year- old Elizabeth playing in the floor with her mother, Susan, and a toddling James in his arms. The scene was so alike to the one before him now that he could swear he had gone back in time, except for the fact that this time there was no five-year-old girl hanging around the young Mrs. Potter.  
  
It was during this moments, that old Mr. Trent missed his old friend, Aliaster Potter. The young couple before him had stood great grief on the last year, and he was saddened to think of the danger that they were in.  
  
Mr. Trent sighed. There was no need to think of such things, he thought, it would do no good at all.  
  
"Any refreshments Minister? We have, wine, cider and pumpkin juice of course." Offered James as he followed both, Sirius and Remus, to the refreshment table.  
  
"There is no need, dear boy." The Minister said. Even though James was the same age as Aliaster had been when he had first met the Potters, the Minister still thought of James as the same boy that accompanied his father to the Ministry and caused many headaches to the secretaries and agents assigned to keep an eye on him.  
  
"Professor? Anything to drink?" James turned to Dumbledore while he gave a small piece of bread with jam to Harry, who promptly put it in his mouth while leaving sticky residue all over James' robes (not that he had noticed).  
  
"Just some cider, thank you James."  
  
James nodded and motioned to a footman standing nearby to serve Professor Dumbledore some cider.  
  
"Dinner should be ready in a few minutes." Lily said as a way of warning Remus and Sirius who seemed to get ready to fill plates with everything that had been served in the refreshment table.  
  
"Oh, no need to worry Lils, I can eat dinner too." Said Sirius with a sly grin.  
  
"How are things in the Ministry, Mr. Trent?" Asked Lily as they all settled comfortably.  
  
"Bad, my dear lady, very bad. You cannot imagine how this Voldermort person is bringing chaos into our departments." The Minister shook his head with sadness. "Nothing we do seem to do any difference and our agents are not being as successful as we had hoped."  
  
"But surely, there is a way to stop him." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"We hope so." Murmured the Minister.  
  
"There might be, but it will take time to find it." Professor Dumbledore said. "He seems to have been able to surround himself with powerful magic that had made it impossible for us to find him and his followers."  
  
"What kind of magic is that? I didn't think it was possible." Lily replied.  
  
"Dark Magic allows you to do the impossible, Lily." Said Remus.  
  
"Unfortunately, that is the reason why so many are willing to delve into it." The Minister said. "Dark Magic gives you powers that are usually dormant in wizards, and it is this power that makes many want it."  
  
"What is the Ministry to do now?" Lily asked.  
  
"There are many programs that have been in service since the beginning of Voldemort's emergence. Their purpose is to find a way to combat these dangers." Dumbledore reported.  
  
"Have they come with anything?" Asked Sirius with curiosity. They all new of course of such programs, it was her work in one of them that had put Emma in danger from Voldemort and his followers.  
  
"Unfortunately not, it seems that our programs have had a string of bad luck and have not been able to progress much." The Minister said.  
  
"Either that, or sabotage." Said James.  
  
"It is a possibility." Said Dumbledore.  
  
There was silence in the room (except for the noises Harry made as he ate his bread), everybody was lost in thought. The idea of having spies within the halls of the Ministry was something that they were not too happy about.  
  
Roberts came in at that moment. "Dinner is served, Ma'am."  
  
Everybody stood and quickly walked toward the dinning room. They were happy that they didn't have to think about spies and Voldemort, even if it was for an hour or so.  
  
Dinner was cheerful. No mention of Voldemort and his Death Eaters intruded on their meal. Harry had been taken by Minnie to the kitchen for his dinner, where the elves were only too happy to get him to eat anything. There was laughter and good will as they talked and shared stories among each other.  
  
Roberts stood behind the Minister, ready to serve him anything he wished. Footmen stood around the table ready to serve any of the dishes that had been prepared for the occasion by a happy Otty.  
  
Food and wine flowed around the table until it was time for dessert to be served.  
  
After everybody was finished, they all walked back to the parlor.  
  
"Well my dear, I think it's time to say what we came to say." Said the Minister with a satisfied countenance.  
  
"What we really want, my dear, is for you to come to Hogwarts and be a counselor for our students. There have been so many that have been affected by recent events and we have not had anybody with the training to help them." Dumbledore said.  
  
"We thought, that as you had the training when you were at Hogwarts, you would be perfect to take over the job." The Minister finished.  
  
"Well, yes. James and I discussed it, and we agreed that it would be a perfect time for me to go." Lily said. Dumbledore and Mr. Trent nodded their understanding. "I would be taking Harry along with me, of course." Lily quickly added.  
  
"Without a doubt." Smiled Dumbledore.  
  
"When do you want her to go?" Asked James. He seemed calmed and resigned about the upcoming separation, but inside, he was dreading it. There were many things that could happen in a matter of weeks.  
  
"As soon as possible. Our students have been without proper help for far too long." Dumbledore explained.  
  
James nodded. Lily was looking at him thoughtfully. She knew that he wasn't happy about their decision but it was the best thing they could do to help with the present events, and it was something that she was looking forward to.  
  
"Hogwarts Express will await for you at the Station and you can have a Ministry car to take you there if you wish." The Minister offered.  
  
"Thank you Minister, but I think I will take one of ours." Lily responded.  
  
"Well, if this is settled, we better go." Said Dumbledore. "Owl me when you are ready to go and I will send hogwarts Express for you." Both he and the Minister stood, ready to end their visit.  
  
"Very well Professor. I'll see you soon." Lily said as she started to say goodbye to both men. "Thank you for coming, Mr. Trent, it was a pleasure."  
  
"The pleasure was all mine, my dear." Mr. Trent smiled. "I'll see you later, my dear boy. You have been of great help." He shook hands with James and turned to Remus and Sirius, who had stayed in the background during the discussion. "You too, of course, we appreciate all the help we can get at the moment."  
  
"Good bye Minister, Professor Dumbledore." Sirius and Remus said.  
  
The two men left the house. The Ministry car was waiting for them at the front of the house and Roberts stood by the front door ready to lead the men out.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Lily was ready to leave by the next morning. Trunks were piled in the front entrance, along with some boxes full of toys for Harry's entertaining. Minnie also stood by the boxes, she would be going along to take care of Harry while Lily worked. One of the Potters' cars stood waiting to be piled with the luggage and Lily and James stood with Harry by the windows in the parlor waiting to leave.  
  
"I'm going to miss you. Both of you." Said James putting his arm around his wife and son.  
  
"I will miss you too." Lily said. "Remember you promised to owl me everyday."  
  
"And I will. Remember to tell me about everything that Harry does while you away. I know it will be just for a little while, but I still want to know if he does something new." Urged James.  
  
"Of course. Oh James, we have never been separated for quite some time." Lily exclaimed. "Are you sure that you can't come with us?"  
  
"It is difficult for me to leave at the moment. With everything that is happening at the Ministry right now, there is no time for me to go. But I'll visit you as often as I can." James said.  
  
"Be sure to do so." Warned Lily.  
  
James chuckled. "Don't worry, I will." He kissed her brow and kissed Harry's cheek, who was calmly sleeping in his mother's arms.  
  
"The car is ready, Sir." Roberts said from the parlor door.  
  
"Thank you Roberts. Shall we go, my dear?" James turned to Lily.  
  
Lily nodded, and they promptly left the room.  
  
Sirius and Remus waited for them by the car, they would be going along with Lily and James to the station.  
  
The drive to King Cross Station was not long. Lily couldn't help but remember the times when she was taken to the Station by her parents every September 1st, and the presence of James, Sirius and Remus just made those memories more clear.  
  
The Station was not busy and it was quite easy for the small group to cross the barrier with no problem. The scarlet engine stood before them, with only one carriage attached to it.  
  
James and Sirius took the luggage inside while Remus helped Lily with all the boxes that had been marked with 'Toys for Harry'. Minnie was already inside. She had hidden in one of the trunks so not to scare any muggles while they were in the Station.  
  
There were only six compartments in the carriage, three on each side of a narrow aisle. Lily would have need of only one compartment.  
  
After everything was settled and the whistle of the train sounded through the platform, James, Sirius and Remus left the train. Lily rolled down the window with Harry in her lap.  
  
"Remember to write." Lily yelled to James.  
  
"I will." James yelled back. "Be careful."  
  
Lily nodded and the train started to move. Lily waved goodbye and held Harry up until the platform was left behind and the three figures could not be seen anymore.  
  
The trip was uneventful. The rhythmic sound of the moving train lulled Lily into relaxation. Harry had fallen asleep and a tray of tea and biscuits had been brought for her refreshment.  
  
So different from the trips she remembered. Every year, the trip to Hogwarts was filled with laughter and merriment. It had to be, with the Marauders on board pulling every trick in the book.  
  
The only trip she remembered that was different from the rest was the one when she was injured and left Hogwarts to return to London with her parents. She had been away for a few months, but to her, it had felt like an eternity. Her return trip had been full of expectation and dread.  
  
Lily looked at Harry, as he slept in her lap. He looks so much like James, she thought; except for his eyes, he has my eyes. She smiled at the thought. She could imagine what the future could hold for them. She was looking forward to starting his early education at three. She knew that James would say that it was too soon and that Harry just needed to be a kid, but she wanted Harry to have every advantage. Home school seemed like the best thing. He could study his lessons in the mornings and join his father for trips around the estate in the afternoon. As heir to the Gryffindor Estate, Harry needed to know what to do.  
  
She was looking forward to the coming holidays. Halloween was six weeks away and then it would be time for Christmas. The Harvest Festival would've been taking place in a couple of weeks if they had been in the Manor. She didn't know if the tenants would decide to go ahead with the celebrations even if the masters of the Manor House were not in attendance. She hoped they did, it was a tradition that had taken place for centuries in their small town and it didn't seem fair to cancel it. Death was part of life, and there was nothing that could be done against it.  
  
Hogwarts Express passed through silent villages. The rhythmic sound of the train lulled Lily into a sense of well-being and sleepiness. Harry slept calmly in her lap, she didn't want to relinquish his familiar weight, even though a small place was made on the opposite bench for his commodity and Minnie was traveling along with the driver waiting to be called upon if needed.  
  
Soon, darkness started to fall and Lily knew from experience that they were getting near Hogwarts. She looked eagerly out the window to get a good look at the town of Hogsmeade. It had been quite a while since she had seen it from Hogwarts Express.  
  
The town was alight, every person in every house and business in the area seemed to be up and about. She could see people coming and going from the Three Broomsticks, people were still walking up and down the main street in the middle of town and she could see people sitting, chatting on the porch of their homes looking around themselves and gossiping about the latest news. Lily smiled. She certainly had missed this sight.  
  
The train pulled up in Hogsmeade Station. A horseless carriage waited at the entrance. People around the station peeked from their windows to get a good look at the person Dumbledore seemed to be expecting. Not many recognized the young-looking woman stepping out of the train, with a sleeping child in arms. She was obviously someone of status as a personal elf followed closely behind carrying some of the luggage. The conductor himself was helping to load the luggage into the carriage as the lady waited patiently inside. Everybody was curious, who could this be and why was Dumbledore expecting her?  
  
Lily, of course, didn't have any idea of the curiosity her arrival created in town. She was happy to be back in Hogwarts, with everything going on in the world, this was the one place where she could feel safe.  
  
The cottages passed by as the horseless carriage drove toward Hogwarts Castle. Night had fallen and the stars were shining brightly against the darkened sky. Lily looked out the window. Everything seemed calm and dream-like, it was easy to imagine that there was no trouble to their safety and that times were as calm as they had been in past times.  
  
The castle finally loomed in front of her as huge gates opened to let the carriage into school grounds. Lily sat back and smiled. She was back in Hogwarts.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
James sat behind his desk in the Potter House in London. The night was clear and warm. His two friends were drowsing off in some of the couches nearby. The room was lit by long candles set in the big chandelier hanging above him and by some torches set against the wall. James sighed. It had been many hours since Lily and Harry had left for Hogwarts, and he missed them. He had missed seeing Lily's smiling face at the end of the table across from him during lunch and dinner, and he missed playing with Harry at his return from the Ministry.  
  
He sighed once more.  
  
"Will you stop doing that? You are getting on my nerves." Said Sirius sitting up and turning to look at his friend. "If you miss them so much, why don't you go to Hogwarts as well?"  
  
James glared at Sirius. "You know I can't do that. There are so many things that have to be dealt with. Specially now, with all the latest reports that have started to come in."  
  
"Stop moaning then, they will be back soon enough." Sirius said.  
  
James just glared at his friend as Sirius returned to his previous position. Remus was looking at him in silence.  
  
"Troubles in the Ministry?" He eventually asked.  
  
James sighed, he knew his friend was trying to keep his mind of Lily and Harry, and he was grateful for that.  
  
"You could say that." Said James. "We have found that a pack of reports were stolen from the Minister's office."  
  
"How the devil did they do that?" Sirius exclaimed bolting up from the couch.  
  
"That's the trouble, according to security, nobody without clearance has gone into the Minister's office in the last weeks." James replied.  
  
"So there's a spy in the Minister's inner circle." Remus said.  
  
"But who?" Wondered James.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
"It is great to see you, my dear!" Professor McGonagall exclaimed as Lily stepped down from the carriage. Dumbledore stood smiling at her side.  
  
"Indeed it is. Minerva can't wait to give up counseling." He chuckled.  
  
Lily laughed and hugged each of her former teachers, trying not to disturb Harry sleeping in her arms.  
  
"Oh, is he sleep?" Professor McGonagall whispered as she moved aside the blanket to get a look at Harry.  
  
"Yes. He slept through most of the trip." Lily whispered back as all three looked down at the slumbering child.  
  
"He has grown so!" Exclaimed Professor McGonagall. "I remember him being much smaller than this."  
  
"He has grown quite a bit in the last few months." Smiled Lily.  
  
Professor McGonagall and Dumbledore led her through the darkened corridors up to the staff room.  
  
"You have missed dinner, but we have prepared the staff room for you until your room is readied." Professor McGonagall said.  
  
"That is kind of you. Thank you."  
  
"There is no need my dear, we know that the food in the train leaves something to be desired." Dumbledore replied.  
  
Lily chuckled, it was true that the train refreshments were lacking in nourishment. "I didn't mind it, I enjoyed being in the train once more."  
  
Dumbledore opened the door to the staff room and allowed the ladies to enter before him. The room was lacking in furniture. At one corner of the room stood a large wardrobe, where, she knew, the teachers left their spare robes. Tables were scattered around the room, each with four chairs around them; it was here were the teachers worked in their papers and graded the students' work. But something was different this time. A large table was set in the middle of the room. Large platters of various foods stood in the middle and large candles floated above. Pitchers of water and pumpkin juice were seen among the plates and a large flower arrangement stood in the middle among all the platters.  
  
"Oh!" Exclaimed Lily as she looked around. "There was no need for this."  
  
"Never mind my dear, we were only too happy to do it and the elves were thrilled to be asked." Dumbledore's eyes twinkled down at her.  
  
"Thank you." Lily said. "But you know I won't be able to eat this much, I think you have me confused with James or Sirius." She laughed.  
  
"Well, to be frank, we thought that James and the others would be coming with you to see you settled." Said Professor McGonagall with a sheepish expression.  
  
Lily shook her head. "James was called to the Ministry early and the others didn't want to leave him alone."  
  
"Well no matter, the other professors will be here soon and join us." Said Dumbledore as he eased a chair back for Lily to sit.  
  
"I thought you said dinner was past." Lily asked.  
  
"It has, but we decided to partake dinner with you." Professor McGonagall said. "Only a few stayed in the Great Hall to see that the students go to bed in time."  
  
"I see." Lily said, happy that her former professors held her in such esteem that they would wait for dinner just to spend time with her.  
  
Harry started to fuss in her lap.  
  
"It's all right Harry." She whispered as she peeled back the blankets to allow Harry to sit up.  
  
"Yum!" Harry tried to grab some of the food in front of him.  
  
Lily laughed, while Dumbledore chuckled and Professor McGonagall smiled indulgently. "No Harry, we have to wait for a bit." Lily said.  
  
Harry looked around the strange room with wide eyes. He frowned when he didn't recognize anything, specially the stern woman sitting beside his mother. "Papa?" He turned to look at his mother.  
  
"I'm sorry, darling, Papa is not here with us." Lily said, trying to take the blankets from around his small body.  
  
Harry pouted and turned to look around once more, this time he saw somebody he recognized. "Dowe!" He squealed.  
  
Dumbledore laughed. "Great memory, Harry, it will serve you well when your time comes to return to Hogwarts."  
  
The door opened once more and people started to arrive.  
  
"Welcome back, my dear!"  
  
"You were missed!"  
  
"Will you look at him, he looks just like a Potter!"  
  
The teachers exclaimed as they started to pile into the room.  
  
The room started to fill, Harry looked curiously at everybody as they talked to his mother, some of this strangers smiled at him and some even pinched his cheeks, something that he clearly didn't like much and made it known to everybody.  
  
Eventually, everybody settled around the table, it had looked small in the center of the room but it was enough for everybody.  
  
Chatter and laughter filled the air. Lily smiled, somehow, she felt as she had returned home.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
James didn't sleep that night. He missed having Lily there with him, he even missed the sound of Harry fussing in his crib. Everything was so quiet and dark that it seemed eerie to him. The night was dark and the stars shinned brightly above. James sighed. He felt that something was wrong.  
  
He thought back on the day. It had been quite a shock to him and the Minister when a folder of documents were found missing. They hadn't told anything to the rest, they wanted to see if they had been misplaced first. When they hadn't been found by late afternoon, James started to make quiet inquiries to the security agents in the floor. It was quite baffling, and scary, to think that somebody they had complete trust in, had betrayed them.  
  
James felt a surge of anger invade his body. Those documents could mean the difference between life and death and to have them stolen from right under their noses, had made it very personal.  
  
Life could be so complicated, James thought and wished they could be a charm that took them all back to a time when it was much simpler, a time turner couldn't be used for that, it was a complicated type of magic that nobody was qualified to do.  
  
James turned and moved around the bed without falling asleep. Horrible images passed through his mind, the thought of what could happen next worried him. Perhaps, he thought, it had been a bad idea to let Lily and Harry go to Hogwarts after all.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The days were turning cold and the leaves were turning golden in the trees. Lily had been in Hogwarts for a week now and she was loving every minute. She woke up very early in the morning to spend some extra time with Harry. By mid morning, she was found in the small office near the Transfiguration room that had been prepared for her. There she spent hours talking to students, trying to help them deal with the sorrow and anger that they felt at the loss in their young lives. It made Lily sad to see all the young faces looking at her with hope in their eyes. In some ways she didn't feel qualified to help them, but there was a bond that had united them all, and that was the many people that Voldemort and his followers had killed.  
  
On this cool afternoon of the last week of September, Lily walked down the corridors toward Dumbledore's office. She had just finished with the last of her morning appointments and lunch was not far off, she wanted to talk with the Headmaster before then.  
  
She stopped in front of the statue that led to Dumbledore's office. "Butterbeer." She said and the door promptly opened. She walked up the stairs and knocked on a door. "Come in." She heard Dumbledore's voice. She pushed open the door and smiled at the sight that met her eyes.  
  
Dumbledore was behind his desk, papers and books open upon his desk. On his lap, was Harry, who was quietly playing with one of Dumbledore's sneakoscope while the older man read his papers.  
  
Lily coughed a couple of times to attract their attention.  
  
"Mama!" Squealed Harry and threw up his arms reaching for her, almost dropping the sneakoscope as he did so.  
  
Dumbledore passed an ecstatic Harry to Lily as he put his things in order. "Done for the morning?" He said as he watched the young lady before him trying to keep her infant son in control.  
  
"Yes. I hope he wasn't a bother for you Professor." She said as she sat on one of the chairs placed before the desk.  
  
"No bother, my dear, I rather enjoyed it. It hasn't been long since I held an infant in my arms." He said.  
  
Lily looked at him with surprise, she had never thought that Professor Dumbledore would have many young children to deal with, after all, he stayed in Hogwarts for most part of the year. But then again, nobody knew what he did during the summer.  
  
"Anything on your mind?" Dumbledore said rather suddenly.  
  
Lily blinked in confusion for a couple of times before she remembered that she did in fact had something on her mind.  
  
"Yes Professor, you see, I'm rather worried about James. He writes everyday, but I have a feeling that something is bothering him." Lily said in a rush.  
  
Dumbledore nodded his understanding. "I know things have been rather bad in the last days, and the Ministry have had their hands rather full trying to put things in order."  
  
"That's just it Professor!" Lily exclaimed, Dumbledore seemed rather taken aback by this. "I know that there are things happening out there, but James will not tell me what, and the only things I have been able to gather is from conversations I have overheard. It's rather worrisome."  
  
"I understand my dear, being in Hogwarts has cut off us from everything our there." Sighed Dumbledore. "But I cannot say that I'm not glad about it. Our students need to feel safe, and I'm glad that we can do so here."  
  
"Oh Professor, I'm not saying that it's a bad thing. I'm glad as well for the same reason as you, but I can't help but feel helpless when I don't know how things are going." Lily said.  
  
"I know, my dear. And I'm sure your young man feels the same way." Dumbledore said. "Do you want to return?"  
  
Lily sighed and stayed silent for a moment. "Do you think I should?" She finally asked.  
  
"That is up to you, my dear. Only you can make that decision." Dumbledore looked at her behind his half-moon shaped glasses.  
  
Lily thought about it for a moment before answering. "I'll wait one more week, if things don't get better, perhaps I should return to London."  
  
Dumbledore nodded his agreement.  
  
Harry started to fuss in Lily's lap. "He must be hungry." She said. "I'll take him to Minnie before I get ready for lunch." She said and started to walk out the door. "Thank you Professor." She said before she stepped out.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
James felt very tired as he threw himself into a couch in his bookroom. He had spent the whole day trying to help the Minister to put things in order, but nothing came of it.  
  
After the report had been made that rather sensitive documents had disappeared from the Minister's office, the Ministry fell into chaos, and the fact that proof was found that they had fallen in Voldemort's hands brought terror to the hearts of many.  
  
Thank God the press doesn't know of this, James thought as he stretched himself upon the couch.  
  
The house was rather quiet, Sirius had decided to return to his own house after spending many months in the Potter household, he thought it was safer for them all if he did. Remus had similar thoughts and had left as well, of course, the fact that it was a full moon could have something to do with it as well. Peter had come to visit, and had seemed surprised to learn that Lily had been in Hogwarts for a week. He didn't stay long.  
  
The house was too quiet, James thought, things should be livelier, only a month to go until Halloween. He had always liked Halloween, but he had loved it in Hogwarts. He smiled at the many happy memories he had of that day, and he was really looking forward to celebrate it with Harry. Last year he had been too young to be attracted by everything that happened, but this year it was different. His son was very curious and he would love decorating the house on that day.  
  
He lay on the couch feeling more relaxed than when he had returned. Things had to get better, he thought, there was no way that worst was yet to come.  
  
He was woken abruptly some time later. Somebody was knocking on the front door, and by the sound of it, it was very important. He heard Roberts walking quickly to answer, mumbling about rowdy people who bothered others when they should be at home resting after work. James smiled, he could not remember when he had seen Roberts so perturbed.  
  
There were loud voices in the entrance, one of them clearly upset.  
  
James waited, he heard Roberts telling their visitor to wait and walk toward the bookroom.  
  
The door opened and James looked toward Roberts. James was surprised to see Roberts frown, like any good butler, he had always made sure to serve without showing emotion, no, it was better said that Roberts tried to serve without showing emotion, he failed whenever he was glad or happy about something.  
  
"There is a person looking for you Sir." Roberts announced.  
  
"Indeed?" James was curious, what had his late visitor done to make Roberts look so disapproving? "Show him in, will you Roberts. Oh, and bring refreshments, perhaps my visitor would like something."  
  
Roberts sniffed with disapproval but didn't make his thoughts known, it was no business of his whom his master wished to speak with, he thought. Roberts walked back to the entrance and told the man who had been pacing the floor to following him.  
  
The two men walked rapidly to the bookroom, the stranger looking around with awe, it was very clear that he had never seen such luxury before. They finally stopped in front of a large wooden door. Roberts knocked and they heard a reply. "Come in." Roberts opened the door and motioned the man to go in.  
  
The man was wearing a set of shabby robes that had once been sharp and clean. He seemed to be a Ministry agent, even if his clothing left something to be desired, he was wearing a shiny Ministry badge on the collar of his robes.  
  
"Please come in. Would you like something to drink?" James said from his seat behind the desk.  
  
"No thank you Sir. What I have to say is of the outmost importance." The Ministry agent said.  
  
"Roberts, please leave us." James nodded to his butler. Roberts bowed and the door closed after he left the room. "You were saying."  
  
"Sir, something has come to our attention and the Minister wants to see you as soon as possible, but it seems that your wife is in trouble." The Ministry agent said in a rush.  
  
"What?" James exclaimed jumping up from his seat. "How can that be? She is at Hogwarts, for goodness sakes, that is the most safest place in England."  
  
"I'm sorry Sir, I don't know." The agent said.  
  
"Oh very well. Tell the Minister I'm on my way." James said with exasperation.  
  
The agent left in a hurry, feeling very relieved that he had gotten through the interview, it was not news that he had been happy to deliver.  
  
James cursed the moment he had been left alone. What was happening now?  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Lily was feeling very tired. She had spent hours trying to soothe a young first year after news had arrived that her parents had been killed in a recent attack.  
  
Lily sighed with fatigue and sadness. She heard Harry giggle in the room adjacent to hers followed by Minnie's squeaky voice. She smiled. Harry was the bright light in her life now and she was happy to have it so. She walked to the room that the house elves had prepared for her son. It was very cheery, with walls painted in bright colors (a rather unusual choice, she had thought, as rooms in the castle were never painted before). Toys had been cluttered at the corners and a very large crib had been brought in.  
  
At the moment, Harry was on the changing table and Minnie had obviously finished with his bath.  
  
"He is ready, Mistress Lily." Minnie said when she caught sight of Lily.  
  
"I see that, thank you Minnie." Minnie bowed and with a blink she was gone.  
  
Lily walked to the table and took Harry in her arms. "Mama!" He said and giggled. Lily laughed along with him. "Ready for bed, are you." She said and walked to the rocking chair at one corner of the room. She sat and started to rock the chair while waiting for Harry to fall asleep.  
  
Harry slowly got drowsy and started to yawn. Several times he rubbed his eyes, trying to stay awake. Lily hummed and Harry slowly started to close his eyes. He tried one last time to hold them open and looked up at his mother. "Papa?" He said.  
  
"He'll be with us soon. You'll see." Lily whispered and continued with her humming and rocking.  
  
Eventually, Harry fell asleep.  
  
Lily stood up and walked to the crib. Carefully, she placed Harry on the mattress and covered his small body.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
James had run across the park to arrive quickly at the Minister of Magic's office. The room seemed in total chaos. Members of his cabinet were shouting and pacing around the room. It took a while for James to get through to the Minister.  
  
"What happened?" James asked.  
  
"Another attack. A town of muggles was completely destroyed. The agents who had arrived at the scene first were also killed. Kosescher was also killed." The Minister said.  
  
"Good God, but what was Kosescher doing there? There was no need for him to go, as Head of the Unspeakables and member of your cabinet, he didn't have to be there." James exclaimed.  
  
The Minister nodded sadly. "We know that, but we had received reports that the spy who stole our papers was there."  
  
"He wanted to catch him." James said. It was clearly a statement, not a question.  
  
"That fool got himself killed, and what good did that do?" Somebody yelled.  
  
James turned to look at the speaker. The others had kept silent and looked at Mr. Crouch with anger.  
  
"At least he did something. What good were you when reports started to arrive of the planned attack? If you had dispatched your men earlier, people would've been saved." Another man said.  
  
"We weren't sure, they were only hearsay not proof." Mr. Crouch tried to defend his actions.  
  
"Anything that has to do with You-Know-Who and the Death Eaters should be treated as fact." Another cried.  
  
"Bah! We are bound to catch the whole lot of them without going on a wild- goose-chase every time we hear that they are planning something." Mr. Crouch said.  
  
"Hundreds of people died tonight, and it is as much your fault as it is the Death Eaters." Somebody screamed.  
  
"Are you calling me a Death Eater, I'll have you know that more Death Eaters have been apprehended in the last months by my special squad than on previous years." Mr. Crouch looked on the verge of having an apoplexy.  
  
"Much good that does, when more Death Eaters spring anew every time. You have not been able to make these Death Eaters talk have you? Not even by those performances you call a trial."  
  
"How dare you question my actions? I'll catch everyone of those monsters, you'll see." Screamed Mr. Crouch and thundered out of the room.  
  
James had kept silent during the argument, he didn't have a good opinion of Mr. Crouch, but it didn't seem right that the others antagonized him so much moments ago.  
  
There were grunts and mumbles throughout the room.  
  
James turned back to the Ministry, he had sat behind his desk lost in his own thoughts, and paying no attention to what had been going on in the room.  
  
"Sir, your messenger said that Lily was in trouble." James said. He didn't care what errors Mr. Crouch had committed, he only cared to know what was happening with Lily and Harry.  
  
The Ministry told the rest to leave them alone. Minutes passed until the room was silent once more and the door had been closed behind the last cabinet member.  
  
"Kosescher was alive when reinforcements arrived. It was too late by then. He was taken to St. Mungos straight away. I was called to his side, saw him for a minute only, and he said only one thing. He said that Voldemort knew that Lily and Harry were at Hogwarts and they were planning an ambush." The Ministry said.  
  
James was horrified. "But how did they found out where she was? We took care that nobody knew where she was and for how long."  
  
The Minister shook his head. "Dunno, but this makes things a little difficult."  
  
"We have to bring her back. Tomorrow." James said.  
  
"Yes, it would be for the best. Voldemort thinks she is returning next week. It seemed that someone was privy of your latest correspondence." The Minister peered at James to see how he took this piece of news.  
  
"Do you think my correspondence has been intercepted?" James asked with horror. He had never thought of that.  
  
"It is a possibility, but then, you would've noticed, wouldn't you." The Minister said.  
  
James nodded, but he wasn't sure. With Voldermort anything was possible.  
  
"I sent a carrier to Hogwarts, didn't think an owl would be a good idea now. Lily will be back by tomorrow night, next day at the latest." The Minister reported.  
  
"What happens now?" James asked.  
  
"Voldemort is clearly ready to make his last stand. You and Lily are in the way of what he wants. I asked Dumbledore to come with Lily, it's time we plan." The Minister said. James nodded.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Lily was woken up with a start. Minnie was at the edge of her bed, peering down at her.  
  
"What is wrong Minnie? Is it Harry? Is he ill?" Lily exclaimed and quickly left the bed. She started running toward Harry's room, but Minnie's squeaky voice stopped her.  
  
"No Mistress Lily, Master Harry is well." Minnie said.  
  
"What is wrong then?" Asked Lily with confusion.  
  
"Professor Dumbledore, Mistress, he wants to see you." Minnie said.  
  
Lily nodded and started to order Minnie to help her to get ready.  
  
Minutes later, Lily walked down the corridors, slowly making her way to the Headmaster's office.  
  
Dumbledore sat on his chair behind his desk. The old gentleman in the portraits waited patiently, some of them had fallen asleep, and Lily had a premonition that things were not as good as they all wished.  
  
"You wanted to see me, Professor?" Lily said as she entered into the room.  
  
"Yes, my dear, please take a seat." Dumbledore motioned to one of the chairs before him.  
  
Lily sat gingerly on the chair. She didn't like the tone on Dumbledore's voice.  
  
"Something wrong?" She asked, dreading the answer.  
  
Dumbledore was silent for a moment, looking at her with his dark eyes- "I received a message from the Minister this morning." He said.  
  
"Did something happened to James?" Lily was startled.  
  
"No, he is fine." Dumbledore quickly said.. "But there was an attack on a Muggle town last night, several Ministry agents were killed, including a member of the Minister's cabinet." He explained.  
  
Lily listened in silence, she didn't see how this should affect her in any way.  
  
"The cabinet member was Mr. Vincent Korsesche, he was the Head of Department of Mysteries. Before he died, he relayed a message. Voldemort knows that you are here, and he knows the day of your planned returned, there is going to be an ambush." Dumbledore said.  
  
Lily gasped. "But how can that be? How could he have known? Nobody knows."  
  
"We don't know, but we must do what we can to protect you and Harry. The Hogwarts Express is being readied at this moment, it will leave in an hour, and you are going to be there." Dumbledore said. "We must not tarry, we need to get you back to London for the moment, there we will make plans on what to do."  
  
Lily nodded in silence and quickly left the room.  
  
She ran down the corridors, not caring whom she knocked to the floor nor bothering to excuse herself. The students and staff looked at her with surprise, they had never seen Mrs. Lily Potter act in such a way.  
  
Lily made it to her room without breaking down to cry. She didn't have the time to think of what was happening, all she wanted was to get ready and get Harry and herself out of Hogwarts.  
  
"Minnie! Minnie!" She screamed once she got to the room.  
  
Minnie ran into the room. She looked frightened and worried.  
  
"Get everything ready, we are leaving in an hour." Lily ordered.  
  
Minnie nodded and hopped back into Harry's room.  
  
The next half hour was chaotic. Clothing, toys, blankets, books and many other things flew around the room, shrinking and folding themselves into the various opened trunks on the floor.  
  
Nobody said much, Lily worked frantically around the room making sure nothing was forgotten and Minnie worked diligently from among the trunks making sure everything in sight was packed. Harry lay sleeping on Lily's bed.  
  
They were done with fifteen minutes to spare. The trunks were left the room for the house elves to take to the carriage along with Minnie. Lily took Harry in her arms and quickly made her way to the entrance hall.  
  
Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall were waiting for her.  
  
"You are ready, I see." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Yes." Lily nodded.  
  
"I'll be accompanying you on your trip, my dear. Minerva will do nicely on her own for a little while." Dumbledore smiled down at the stern looking woman beside her.  
  
"Nothing to worry about." She glared at her companion. "Take care my dear." She said to Lily and hugged her tightly.  
  
"Thank you. Hopefully, it won't be long until I return." Lily said.  
  
Professor McGonagall smiled sadly, unfortunately, she didn't believe so.  
  
"Come along, my dear." Dumbledore said as a horseless carriage made its appearance around the corner.  
  
Lily nodded and followed him to the carriage. They climbed inside and the carriage started with a jerky movement.  
  
Lily looked out the window at the castle. Professor McGonagall was waiving them goodbye from the door. Lily waved back as silent tears started to fall down her face.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
James had woken up very early. His friends, Sirius, Peter and Remus had made a surprising appearance at his door and had waited for him in the dinning room.  
  
"What are you lot doing here?" He asked when he entered for breakfast.  
  
"Hear you had a late night meeting with the Minister last night." Sirius said without preamble.  
  
James looked surprised. "How did you hear that?"  
  
Sirius shrugged.  
  
James sighed, it made no sense in saying otherwise, they would soon find out anyway, he thought. "Yes, I received an urgent message from the Minister." He said.  
  
Remus nodded. "It was about that attack last night." He said pointing to the front page of the Daily Prophet upon the table. A large title flashed across the page, "Horror in Muggle Town: Ministry agents dead."  
  
"Partly." James said.  
  
"Partly?" Asked Peter curiously.  
  
James nodded as he started eating some of the food piled on his plate.  
  
"Korsesche was killed." He said in between bites.  
  
Sirius nodded. "Heard that this morning as well."  
  
"Well, it appears that he lived long enough to leave a message." James said.  
  
"W-what, why?" Exclaimed Peter, he seemed nervous and scared at the thought.  
  
The others didn't pay him any attention.  
  
"He had gone with the belief that there would be a spy there, and he was planning to capture him." James said.  
  
"And was killed instead. Seems that he saw who this spy was." Remus said.  
  
"What did he say?" Peter asked abruptly.  
  
"Don't have all the details, the Minister wanted to wait until Lily and Dumbledore get here, but he did tell me that there was a threat against Lily and Harry. An ambush on their return trip." James said.  
  
The others gasped.  
  
"What is going to happen now?" Peter asked with worry.  
  
"They are returning today. She and Dumbledore are coming in Hogwarts Express. Much faster than by road." James said.  
  
Peter fell silent. While Remus and Sirius nodded their agreement.  
  
"And Voldemort doesn't know about the change of plans." Sirius said. "They should be safe."  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The train traveled swiftly down the country side. Lily and Dumbledore sat quietly, sharing a compartment. Harry was awake and playing on the floor with his toys. Minnie had brought in a tray with tea and biscuits.  
  
"This is much better than what used to be served when we were at Hogwarts." Lily said as she pour some tea for Professor Dumbledore.  
  
Dumbledore smiled and reached gratefully for the cup. "Indeed. Candy and butterbeer would not be sufficient for us. But it certainly is for those much younger."  
  
Lily laughed. "It is indeed."  
  
Harry pulled himself up and pulled on Lily's skirt. "Yum!" He said.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry Harry, of course you must be hungry." Lily exclaimed. She put aside her tea and reached for her son. She gave him some biscuits, which Harry munched on happily while his mother continued with tea.  
  
The sun was sinking lower and the sky was turning red. From experience, Lily knew that it would be a couple of more hours until they reached the outskirts of London.  
  
They were crossing through a barren piece of land, no houses, cottages, farms, nothing was in sight. It seemed calm and eerie.  
  
Lily was looking out, while Harry lay sleeping in her arms. Dumbledore sat in the seat before her, lost in thought.  
  
Suddenly, the train gave an abrupt thrust and the steel beneath them squealed in protest. Harry woke up crying, Lily peered outside trying to see what was happening. Dumbledore stood up and took his wand out.  
  
"Prepare to leave." He said.  
  
"Professor, what is happening?" Lily gasped, trying to grab as much as she could with her arms heavy with Harry and bags.  
  
"It seems that somebody betrayed our plans." Said Dumbledore.  
  
Lily was worried, that meant that Voldemort knew she was here and would be after them, considering how little security was on the train while in motion. In an essence, they were sitting ducks, ready to be plucked.  
  
Minnie came screeching into the room. "Mistress Lily! Mistress Lily! Those men they killed the others in the Manor, they are here! Mistress Lily!"  
  
"Take them out Minnie." Dumbledore ordered.  
  
Minnie nodded while trying to dry the tears that were falling down her face.  
  
"Where are they Minnie? How many are they?" Lily felt the train slowing down, they would stop in a matter of minutes.  
  
"In front Mistress, in front of the train. There are many of them Mistress, many." Minnie whispered with fright.  
  
"Here Minnie, take Harry, make sure he is safe. I'll stay and help." Lily passed a whimpering Harry to Minnie.  
  
"You shouldn't my dear, I can take care, it is you and Harry they are after." Dumbledore said.  
  
"They are after Harry, he is the one they want, I'm not going to let them hurt him." Lily exclaimed.  
  
Dumbledore nodded and Minnie started to leave the compartment in a hurry.  
  
Lily took out her wand. She had never used it in battle before, and duels were not her forte, but for the safety of her son, she would do anything.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
James was sitting behind his desk. Night was falling and Lily and Harry would soon arrive at Platform 9 ¾ , he would be leaving soon to pick them up, but for now, he wanted to read over some of the latest reports the Ministry had gathered.  
  
Sirius and Remus entered the room, they had been playing in the pool room after they returned from a shopping expedition in Diagon Alley, that afternoon.  
  
"Where is Peter?" Remus asked as he fell into one of the couches in the room.  
  
"He left after you did, said he had somebody to meet in the Ministry." James said with a shrug.  
  
"Meet with whom? Who could Peter know in the Ministry?" Asked Sirius with surprise.  
  
"He knows us for a start." Remus said.  
  
"But we are not really up the ladder are we? Well, except James, he is at the very top." Sirius said.  
  
"Doesn't have to be some Head of a department, or such, it could be lower officer, maybe he needs a license for something." Remus said.  
  
"Well, yes, that is true." Sirius said.  
  
James was looking out at the darkened park while his friends argued behind him. "Something is going on." He said suddenly.  
  
"What? Why do you say that?" Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"There is too much activity from the Ministry. Something happened." James frowned. What could the Death Eaters have done now?  
  
An owl was seen coming at great speed toward the window. James opened it and stood back quickly. The owl swooped through the window and after circling the room a couple of times, dropped a letter on the desk and flew back out.  
  
James reached for the letter and opened it. It was short and abrupt.  
  
"They know. The train is being attacked." It said and a set of coordinates were scribbled at the bottom.  
  
James swore and started to gather his wand and robes.  
  
"What happened, what is it?" Sirius and Remus asked.  
  
"Our plans were found out, Hogwarts Express is under attack." James said before running out of the room.  
  
Sirius and Remus said no more, before running after James.  
  
They ran across the park toward the Ministry where they would use the special apparating room.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The train had stopped and was quickly surrounded by black cloaked figures. Minnie had hid herself and Harry among the luggage in a dark compartment at the very end of the train, but she knew they couldn't be safe for long if Mistress Lily and Professor Dumbledore didn't succeed. She hoped the Ministry had gotten the note that the conductor had hastily written when he first saw the Death Eaters waiting for them. She wished Lotty was with them, they could get Master Harry out if he had been, just like they did the day the Manor was attacked, she didn't have enough strength to do it on her own.  
  
Harry started fussing, and she started to hum, trying to make him fall silent.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Lily was tense. The waiting was killing her. The train had stopped and she could see the dark figures starting to surround the train. She hoped Minnie had found a safe place to hide, they needed to hold out as long as they could, the Ministry was bound to find out. She hoped they did.  
  
She prepared herself, she heard people starting to board the train, she stood with her back against the side wall, well away from the window. Dumbledore stood by the door, prepared to attack whoever came through the door.  
  
They started to hear yells and screams, flashes of light appeared from all sides.  
  
"We are not alone." Dumbledore said.  
  
Lily breathed with relief. But no, she thought, I mustn't let my guard down.  
  
The screams were getting louder, but the steps coming toward them had stopped somehow. The flashes of light continued around the train. She could see the shadows of people outside, running and stumbling as they fought.  
  
She gasped at the sounds of steps coming toward them started again. She heard doors open and close, somebody was looking through the compartments.  
  
She held her breath as she heard the door opposite to their compartment open and close, they were next. Dumbledore stood quietly by the door, she went to stand next to him. Both their wands were held in readiness.  
  
The door opened.  
  
"Expelliarmus!" They yelled. They heard somebody grunt and crash the door of the opposite compartment. They were surprised to hear chuckles on the other side of the wall. Lily peered cautiously out the door and gasped.  
  
"Oh James! I'm so sorry, I didn't know it was you." She exclaimed and ran to James as he lay rubbing his head against the wall. "Oh my darling, I'm sorry." She whispered as she knelt at his side.  
  
"I'm all right." He said.  
  
Remus and Sirius stood by the door.  
  
"I'm glad I didn't argue with you about taking the lead." Said Sirius.  
  
"Are you alright, Professor?" Remus asked.  
  
"Yes. I'm sorry dear boy, didn't meant to hurt you." Dumbledore said to James.  
  
"I understand." Said James as Sirius helped him up. "Where is Harry?"  
  
"Minnie took him." Lily said. "They must be hiding somewhere."  
  
A young man came panting into the compartment. "Gone, the Death Eaters are gone." He panted.  
  
"Anybody hurt?" Dumbledore asked.  
  
"A few scrapes here and there, no fatalities." The young man said.  
  
"What about the Death Eaters, were any of them caught?" Asked Remus.  
  
The young man shook his head. "None, they were too fast for our lot."  
  
"I don't care about that, I want to make sure Harry is safe." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"Go, look for them, I'll talk to the others." Said Dumbledore.  
  
Lily, James, Remus and Sirius dispersed around the train calling for Minnie and Harry.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Minnie hugged Harry against her. She could hear the yells and screams coming from around the train and crouched with fear. Then silence. She sighed with relief, but what could it mean?  
  
For several minutes she stayed silent, trying to hear what was happening outside. She started to hear voices, somebody was calling to her and Master Harry, but who could it be?"  
  
"Minnie!"  
  
"Harry!"  
  
"Minnie!"  
  
"Harry!"  
  
It was Master James and Mistress Lily! Minnie scrambled from her hiding place. She hid Harry among the luggage, just in case it was a trick and opened the door, inch by inch. She peered outside with care. She could see two people coming toward them, but could not see their faces.  
  
"Oh James, what if the Death Eaters found them, what if that was the reason they left so quickly, because they had him." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"Don't worry Lily, I'm sure that Minnie found a great place for them to hide, she is probably waiting to make sure it's safe." James said.  
  
Lily nodded. "You are probably right."  
  
They turned back to look in the compartments.  
  
Minnie saw them. It was them, Mistress Lily and Master James!  
  
Minnie squeaked with happiness and returned to Harry. She gathered him in her arms and opened the door.  
  
"Master James! Mistress Lily!" She exclaimed.  
  
"Oh Minnie, James, Minnie is here." Lily screamed with happiness.  
  
Harry woke up and started to cry. Lily reached for him and Minnie quickly passed him to her Mistress' arms.  
  
"Oh, Harry dear, you are safe." Lily said and hugged her son.  
  
James smiled with relief.  
  
"Come, let's go home." He said.  
  
The small family, slowly made its way out of the train.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Harry slept peacefully on his crib. They were back in the Potter House in Rowe Square, London, and his parents stood by watching him sleep.  
  
"What is going to happen now?" Lily whispered.  
  
"We'll see. But it is obvious that we can't stay here for long." James said.  
  
"He is determined to have him." Lily stated.  
  
"But we are more determined to keep him from our son. Don't worry Lily, everything will turn out for the best, our son won't fall into Voldemort's hands." James hugged Lily tight. He had been so scared at the thought that he could've lost them both.  
  
"I hope you are right James." Lily leaned against him, where she felt safe and loved.  
  
Lily didn't sleep well that night, neither did James, for that matter. Both were kept awake by thoughts of what had happened that day. They were not looking forward to their meeting with the rest on the morning. Things looked very dark indeed.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Morning brought uncertainty and fear. Lily and James got ready in silence and gathered Harry from his room before going down to breakfast.  
  
Remus and Sirius were waiting for them at the table. Both had decided to remain with them in case they were needed. Peter was also there, he had appeared early in the morning hoping to see how his friends were after the past day.  
  
"Hello." Said Lily as she came into the room. She sat Harry in his high chair and smiled brightly at their friends.  
  
Remus, Sirius and Peter looked intently at her, hoping to see if her ordeal hadn't done any damage to her spirit. But they didn't find a sign of concern, in fact she looked quite as calm as she had always seemed.  
  
"Morning!" They said.  
  
"You lot are up early." Said James entering the room after Lily.  
  
The others shrugged, but didn't say anything.  
  
"When did you arrive Peter?" Asked Lily as she settled herself to enjoy the meal that Roberts and the footmen were serving.  
  
"Early." Said Peter. "Apparated very early in the Ministry for news, but they didn't give me much so I came here."  
  
"Well, you know you are welcome at any time." James said as he looked down at his plate with satisfaction.  
  
They ate in relative silence, only Harry's mumbles and laughter could be heard as the food eventually disappeared.  
  
"Dumbledore and the Minister will be here at noon." Said James once everybody was done and were ready to leave the table.  
  
The others nodded, except for Lily who was frowning with worry.  
  
"I'm going to be in the family parlor." She said as she took Harry and walked out of the room.  
  
The others stood and watched her leave with worry in their eyes.  
  
"How is she doing?" Asked Remus once Lily had disappeared down the hall.  
  
"As best as could be expected I suppose. She is worried." James said.  
  
Peter shuddered. "I would be too." He said in a hoarse voice.  
  
James sighed. He was worried too.  
  
They dispersed throughout the house. James closeted himself in his bookroom, trying to lose himself within the pages of a book, but he wasn't having much success with it. Remus, Sirius and Peter had gone to the game room, trying to pass the hours with a game of billiards, unfortunately, all three were too worried about their friends that their game was rather poor.  
  
The house was silent, even the servants walked around the big house in silence trying to do their chores while they worried about the outcome of their master's meeting with Hogwarts' Headmaster and the Minister of Magic.  
  
The strokes at noon from the old grandfather clock in the entrance hall took everybody by surprise. The doorbell rang soon after.  
  
Roberts walked stately toward the door and opened it to allow Dumbledore and The Minister with a bow.  
  
"Mistress Lily is in the parlor waiting." Roberts said. "If you come with me please." Roberts led them through the silent corridors to the family parlor. "Ma'am, Professor Dumbledore and Mr. Trent, the Minister of Magic." He announced.  
  
"Thank you Roberts. Welcome Professor, Mr. Trent, please make yourself comfortable." Said Lily with a welcoming smile. Harry was crawling on the rug beside his mother's chair, but stopped and looked up with curiosity as the two men neared to greet Lily.  
  
"Thank you my dear, you seemed to have recovered from the scare of last night." Said Dumbledore as he kissed Lily's cheek in greeting.  
  
"Indeed yes, you look as beautiful as ever." Said Mr. Trent with a smiled.  
  
"Thank you. I'm calm now. James and the others will come in a moment." Lily said as they took their seats.  
  
"No hurry, we can wait." Said Mr. Trent.  
  
"Do you wish for some refreshments?" Asked Lily as she motioned to Roberts, who was standing by the door.  
  
"Thank you my dear, I'm sure we would enjoy some." Dumbledore said.  
  
Lily nodded to Roberts and minutes later, footmen came into the room bearing trays of drinks and a pot of tea along with plates of small sandwiches and pastries.  
  
James, Remus, Peter and Sirius followed them in.  
  
"Good afternoon, gentlemen." Greeted them James.  
  
"Afternoon, young man." Said Mr. Trent as Professor Dumbledore shook hands with the others.  
  
The footmen set the trays on a tea table placed beside Lily's chair. Harry was now in his father's arms being made much of by the other men.  
  
"He is growing very fast, isn't he?" Said Mr. Trent after Harry had slobbered all over his robes.  
  
"Indeed he has." Dumbledore chuckled after being greeted by the usual "Dowe!" from Harry.  
  
Harry was chuckling and playing with the tassels in Sirius' robes now while the others settled themselves into their seats.  
  
"Put him on the floor, he likes to walk around." Said James as he noticed his son starting to fuss in his godfather's arms.  
  
Refreshments were quickly served and Harry happily munched on a pastry while the adults made small talk as they ate and drank.  
  
Soon, the teacups and plates were empty and Roberts was leading the footmen as they cleared the trays from the room. As the door closed after they left, silence fell into the room, the time had come to discuss the reason for Dumbledore and Mr. Trent's visit.  
  
"Well then, to business shall we." Said Mr. Trent.  
  
The others nodded, the tension in the room was heavy and Harry seemed to feel it as well as the others as he slowly crawled to his mother wanting to be held.  
  
"It is very clear now that Voldemort has you in his sights. Rowe Square may not be safe anymore." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"But why, why is he so eager to get to them. I don't understand really, the reason for it." Said Remus with a frown.  
  
"Indeed, it seems that he is attacking systematically really. If you look at it, he has attacked at moments when he knows that there is less security and most of the time is to women and children. What is he after?" Asked Sirius.  
  
"All I can say is that James and Lily did some work for us that may have placed Harry in grave danger." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"So it is Harry they are after. I wondered you see, it seemed strange that he was the common link among the attacks." Said Peter with uncommon insight that made the others stare at him for a moment.  
  
"Yes, he is. He has been really lucky so far, and let's hope that it will continue that way. But, we must now keep him safe." Said Mr. Trent.  
  
"What can we do? It is obvious that no matter where we are, we will be in danger. Magic shields, unplottable sites, nothing will be out from Voldermort's hands, not for long at any rate." Said James.  
  
"How is he doing this? How can he know so much about us and what we do?" Lily asked as she rocked Harry in her arms and he fell slowly to sleep.  
  
"How indeed." Exclaimed Dumbledore, he was afraid that someone very close to them had decided to change parties, and for all he knew, it could be one of the young men there with them.  
  
The thought was not far from the others. They all had the same idea, but they just couldn't believe that one of them could be a traitor to their cause and their friendship. Except for one, that is, who fought energetically to keep his worry of being found out under control. He simply must complete his mission, there was no other way to keep his mother safe and if losing friends by doing so was what came of it, so be it.  
  
"What is to be done now?" Asked James once more.  
  
"There is to be one thing that can be done." Said Dumbledore. "The Fidelius Charm."  
  
"James, you cannot say no to it this time." Urged Sirius.  
  
"Indeed, it is the perfect thing." Said Remus.  
  
"What must be done?" Said James with a sigh, he knew there was no other choice, they had tried everything within their power.  
  
"You must choose a secret keeper." Said Mr. Trent.  
  
"Well, that is easy, Sirius, of course." Said James looking at Lily who nodded in agreement.  
  
"Are you sure about this James?" Sirius asked.  
  
"You are the stronger of the lot, it would be much easier for you to protect yourself than the others. Remus is unavailable three days out of the month and Peter has his mother to consider." Said James looking at his friend.  
  
"That's right Sirius, it is the perfect choice." Said Remus, he didn't mind that James had not chose him, for the same reasons that James had mentioned. He didn't want to think that by being what he was, he could place their friends in danger.  
  
"Very well, what must be done?" Said Sirius.  
  
"Let's not go into details at the moment, the less people that know, the better." Said Dumbledore. "But you must be sure that this is what you want. I volunteer myself as your secret keeper if you wish. Once the Charm is performed, it cannot be undone."  
  
"This is what we want Professor, Sirius would never betray us." Said James.  
  
"Very well, you must do preparations to leave, I will return later with the details. We have less than two weeks to prepare." Said Professor Dumbledore.  
  
Mr. Trent and Dumbledore stood up and prepared to leave. Everybody said goodbye. The room was silent as their visitors followed Roberts to the entrance hall.  
  
Remus, Sirius and Peter quickly left the room, they thought James and Lily needed to be alone for a moment.  
  
"Oh James, isn't there another way?" Sobbed Lily.  
  
"I don't think so Lily. Dumbledore is right, it is our last hope." James gathered Lily into his arms trying not to bother their sleeping son in her arms.  
  
"I don't like the thought of raising Harry in hiding, how can he possibly understand what is happening? He is too little." Lily whispered.  
  
"But he will be safe this way, Lily. We must keep him safe." James whispered back.  
  
"I know." Lily said.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~* A/N: I know, you don't want me to leave at that, but don't worry, you'll find out what comes next soon enough. I still have much to write before the next chapter is done, but I promise to upload it as soon as it's ready. If you want to get ahead of everybody else, you might want to check the thread at harrypotter.com, the half I've written so far is already posted there. Now, this chapter is very hard for me to write because it's sadder than all the rest. I don't like the thought of not having Lily and James to write about. But don't worry, the story doesn't end there. Thank you to all of you who reviewed, I truly appreciate your kind words. Enjoy and don't forget to review. 


	44. Part III Chapter 9

A/N: I have good news and bad news. The good news is that I have a new chapter for you. The bad news: it's the last chapter for this part and Lily and James' death has finally arrived. Sorry it took me so long but to make up for it you can look forward to a long chapter. I hope you like it. **~~** Disclaimer: I do not own HP or anything related to it. **~~**  
  
Chapter 9 ~ Goodbye Master James! Goodbye Mistress Lily!  
  
They didn't have to wait for long to receive word from the Dumbledore.  
  
The day after their meeting, Dumbledore sent an owl to James and Lily. He had to return to Hogwarts to settle matters but would be returning to London in two days and would give them further details on what must be done. For the moment, all they could do was wait.  
  
Remus had returned to his travels and they didn't know when they would see him again, even though he promised to be back in time to see them off. Peter returned to his mother, and to a small shack placed in the middle of the moor nearby his home. Sirius returned to his duties at the Ministry and to his own house, he needed to make arrangements as well if he was going to be his friends' secret keeper, he would go into hiding as well.  
  
James returned to the Ministry every morning. He wouldn't let fear of Voldemort keep him from what he loved to do. Lily stayed home, making list after list, trying to decide what to take with them. She didn't know yet where they were going, but she wanted to be prepared.  
  
Dumbledore returned two days later, just as he had said he would. He appeared upon their front steps early one morning as Lily and James were finishing breakfast.  
  
"Professor Dumbledore, Master James, Mistress Lily." Announced Roberts.  
  
James quickly came to his feet. "Good morning Professor, didn't expect you this soon." He said as he shook hands with his old school headmaster.  
  
"I was hoping to make my appearance less conspicuous." Smiled Dumbledore as Lily greeted him. "No need to stand up my dear." He urged her to stay sitting. "Hello young man, glad to see you too." He chuckled as Harry's "Dum-Dore!" was heard.  
  
James laughed. "He is getting closer."  
  
Dumbledore chuckled. "Please take a seat Professor, would you like to eat?" Lily offered.  
  
"No thank you my dear, ate quite a plateful earlier, I would say no to some tea, mind you." Said Dumbledore.  
  
Roberts quickly put a cup before him and poured some tea.  
  
"Thank you Roberts." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"You're welcome, Sir." Bowed Roberts and led the footmen out of the room. He knew that Master James and Mistress Lily had much to discuss with Professor Dumbledore and there was no need for the servants to hear any of it.  
  
"Well then, there is no need to beat it about the bush, I'm sure you want to know about the details." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Indeed we do, we are not very clear on what is needed for this charm, even Lily, with all her knowledge of Charms, has no idea what it is." Said James.  
  
"Yes, you always were quite handy with charms." Smiled Dumbledore, looking at Lily. "But no matter. The Fidelius Charm is ancient magic. There are many spells that, as powerful as they were, have not been used in centuries. This is one of them, it is only known to scholars and ancient wizards like me." Chuckled Dumbledore and James and Lily smiled. They knew he was trying to make them at ease. "There is printed material on the subject of course, although is mostly found in the restricted section at Hogwarts' Library. What you need is a secret keeper, preferably a close friend, somebody you know would rather die than betray you, as it might just happen. The keeper will be the only one to know where you are hidden, as long as the keeper guards the secret, your enemies cannot find you. They can be standing in your front parlor with you in the same room and they would not see you."  
  
"Is it that powerful?" Asked James in awe.  
  
"It is, as I said, ancient magic is very powerful, which is why is not used today, great power is needed and not many can perform it." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Where shall we go?" Asked Lily.  
  
"Wherever you want, you could return to the Manor or stay here, it would not matter." Said Dumbledore.  
  
Lily looked at James, who was deep in thought, she wanted to return to the Manor, it made her feel safe, but perhaps James knew of somewhere safer. She knew there were other properties that she had not been before, well except the cottage at Godric's Hollow, which she had visited in their seventh year. Perhaps, she thought, that would be a better site, even if it was small.  
  
"It would be preferable if it is a small place. It would be safer if you can be by yourselves and leave servants and elves behind, they would not be protected by the charm and they can give you away if Voldermort or the Death Eaters stumble into them." Dumbledore said.  
  
"I thought about that." Said James. "The only place I can think of is the cottage at Godric's Hollow. It is small enough, and I'm sure we can keep house there. Besides, it is out of the way, and not many people know that it's there."  
  
Dumbledore nodded. "I remember the place. It would be appropriate."  
  
"How are going to keep the elves away, specially Lotty and Minnie, they are personal elves, they go wherever their masters go, unlike the house-elves that stay in the house." Said Lily with a frown.  
  
"I'll take care of that, there are charms that can keep an elf attached to the land instead of the master." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"That's rather harsh isn't it? Almost like slavery, it is." Exclaimed James.  
  
"Unfortunately it is, but it cannot be helped this time, it is important that they are left behind." Said Dumbledore.  
  
James and Lily nodded, they didn't like it but they must do whatever was needed to keep Harry safe.  
  
"Very well." Said James. "Should we close up the house then, send everybody to the manor?"  
  
"It seems like the best idea. There is no need for them to stay here." Said Lily.  
  
Dumbledore agreed. "Indeed, it would be easier to perform the charm that will keep the personal elves from you."  
  
James sighed. "When shall we do this?" He sounded weary and sad.  
  
"Next week. I will return with the instructions and will explain it to you. I cannot be there when the charm is done, only you and your secret keeper must be in that room, else, it would not work." Said Dumbledore. "That leaves you time to make arrangements."  
  
"If anything happens." Said Lily, she was having a hard time getting the words out. "You will take care of Harry, won't you?" She looked beseechingly at Dumbledore.  
  
"I will do my best for him." He promised.  
  
Lily nodded and seemed somewhat relieved.  
  
"I'll leave you then. I'll go to the Ministry and talk to Trent, said he had something to speak to me about." Said Dumbledore, preparing to leave.  
  
"Goodbye Professor, we will be ready when you return." Said James.  
  
"I know you will. Take care my dears." Said Professor Dumbledore and left the room.  
  
"Oh James!" Lily exclaimed.  
  
"I know Lily, but it is the only way." James said.  
  
Lily nodded and looked worriedly down at Harry, who had been quite entertained by his meal the whole time the adults had talked and had paid no attention at all, no that he would've understood anyway.  
  
**~~**  
  
Lily and James took Dumbledore's advice at heart, during the next days they were busy visiting their own solicitor as well as Mr. Nikolei, Mrs. Evans old solicitor. The house was readied to be emptied, some of the furniture would be put in storage, some would stay behind and some would be taken to the Manor. The servants were also preparing for the move, even though they were not privy to what was happening, all they knew was that their masters were in danger and they would have to go into hiding.  
  
Their friends kept in contact throughout the week, offering their help in anything they needed. James and Lily were grateful, but they knew that Dumbledore had been right the less they knew the safer they would all be.  
  
Two weeks passed and everything was in readiness.  
  
Lily and James lay in their bed late one night. The house was silent and Harry had already fallen asleep.  
  
Lily was snuggled next to James, who had his arms around her.  
  
"Do you think Dumbledore will write soon?" Lily whispered.  
  
"Yes, he said he would send the instructions as soon as we were ready." James kissed the top of her head, which was resting on his shoulder.  
  
"I'm afraid James." Whispered Lily.  
  
"I know. Don't worry, Dumbledore wouldn't have recommended if he knew that we would not be safe." James tried to soothe Lily.  
  
Lily sighed. "I don't like the idea of raising Harry in hiding. He is going to feel so stifled and will rebel against it eventually."  
  
"We'll be ready for that, besides, by that time Voldemort might be history."  
  
"I hope so James." Lily exclaimed.  
  
"Voldemort cannot be invincible, Lily, nobody can." James said. He knew that report gathered by the Ministry showed that Voldemort had immersed himself into ancient Dark Magic. As Dumbledore had said on his visit, ancient magic was very powerful and only those with great talent and a profound understanding of ancient languages and history could perform the ancient spells and charms that had been ineffectual for many. Some of the most powerful was even written in Parseltongue and it seemed that Voldemort was the only one with that talent in hundreds of years. Some research about the ancient incantations were created with the hope for immortal life, since nobody had succeeded, except for Nicholas Flamel whom James knew possessed the only Sorcerer's Stone in existence, he supposed that the only thing they were useful for was to give the wizard longer life. Which wasn't much if you consider that wizard lived longer lives than muggles, thought James.  
  
Eventually, James and Lily fell asleep.  
  
**~~**  
  
In a small cabin near the moors in an isolated part of England, a small body was prostrated on the floor as. Anybody peering through the windows would've thought that he was deep in religious adoration, if it hadn't been for the fact that he was prostrated in front of a large armchair.  
  
"So, they think that the Fidelius Charm will protect them, do they?" A soft voice hissed.  
  
"Y-y-yes master." The prostrating man said.  
  
"I suppose Black is their chosen keeper. A strong choice, a very obvious choice." Hissed the cold voice.  
  
"Y-y-yes master." The man said once more. "Dum-Dumbledore volunteered but they de-de-declined."  
  
"A foolish decision." The voice said with derision. "But it will be our way to victory, Wormtail. Black will be easy to dispose of, the Potters will be ours eventually."  
  
"Y-y-yes master." Peter shudder in the floor.  
  
"You are not having seconds thoughts, are you Wormtail?" Questioned the voice with malice.  
  
"Oh n-n-no, my Lord, I would never do that." Exclaimed Peter.  
  
Voldemort laughed, a cold, sarcastic laugh that made the skin crawl and shudder with fright, at least, Peter did.  
  
"Of course you wouldn't Wormtail, you wouldn't want your mother hurt, would you?"  
  
Peter whimpered in the floor.  
  
"You can leave. Return to me tomorrow, Dumbledore will be giving them directions soon." The derisive voice of Voldemort was almost a whisper.  
  
"Y-y-yes master." Said Peter before standing up and disapparating from view.  
  
Voldemort laughed with triumph. "Soon Potters, soon." He hissed.  
  
**~~**  
  
The day was gray. James and Lily ate silently that morning with Harry putting more food on the floor than in his mouth.  
  
A layer of silence and sadness seemed to have fallen over the house, some of the servants had started to leave for the Manor, only the elves and Roberts and Mrs. Nichols were left. The elves would be leaving with the butler and housekeeper the day that James and Lily left.  
  
The tension was palpable and disconcerting and Harry seemed to be the only one to be oblivious to it.  
  
They were almost finished with breakfast when Roberts arrived carrying the tray with the mail. There was only one letter upon the silver tray. James took it and recognized Dumlbedore's seal.  
  
He opened it quickly and read.  
  
Lily watched him as she tried to clean Harry at the same time.  
  
"Dumbledore will come tonight with the instruction." James said.  
  
Lily nodded.  
  
Harry started to fuss but neither of his parents noticed, they were lost in their thoughts to notice much of what was happening in the room.  
  
There were some things that were left to be done.  
  
**~~**  
  
Sirius was sitting in a table at the corner of the Leaky Cauldron. He had hoped to find something for Harry to take with him, but he didn't find what he was looking for, his heart just wasn't on it.  
  
"Fancy seeing you here, Black." A cold, mocking voice said behind him.  
  
"Indeed, shopping for hair products I suppose, it was about time." Said Sirius without turning back. Snape's voice was rather notable after years of acquaintance.  
  
A snicker was heard, stopped by a gruff "shut up!"  
  
"Your friend has some sense of humor, I see. Too bad it isn't contagious, wouldn't you say?" Sirius said; he still kept looking at a small picture hanging on the wall opposite his chair, he didn't need to turn to look at him, Sirius thought.  
  
Snape sniffed in a way he thought was dignified and contempt, but it sounded more like a snort than anything else.  
  
Sirius smiled, how could he pass the opportunity to quiz Snape?  
  
"My friend here wanted to make your acquaintance." Snape said with derision.  
  
"Indeed?" Sirius asked, he really didn't care to meet anybody Snape called a friend.  
  
"Yes, you might not remember him, he went to Hogwarts for two years before transferring to Durmstrung, of course it was well before our time." Snape continued.  
  
"Hmm." Sirius didn't show any degree of curiosity.  
  
"Karkaroff, thought he wanted to reacquaint himself with the notables of Hogwarts." Snape said.  
  
"Notable, am I?" Said Sirius with a laughing voice and finally turned around to see Snape and whom he thought must be Karkaroff.  
  
"Indeed yes, I've heard much of you and your friends, you seem to be legends to those who attended Hogwarts during your time." Karkaroff was older than both Sirius and Snape, he was tall and thin with a thin face.  
  
"My time, huh? And I thought we would continue to be so well known after we left Hogwarts." Laughed Sirius.  
  
Snape growled. "Doing it too brown, don't you think? No matter, we will be going now, no need to stay in your presence."  
  
Sirius smiled cheekily at them.  
  
"We will be seeing you soon, Black." Said Snape in a menacing tone before walking away with Karkaroff.  
  
"Indeed?" Whispered Sirius as he saw the two men walking away. Karkaroff was gesticulating and whispering to Snape as they walked out toward Diagon Alley.  
  
Sirius frowned as he saw them disappear through the back door. It seemed as if they knew something he didn't. Sirius thought of Lily and James. "They know!" He whispered. He stood up from his chair abruptly and threw some galleons on the table to pay for his food before getting ready to disapparate.  
  
Nobody had paid any attention to what had happened in the corner of the pub, except by two small eyes hiding within a small hole in the wall. A small, fat rat exited a little from the hole, his whiskers trembled in an excited manner and the rat quickly returned to his hole.  
  
**~~**  
  
Sirius apparated in an alley near Rowe Square. He took his wand and with a swish his robes had changed to muggle clothing. He hid his wand in the pocket of his jacket and made his way rapidly to the Rowe Square. He needed to talk to James and Lily, he thought. He stopped abruptly. What was he going to say to them? He then continued walking, lost in thought that he really didn't notice where he was walking.  
  
That he suspected that Voldemort knew that he was their secret keeper? Well, it was a good theory, but no proof. Besides, he was more than a match for the Death Eaters. He was planning to go into hiding, but unless he performed another Fidelius Charm for himself, he could still be found. And let's face it, he thought, even if it took them years to find him, he could not do much damage on his own and as he didn't know much of foreign countries, it would only be more dangerous if he left the country.  
  
He could advice James and Lily to change secret keepers. There was Dumbledore, he had volunteered after all. But no, he knew his friends didn't want to add troubles to their old school master, besides, with Dumbledore being so old, how long could he really last?  
  
Remus was out of the question, his illness would only make things difficult, even though it would be hard for the Death Eaters to find him as he went around the world most of the time and for three nights out of the month, it would be quite dangerous to get near him. Not to mention the fact that if any of them was the spy, Remus was the most likely to be the one, as he was the one who did better than anybody in Defense Against the Dark Arts.  
  
There was Peter, but he was such a weakling, who would think that he would be chosen as the Potters secret keeper?  
  
Sirius stopped abruptly. "Yes, that's it!" He exclaimed. Some people around him watched him warily circling around him as if he was deranged.  
  
Sirius resumed his walk not noticing the wary looks thrown to his back.  
  
Peter was the perfect choice, he thought, Voldemort and the Death Eaters would never think that he would be chosen to be the secret keeper, and it was so easy for him to hide. His animagus form would allow him to hide perfectly and nobody would know where he was.  
  
The day begun to get dark but Sirius didn't seem to notice. He continued walking through the park in Rowe Square, automatically walking toward his home. As he did so, he thought about the arguments he could use to make James and Lily change secret keepers.  
  
**~~**  
  
As Sirius conversed with Snape and Karkaroff in the Leaky Cauldron, James and Lily were greeting Professor Dumbledore. Harry had been taken by Minnie for a nap and the house was silent as Roberts led the Professor down the corridor to the family parlor.  
  
"Good afternoon, Professor." Greeted Lily.  
  
"I gather you had a nice trip?" Said James as he shook hands with Dumbledore.  
  
"Yes I did." Dumbledore took the chair that Lily had motioned him and James was offering a glass of cider. "Yes, thank you, I do feel a little parched."  
  
After everybody had settled in their seats, Dumbledore withdrew a parchment from one of the pockets of his robes.  
  
"These are the instructions for the Charm. Be sure that nobody is with you when you perform it, only you, Harry and your secret keeper should be present. The charm should be performed where you are going to hide. Make all preparations now, and when you leave, do it during the night, make sure that you are not being followed. The less people that know where you are planning to stay the better." Said Dumbledore as he passed the parchment to James.  
  
"Do you mean that we cannot have visitors? We are going to have to stay there all the time?" Asked Lily in horror, she didn't think she could handle the solitude.  
  
"No. You cannot have visitors, and it would be best if only few know of it. You can continue as you would usually live, just be careful. That's all I ask, vigilance. We don't know who the traitor is, it could be the one we don't expect it from." Dumbledore said.  
  
"What will happen if the traitor finds out about our hiding place and tells Voldemort?" Asked Lily.  
  
"Voldemort won't find you. He could stand in the same room as you and he won't see you, and neither will his consorts." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"Only if the secret keeper tells him, will he find us." James said.  
  
"Exactly." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"How long do we need to be under the Charm?" Asked Lily.  
  
"As long as is needed. As long as Voldemort is free and trying to take over the world, you are in danger." Dumbledore looked sadly at the couple sitting in front of him.  
  
James nodded his agreement, only Lily seemed worried.  
  
"Do you have everything ready?" Asked Dumbledore. "We are already in mid- October and it would be wise not to wait for a later time."  
  
"We are almost ready. Food and furniture has been sent to Godric's Hollow but we still have things that needed to be done before we leave." Said James.  
  
"How long will they take?" Dumbledore asked.  
  
"A couple of days. We will leave before the week is out." James replied.  
  
"Good, the sooner you leave, the safest you will be." Dumbledore said.  
  
They were silent for a moment, they knew that there was nothing more to say on the subject everything that needed to be said had been told.  
  
"You will join us for dinner, Professor? We would like to have you with us." Lily said ending the awkward pause.  
  
"Thank you my dear, but I have to see somebody later this evening." Smiled Dumbledore. "In fact, I should be leaving soon if I don't want to be late."  
  
Dumbledore looked out the window and saw that the sun was low, darkness would fall in a couple of hours and he wanted to have time to look around.  
  
"Before you leave, Professor, I want to give you something." James said standing up. He kissed Lily's cheek and with a "I'll return shortly" he led Dumbledore out the room.  
  
"Good bye, my dear, good luck." Said Dumbledore to Lily before he followed James out.  
  
The two men crossed the corridor and made their way to the book room.  
  
The curtains had been drawn and the sinking sun lit the room with its dim rays. The corners of the room were shadowed but the desk and the chairs around the fireplace were clearly seen.  
  
James walked slowly to his desk. He sat on his chair and pulled open one of the lower drawers. Dumbledore sat on one of the chairs in front of the desk and looked with curiosity as James withdrew a package from the drawer.  
  
"I wanted to ask you a favor, Professor." Said James.  
  
"Anything you want my dear boy." Professor Dumbledore said.  
  
"You should not say so Professor, I may ask you for something you cannot give me." Smiled James. It was not his usual smile, full of happiness and mischief. This smile was saddened and strained but he was obviously trying to keep things light.  
  
"I don't believe that to be so, but I will try to do as you ask." Professor Dumbledore.  
  
"It's not much really, I just wanted to ask you to keep this safe." James passed the package to Dumbledore.  
  
Dumbledore looked down at the lumpy package, it was obviously filled with clothes, but for what reason would James want it safe? "If that is what you ask, that is what I will do." He said.  
  
"It's my invisibility cloak. It is customary for each first-born Potter son to get his father's on the night before going to Hogwarts for his first year. In case I cannot be there, could you give it to Harry? I want to make sure that he gets it." Said James.  
  
"Of course, I will make sure that Harry gets this when he goes to Hogwarts for his first year." Smiled Dumbledore.  
  
"It would make a great Christmas present, don't you think?" Laughed James, somewhat strained. He hoped that it would not come to that, he wanted to be the one to give the cloak to his son, but he also had to think of alternatives if it could not be so.  
  
"Indeed it will. At least we will have some peace of mind and he won't get into much trouble for a semester." Dumbledore said.  
  
James smiled. He had great memories of that cloak, and he hoped that Harry would make his own when the time came.  
  
"Don't worry, I'm sure that we will find a way to defeat Voldemort soon and you won't have to stay hidden for long." Dumbledore said. "I must leave. Be careful, make sure you follow each instruction carefully and that you keep yourselves safe."  
  
"We will, thank you for everything Professor." James shook Dumbledore's hand.  
  
"Thank you, for helping us in our work against evil." Dumbledore replied.  
  
"If anything happens, you will take care of Harry, won't you? You'll make sure that he is safe." James looked at his old friend.  
  
"I will do the best for him." Dumbledore promised.  
  
James nodded.  
  
Dumbledore took the package and made his way out of the room. He stopped at the door and turned to look at James.  
  
"He will do great things, you know. Your son emits great energy, he will be very talented. I will not be surprised if we defeat Voldermort with his help." Dumbledore said.  
  
"I just want him to be safe and to live like a normal boy." James said.  
  
"He will do so, I promise." And Dumbledore opened the door and left.  
  
James remained by his desk as the sun slowly sank in the horizon and the candles around the room started to light themselves.  
  
**~~**  
  
Dumbledore apparated in a deserted alley. Trash cans and boxes were strewn around the floor and the smell of rotting food and the sewers permeated the air. He took his wand out from his pocket and pointed at him. He whispered a few words and his clothes changed instantly to muggle ones. He was wearing a three-piece suit, beige, with black shoes. He tucked his beard and long hair into the vest and stepped out of the alley.  
  
He had stepped into a typical suburban neighborhood. There were children playing in the sidewalks, and mothers sitting in the front steps with knitting or pots of vegetables needed to be peeled, as they watched their children play. Nobody paid any attention to the old man as he walked slowly up the street, probably a grandfather visiting a grandchild with a birthday present, some thought as they saw him walking by with a lumpy package underneath his arm. Dumbledore looked around him. It was not everyday that he came to a muggle neighborhood and it always amazed him how different it looked from those where most wizards could be found. No children in hovering brooms, no quidditch balls flying around, no gnomes playing in the garden.  
  
He looked at the houses. They were pristine and the gardens looked neat and pruned. He could see the television antennas on the roof and the cables for the telephone around the posts.  
  
One house in particular caught his attention. A large number four graced its door and Dumbledore could hear the cries of a child coming from inside. It looked to be well taken care of, the curtains were already closed and he could see the light from the television in the living room. It was a modest house, rather small compared to the house that he had just left. He continued walking. He turned in the corner to a house that seemed a little different from the others. It had more color and cats were constantly walking in and out from a small flap at the bottom of the front door.  
  
He walked up the steps, making sure not to step on any tails, and rang the bell.  
  
An old woman opened the door.  
  
"What took you so long?" She asked as she stood aside to let Dumbledore enter.  
  
"I wanted to look at the house." Dumbledore said.  
  
"It will be soon then." The woman said as she closed the door and led Dumbledore to the sitting room.  
  
"They said by the end of the week. Two, three days at the most." Dumbledore said as he sat in the only chair that was not covered with cats.  
  
"When will you perform the spell?" The woman looked at Dumbledore with a serious expression in her face, anybody watching her would be able to see how worried she was.  
  
"Tonight. The soonest it is done, the better." Dumbledore said.  
  
"What did the Ministry say?" The woman asked.  
  
"Not much. Some were against it of course, but the Minister himself was for it, there was nothing else to be said once he had given his permission." Dumbledore said.  
  
The woman sniffed with derision. "Those old men at the Ministry have nothing in their heads but dragon dung."  
  
Dumbledore laughed. "Not to worry Arabella, things are going fine. Unless Voldemort breaks through our precautions, the Potters will be safe."  
  
"I hope so, I'm getting tired of living here with nothing to do, not to mention how boring these cats are sometimes." She looked down at the felines sleeping around the room.  
  
"I'm afraid that you will have to wait a little longer, my dear. As long as Harry is in danger and Voldemort is after him, I will need you here. The Dursleys don't know it, but they are safe as long as you are keeping an eye on them." Dumbledore said.  
  
Arabella sighed with resignation. "Very well, as long as I don't have to deal with them personally too often. That woman is a nightmare, honestly! How can she be related do Lily Potter at all?"  
  
"That is a mystery that none of us can possibly find the answer to." Dumbledore smiled.  
  
**~~**  
  
Night had fallen and Lily and James had just finished dinner when Sirius made his entrance into the dinning room.  
  
"Oh good, you are here." He exclaimed and sat in one of the chairs.  
  
"What happened? You look as if you had to run here." Said Lily.  
  
James didn't say anything he was watching his friend closely and noticed the worried lines in his friend's face. Something was clearly bothering him.  
  
"Out with it Sirius, I know you have something in your mind." Said James pushing his plate from him and readying himself to whatever Sirius had to say.  
  
"You need to change secret keeper, I don't think I would be the best choice." He said.  
  
Whatever Lily and James had expected, that wasn't it. "What?" They exclaimed.  
  
Lily looked around to see if any of the servants had heard. Nobody was around, not even Roberts, they were quite alone.  
  
"What maggot got in your head?" Said James, sounding very surprised. They were almost ready to do the charm and here was Sirius telling them that he couldn't be their secret keeper.  
  
"Listen James. I think it would be safer if you chose someone else." He raised his hand to stop James and Lily from interrupting. "Just let me tell you why. I met Snape and one of his friends this afternoon and from what they said, it made me think that they know of the charm. It is true that even if they know where you are, as long as I don't say anything they can't find you, but just think James. Who would they think is the obvious choice for a secret keeper? Me, that's who. True, I can hide quite adequately and can lead them in a merry chase, but that would not be enough. You can choose Dumbledore, but let's face it, who long can he last, he must be more than a hundred by now! Remus would also be an obvious choice, even though it would be harder for them to find him. But the perfect choice would be Peter."  
  
"Peter!?" Sirius had stopped for a little air.  
  
"How can you think that Peter is the perfect choice? Sirius, I don't want to be mean, but he has problems with the simplest of spells. He would get himself killed." Said Lily.  
  
"I know, that is why he is the perfect choice. Don't you see? They would never suspect him, who would choose him for a secret keeper. And he can hide most effectively than the rest of us. He is small and can probably hide for years without anybody knowing where he is." Said Sirius.  
  
"That is true." Said James thoughtfully.  
  
"James, you can't possibly think that it would be a good idea!" Lily exclaimed.  
  
"Lily, it does have merit. Everybody knows that Sirius is my best friend and if I needed him to keep a secret, he would do so. They are going to come after him in droves, Lily." James said to his wife who looked very concerned.  
  
"Then let's ask Dumbledore, he volunteered if you remember." Lily said.  
  
"I know, Lily, but we have asked enough from him, it wouldn't be fair." Said James.  
  
"Please tell me you are not thinking seriously of Peter as our secret keeper." Moaned Lily.  
  
"Lily, don't worry. I will make sure that Peter is safe at all times. Once the charm is performed he can go into hiding. I'll make sure that the Death Eaters don't get to him." Sirius said.  
  
"But what if they find out that he is our secret keeper." Lily still had doubts about this plan.  
  
"They can never find him once he has transformed into his animagus form and the Death Eaters don't know that we are animagi, we are not registered animagi after all." Said Sirius with a smile.  
  
"Are you sure it would be safe?" Lily looked questioningly at James.  
  
"I do. Peter is the perfect choice and I know both Sirius and Remus would make sure that he is safely in hiding. He will need their help to transform anyways, Peter was never good in transfiguration, he always needed a little bit of help and as we haven't used our animagi form for quite some time he will need help." Said James.  
  
"That is true, unless he is doing a lot of practice in the last months that we don't know about, he will need help." Said Sirius.  
  
"Well, if you are sure." Said Lily.  
  
"I am." Said James and Sirius.  
  
It wasn't very long afterwards when Sirius left the house feeling much calmer and happy about the situation than he had felt from the beginning of the crisis. He had worried about his friends for months now and it seemed that the end was at hand. James, Lily and Harry would be safe and he would make sure that Peter stayed safely hidden until Voldemort was defeated.  
  
**~~**  
  
Remus returned to England the next morning. By the afternoon, the four friends, the Marauders, were together one last time.  
  
Lily had taken Harry to be examined by their doctor, she wanted to make sure that he was healthy before they retired to Godric's Hollow the next day and to do some last minute shopping. Besides, she thought, she didn't want to be home when the others got there. She was feeling a little envious of her husband. James had the chance to have a last day with his friends, happy with the knowledge that all would lay down their life for each other if necessary. Lily didn't have any of her friends with her. Both had been vanished by the danger of Voldemort. She didn't even have the consolation of owl post, both were in places beyond her reach and for almost a year now, she didn't have a friend to confide with. She had to undergo many trials in the last months and she wished that like James she could've been able to cry and talk with a female friend. The boys were dears, she thought, but they didn't understand things the way Emma and Katie would've.  
  
She wondered how they were doing, if they felt as lonely as she did sometimes. But she supposed it was for the best, there had been enough death in the past months, and she was happy with the knowledge that both her friends wouldn't be in any danger.  
  
"How are you feeling?" Asked Sirius to James as the four sat around the bookroom. They couldn't agree on what to do and boredom was close to the surface.  
  
"Good." Said James.  
  
"Are you sure you don't want to go somewhere? The Leaky Cauldron, perhaps?" Asked Peter from a seat by the windows.  
  
"I'm sure, I don't really feel like doing anything." Responded James.  
  
"Perhaps a game?" Said Remus. He knew that his friend needed to keep his mind on other things and sitting around with nothing to do wouldn't be the best way to do so.  
  
"No, I'm fine, but you can, if you want to." Said James.  
  
The others looked at each other, asking themselves what to do to keep James entertained.  
  
"Where are Lily and Harry?" Asked Peter somewhat abruptly.  
  
James looked at him in surprise but only for a moment. "They went to the doctor's office." He finally said.  
  
"Anything wrong?" Asked Remus.  
  
"No, Lily just wanted Harry to have his examination before we left." Said James with a shrug.  
  
"Oh, I suppose that was the smart thing to do." Said Peter.  
  
James nodded but didn't say anymore.  
  
The others tried to keep conversation but James was too lost in his own thoughts to pay attention to take part of the discussion.  
  
The day passed in quiet entertainment for both James and Lily. Before the others left, James had asked Peter to return the next day. He wasn't told why, but he had agreed.  
  
The Potters now sat in their customary seats around the table. Harry was silent as he tried to bit into a piece of chicken his mother had placed in his hand.  
  
Otty had prepared a great meal, everybody knew that the next day they would all depart their separate ways. The elves were disconsolate. They had been told that afternoon that a charm would be placed on them to keep them from finding their masters, for their own safety as well as the Potters. Minnie burst into tears every time she saw James or Harry. Lotty walked around his master's chambers with slumped shoulders and packed in silence. As personal elves, both, Lotty and Minnie, went everywhere their charges went, this would be the only time in their lives when they would not be able to serve their masters, and the thought of staying behind in the Manor was breaking their hearts.  
  
James and Lily ate in silence. They knew that their servants had worked hard to make their last dinner at home special, but they didn't have the heart for it. The food turned into dust the moment it touched their mouth. The thought of what would happen the next day made them nervous and scared, even though neither showed their feelings to each other.  
  
Dinner didn't last long. As soon as the plates had disappeared, both Lily and James retired to the family parlor while Minnie put Harry to sleep (it was the last time she was going to do so and cried the whole time she got Harry ready).  
  
The house turned silent. James had ordered Roberts to lock all doors and windows and to go to bed. Roberts did so. The only ones that were up now were Lily and James.  
  
Lily sat in her customary chair and looked around. Now what? She asked herself. All of her things had already been packed and she didn't want to get things unpacked just because she was bored. Or scared.  
  
Neither spoke. James sat in his chair looking into the fire that had been built in the fireplace to drive off the cold that had started to permeate the city early that evening.  
  
**~~**  
  
Dumbledore sat on his chair behind his desk as the young man before him paced across the floor.  
  
".You must tell them to care, somebody very close to them is keeping him aware of everything. How he found out about the Charm, I don't know." The young man was saying.  
  
"Are you sure that he knows about the Fidelius Charm? I thought only few knew about it." Dumbledore said feeling rather worried by what he had just heard.  
  
"Well, he does. He knows the Potters will make use of it soon, in fact, he seems sure of it." The young man said.  
  
"Hmm.this is rather worrying." Dumbledore exclaimed.  
  
"They just have to make use of the Charm sooner rather than later, if he feels that there is not enough time, he will do something. And soon, you can count on that. He is getting restless. He wants that child." The young man said. He hadn't stopped pacing the whole time he reported to Dumbledore.  
  
Dumbledore looked at the young man and smiled slightly. If others would see him and hear him, they wouldn't believe that it was the same Severus Snape they all knew. Dumbledore was rather proud of his former student. He had been rather reserved and mean spirited when he was at school and his boisterous unofficial war with James Potter and his friends made for a lively time. The fact that his reports have been the ones that served to keep the Potters safe and out of trouble was rather ironic. Dumbledore sat back to recollect the first time Severus Snape entered his office to offer his help.  
  
It was right after the attack on Hogsmeade where Jezebel Robinson was lost. Professor Dumbledore knew that Severus was rather enamored of Jezebel since the first time he had seen her on their first year and the fact that she had eyes only for James Potter was not good for his self-esteem and only led to the hilarious struggle that the Gryffindors and Slytherins had found themselves into, with the leadership of the Marauders in the Gryffindor side and Snape and Malfoy in the Slytherin side.  
  
When James and Lily became rather serious in their relationship, everybody thought that things would calm down. And for a while it did. But things didn't stay that way for long. Jezebel Robinson was not going to give up and Severus had been angered by it. After graduation things slowed down as expected but they didn't get any better. Jezebel Robinson eventually forgot about James Potter and turned her energies to her work with her father at the Ministry of Magic. But Severus didn't have anything to turn his energy to, except for the group that most of his friends were turning to, the Death Eaters.  
  
When Jack Robinson was killed and his name blackened. Jezebel Robinson turned for help and found many doors closed to her, except for the Death Eaters hoping to get her to their side, and for a time she took advantage of this until that deadly attack on Hogsmeade.  
  
Severus was torn. When she had turned to the Death Eaters he had hoped that a relationship could come of it, but the attack destroyed his dreams. He knew that he couldn't turn his back on the Death Eaters and their leader; that would only lead to death, and he wouldn't let Jezebel's loss be for nothing. He turned to Dumbledore instead. It was at that moment when he decided he had the unique opportunity to help.  
  
Since that moment forth, he had reported every plan and every movement that Voldemort and his followers did. His information helped to prevent the death of many, and the capture of some Death Eaters.  
  
Now the information that had brought him to his former Professor could help their efforts to keep the Potters safe.  
  
"Are they ready, do you think?" Severus turned to look at his former Headmaster, hoping for some reassurance. "They are sitting ducks as long as they stay in their house."  
  
"I'm sure they are. They have the instructions for the Charm and they have chosen a secret keeper. I'm sure they are ready." Dumbledore said with certainty.  
  
Severus nodded. "I must go. But, and I'm sure that I don't need to tell you this, things are coming to a head, I can feel it." He said before wrapping his cloak closely about him making sure that his face and features were out of sight and quickly left the room.  
  
Dumbledore watched him go. He agreed with Severus. Things were speeding up toward something that would lead to great changes. And he hoped, they would be for the best.  
  
**~~**  
  
Morning had arrived and the city of London was slowly awaking from its slumber. Early risers drove toward their work, while others were lucky enough to have a lie-in. The Ministry of Magic was slowly gathering activity and the residents around Rowe Square were slowly waking from their sleep.  
  
James and Lily had had a wretched night. Both were worried about what would happen that day and couldn't sleep for more than a couple of hours. The remaining servants and elves were awake and a light breakfast was being prepared. The last one to take place in the Potter House.  
  
Harry had awoken at the same time as always, fussing with hunger. Minnie had changed him and dressed him in the traveling suit bought for him for this day. She had sobbed softly through the process, not that Harry had noticed.  
  
Lily and James dressed in silence, Lotty helping them along and packing the last items into the trunks that littered the floor. Several trunks were placed around the room. Some had already been taken to the entrance hall, to wait for the time when their master and mistress were ready to leave.  
  
"Ready?" James asked once both were dressed.  
  
Lily nodded. Minnie entered the room, a fussing Harry in her arms.  
  
"Thank you Minnie." Said Lily and they quickly exited the room, leaving behind a sobbing Minnie and a worried Lotty, who was trying hard to comfort her.  
  
James and Lily slowly made their way to the dinning room. Roberts stood by the door holding it open for his masters. The table against the wall was empty. It usually stood loaded with food and drinks, today, it was different.  
  
Small dishes and platters were placed in the middle of the table. Three people stood by the windows waiting for them.  
  
"Had a good night?" Asked Sirius as James and Lily entered the room.  
  
"As good as could be expected." Said James.  
  
"I hope you don't mind us being here." Said Remus as the each took a seat around the table.  
  
"Of course not, we wouldn't want to be alone now!" Exclaimed Lily as she settled Harry into his high chair.  
  
"Because we could leave if you prefer." Said Peter as he watched the others starting to pile food onto their plates.  
  
"No Peter, we want our friends to be with us." Said James.  
  
Peter nodded and started to serve himself.  
  
The meal was eaten in awkward silence. Sometimes, somebody tried to make conversation but it soon died down as the others were unresponsive.  
  
They all tried to prolong the meal, but it soon came to an end. There was no reason for them to stay, it was time to leave.  
  
The entrance hall was full of luggage, which Roberts and a couple of footmen, who had stayed behind after the rest had gone to the Manor, started to pile them into the trunk of the car. Only one car was waiting outside the door. The luggage was shrunk and stored as Lily and James watched the servants work.  
  
"Well, it seems there is no reason for me to stay longer." Remus sighed and turned to look at his friends sadly. "You will take care, won't you? You know that you can call on me if you need me." He hugged Lily, whose eyes started to get moist.  
  
"We'll do that." Said James with a growl. They knew that it wasn't because he was angry, he was just trying to put a good front to the others.  
  
"Good bye, Harry. I'll see you soon." Said Remus as he took Harry from Lily's arms.  
  
Harry smiled and squealed, oblivious to the sadness that surrounded the others.  
  
Remus chuckled. "Yes, I know you are happy. Good bye." He said turning to look at his friends.  
  
"I'll owl you later." Said Sirius.  
  
Remus nodded.  
  
"Good bye James." Remus looked sadly at his friend, both trying hard not to let their emotions get the better of them.  
  
"I'll see you my friend." James replied.  
  
Remus slowly crossed the park toward the Ministry, where he was scheduled to meet someone.  
  
Peter was about to say his goodbyes as well, but James stopped him.  
  
"Peter, we need you to come with us." James said.  
  
"What? Why?" Asked Peter rather disconcerted.  
  
"We'll tell you on our way." Said Sirius.  
  
The luggage was packed, Martin, the driver, waited for them by the car. Lily had placed Harry comfortably into his seat and everything was ready for them to leave.  
  
Roberts had assembled the remaining servants by the door. Roberts himself stood by the open doors, Mrs. Nichols beside him. Next were Lotty, Minnie and Otty. Minnie was sobbing disconsolately between them. The remaining two footmen stood beside the personal elves and then followed a line of small house elves looking sadly at their masters from their big round eyes, their ears drooping and their hands clutching the white towels covering their bodies.  
  
Sirius pulled Peter through the door and left James and Lily to say good bye to their servants.  
  
Lily clasped James' hand. Harry was resting comfortably in the carriage near the door. James pulled her gently to the end of the line. The small elves looked up at them.  
  
"Master will be missed." One elf said.  
  
"Mistress will be too." Another said.  
  
"And you will too, I don't think I can keep house as efficient as you have." Said Lily in a choked voice.  
  
"We will keep house clean for you." The elves said.  
  
"I'm sure it will look sparkling when we returned." Said James as he started to walk up the line.  
  
The footmen bowed when James and Lily stopped before them.  
  
"Charles, Daniel. Thank you for everything." James said.  
  
"It has been an honor serving you Sir." The footmen said.  
  
James and Lily passed to their personal elves.  
  
"Don't cry Minnie. We won't be gone for long." Lily whispered.  
  
"Minnie must go with you Mistress, Master Harry can't do without his Minnie." The small elf wailed.  
  
"We'll take care of him, Minnie." James said with a smile, he knew how protective personal elves were of their masters, specially Minnie.  
  
"But Master Harry will need his Minnie." Minnie said again.  
  
Lotty put his spindly arms around her and tried to comfort her.  
  
"Take care of Minnie, please Lotty, we don't want to lose her before we return." Said James.  
  
"Lotty will care for your things Master James, and Lotty will take care of Minnie for Master Harry." Lotty said.  
  
"And Otty, make sure that the staff is well fed. We'll miss all your creations." Said Lily.  
  
"Otty will feed the staff, Mistress Lily." The cook elf said.  
  
They were now in front of Mrs, Nichols and Roberts.  
  
"Goodbye Mrs. Nichols, keep house for us won't you?" Said James hugging the housekeeper who had begun to sob silently.  
  
"Oh, Master James, I never thought to see the day when the Potter House and the Manor would be left without their master." The housekeeper exclaimed.  
  
"They're not without a master, Mrs. Nichols. We are alive after all, we are just going away for a little while." Said James.  
  
Lily had begun to sob at his side and was hugging the housekeeper.  
  
"Oh, Mrs. Nichols, I'm going to miss you so much. You were a great help to me, specially after mother and Mrs. Potter were gone." Lily sobbed.  
  
"Oh, Mrs. Lily, I'll keep the houses, just as you like them." Mrs. Nichols said.  
  
"Roberts, look after everybody, won't you?" Said James to the stately butler who was fighting hard to keep is customary dignified expression.  
  
"Will do Sir, and Sir, we all hope to have you back with us soon." Roberts said.  
  
"You can count on it." Said James as he shook his butler's hand. He pulled Lily gently by the arm and together they stepped out of the house. Before they climbed into the car, they turned back to look at the house. The human servants were by the door, waving to them and James could see the round eyes of his elves peering from behind the legs of their human peers. James waved and climbed into the car.  
  
Martin closed the door and soon, the car was on its way. It was still midday and people were driving home for lunch or to restaurants. The traffic was slow and it took them a while to get out of the city. Sirius and James took this opportunity to talk to Peter.  
  
".So you see, we decided to make you our secret keeper." James finished his explanation. Sirius had interrupted from time to time to say something, but Lily didn't say anything. She stroked Harry's hand as she looked out the passing streets.  
  
"Are you sure, that's what you want to do." Said Peter somewhat scared. James and Sirius understood why he would feel apprehensive about taking such responsibility, at least, they thought they knew the reason.  
  
"We are sure. Sirius and Remus will take care of you." Sad James.  
  
"In two weeks, once everything has been settled, we'll come to your house and help you into hiding. Once that is done, there is no reason for Voldemort and his men to come after you. It will take some time for them to know that I'm not their secret keeper and let's face it, you won't be their second choice either. You'll be quite safe. By the time they finally figure out we might have found the way to defeat him." Said Sirius.  
  
Peter still looked scared. He was clearly weighting the reasons for him to do this. Finally he reached to a decision.  
  
"Very well, if that's what you want." He said in almost a whisper.  
  
"Don't worry Peter, nothing will happen to you." Said James.  
  
Peter nodded but he was clearly having second thoughts.  
  
**~~**  
  
In a far away cottage, in the middle of a forbidding moor, several men met around their leader.  
  
".but Master, once the charm is performed, they will be safe from us." One man complained.  
  
"Don't you think I know that!" Their leader growled. Some of the men stepped back in fear.  
  
"I meant no offense, Sir!" Whimpered the speaker.  
  
"No matter. Once the charm is performed we'll go after their secret keeper." Their leader continued in a cold voice, as if nobody had spoken. "We have ways to make people talk, after all."  
  
"When will they perform the charm?" Somebody asked.  
  
"If my information is correct, tonight."  
  
The wind blew on the moor, making an eerie sound that made many want to close themselves in a room with a cheery fire in the grate.  
  
Night was falling, and plans were made as a small black car made its way across the small towns outside the city and making its way to a small village out of sight of the main road.  
  
**~~**  
  
Dumbledore sat behind his desk reading the parchment that had arrived by owl earlier that day. It was from James, letting him know that they would be departing that day and perform the charm as soon as they arrived at Godric's Hollow.  
  
There was a knock on his door.  
  
"Enter." He said.  
  
The door opened. He was not surprised to see Minerva McGonagall.  
  
He smiled and waited for her to say what was troubling her.  
  
"You have rather quiet today, Albus. Is there a problem?" She asked, looking at him closely as if hoping to read what was on his mind.  
  
"No more than there usually are." Dumbledore said.  
  
Her eyebrow lifted to an alarming height, she clearly believed there was something more to be said about that.  
  
"Lily and James left their home." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Oh, Albus." Exclaimed Professor McGonagall  
  
"It is time for them to do so, Minerva. They will be safe now." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Oh, I know." Professor McGonagall sniffed and tried to dry the tears that were falling from her eyes. "But I was hoping it would not be needed."  
  
"Let us hope that they won't have to stay away for long." Dumbledore said.  
  
Professor McGonagall nodded and sniffed into her handkerchief. "What do we do now?" She asked.  
  
"We wait. Voldemort will make a mistake, and we will be there when he does." Said Dumbledore. "As long as they stay hidden, there is a chance that Voldemort will not be successful."  
  
Professor McGonagall sniffed into her handkerchief once more.  
  
**~~**  
  
Sirius didn't stay long after they arrived to Godric's Hollow. He only stayed long enough for Peter to understand what was going to happen.  
  
"I'll see you later tonight, Peter, we need to talk." Sirius said as he walked toward the door of the small cottage, getting ready to leave.  
  
Peter nodded.  
  
"Good luck." Said Sirius and left.  
  
James and Lily watched him go. It would be a while until they would see their friend once more. They were sure, there would be no visits from their friends in the next months until everything was settled and Voldemort stayed away. None of their friends would visit Godric's Hollow as long as there was any danger of them being followed to their hiding place.  
  
"Are you sure you want this?" Asked Peter one more time. He still couldn't believe that they would want him as their secret keeper. He had been happy knowing that Sirius would have that responsibility, he knew his friend could take care of himself. But now, he knew he couldn't keep danger away for long.  
  
"Yes, Peter, you are my friend and I can't think of not having the help of a friend in this matter." Said James sending a wave of guilt through Peter.  
  
"I am very sure it's not too late for you to reconsider if you wish to." Peter said.  
  
"We would understand if you don't want to do it Peter, I'm sure we can get somebody else. But we are already here and it would be better if we do the charm now." Said Lily. She was still having second and third thoughts about the last minute changes that had been done. But on one thing she was in agreement with James. They had good friends and they preferred to have a friend help them at this time.  
  
"Oh, it's not that, I just want to make sure this is what you want." Peter quickly said. If it became known that he had the chance of being their secret keeper and he had turned it away, he was a dead man, and there would be nothing he could do to help his mother.  
  
James smiled. He assumed that his friend was very apprehensive about what was going to happen, that's what Peter did, he worried. "Nothing to worry about, Peter. Once the charm is complete, the others will take care of you and they'll make sure that you are safely hidden." He tried to comfort his friend.  
  
"They will take care of me all right!" Exclaimed Peter keeping the sarcasm out of his tone. He was sure that if his friends ever got hold of him after this day, he was in big trouble. He had to make plans after his mission was completed.  
  
"Now Peter, it's time for us to do this. Take out your wand. Lily, bring Harry over here. We might as well take care of this now." James ordered while the others did as he said.  
  
Night was falling over the land as a dim glow surrounded the small cottage at the edge of the forest in the town of Godric's Hollow.  
  
**~~**  
  
They were alone now, Lily thought as she lay awake in the middle of the night. James slept fitfully beside her as she snuggled closer to him. She felt so cold. She didn't understand why as a warm fire burned in their fireplace a few feet away from the bed. She was afraid, she thought. She didn't like the thought of them being in such deserted area. She liked having people around. She liked being able to visit friends and neighbors. Even the Manor hadn't felt so isolated as she felt now. In the manor they had all the servants and tenants around them. She couldn't remember a time when she had felt so alone.  
  
James mumbled and grunted at her side. She smiled. At least she had James and Harry, she thought. I can deal with anything as long as they are with me.  
  
She snuggled closer to James. She felt his arms tighten around her waist, even in sleep James was protective of her. And she liked that, she liked having somebody care for her so much that he would do anything to keep her and their son safe.  
  
Her eyelids were getting heavy. She yawned and she made herself comfortable by James body. His rhythmic heartbeat lulled her into a sense of safety and eventually, she fell asleep.  
  
**~~**  
  
It was late the next morning when James and Lily woke up. With no Lotty around to make sure they were awake for their everyday chores, they took their time getting out of bed. The only reason they did so was because of the sound of Harry calling for his "mama" with cries of hunger.  
  
"Oh dear, we are so late!" Lily exclaimed as she disentangled herself from the bed sheets.  
  
James grunted but didn't move from his side of the bed.  
  
Lily ran as fast as she could to Harry's room next to theirs.  
  
"Oh, my darling baby, I'm so sorry. I will fix something for you in a bit." Lily crooned to Harry, who had quieted a little when he heard his mother's voice.  
  
"Come my baby, let's get you changed, I'm sure you are in need of new clothes." Lily said as she picked Harry from his crib.  
  
"Yum?" Harry asked sleepily.  
  
"In a moment, let me check you first." Lily said.  
  
James could hear Lily's voice from Harry's room, even though he couldn't understand what was being said.  
  
He groaned and turned to look at the clock next to his side of the bed. It was almost noon.  
  
"Good lord! I haven't slept so late since I was home from Hogwarts on holidays." He said.  
  
He stretched his body and for the first time in months he could feel the weariness fall off his aching back.  
  
He got up and wrapped his robes around his body. He walked toward his son's room and stopped at the door to see his wife trying to change their son's clothes.  
  
"Harry, love, please stay still for a moment." Lily urged Harry who was twisting around under his mother's hands.  
  
"Need any help?" Asked James.  
  
"No, it would only be awkward with too many hands. I don't know how Minnie did it, he stayed so still when she changed him. I think I got too spoiled being married to you. I remember being able to do this when I used to baby- sit my neighbors' son." Lily said.  
  
"Are you sorry to have married me then? Or just that we have enough money to be able to have servants do the simple tasks for us?" James asked with an amused smile.  
  
"I'm sorry I didn't keep up with how to do those simple tasks." Said Lily as she triumphantly finished with Harry's diapers. "I swear, I have become so accustomed to have Mrs. Nichols and the maids getting the house clean, Otty cooking, Lotty taking care of my clothes and Minnie helping with Harry, that I don't know how I'm going to be able to do it all. Specially when I know that I am more than capable of doing it all."  
  
"I'll help, don't worry. I'm sure that we both need to get used to our new regime." Said James.  
  
"Yes, we certainly do. And first thing first, let's see if I can cook up an edible breakfast for us all. It has been quite a while since I actually cooked on my own." Said Lily taking Harry in her arms and walking toward the door.  
  
James chuckled. "Well, as I am in the same circumstances, it seems that we both have to see if we can create something edible."  
  
Lily smiled, kissed James' cheek and led the way to the kitchen.  
  
**~~**  
  
Sirius was sprawled on a couch in a small sitting room. Peter sat distractedly in front of him.  
  
"Did everything go well?" Sirius asked for the second time as it was clear that his friend was not listening to a word he had said.  
  
"Hmmm.Oh, yes. Everything went well." Said Peter. "Expected you to come last night." He added.  
  
"I was planning to, but had to stop home and found a note from the Ministry." Sirius explained.  
  
"I see." Peter said.  
  
"Where is your mother? Expected to see her here." Sirius asked with curiosity. All of Peter's friends knew of his circumstances and about his determination to keep his mother safe.  
  
"With friends. She has been feeling a lot better the last couple of months and decided to visit some old friends that have been asking her to visit them for quite some time." Peter said.  
  
"What are going to tell her when you leave?" Sirius asked with curiosity, this was something that hadn't been discussed on their trip to Godric's Hollow.  
  
Peter shook his head. "Don't know."  
  
"We'll come up with something. When does she return?" Sirius asked.  
  
"Two weeks." Peter answered.  
  
"We still have time." Said Sirius with satisfaction.  
  
Peter looked skeptical, but didn't say anything on the matter.  
  
**~~**  
  
Lily and James felt comfortable being on their own. It was something new for James, he was used to having people around him, servants to serve him and elves to cook for him. He had never stepped into a kitchen to make food for himself, and he certainly hadn't done any type of housework. Lily on the other hand, had some experience with housework. Although her family had been well to do, and could be considered quite wealthy, none of her parents had put on airs and tried to raise their daughters to be able to do things on their own. Although, Lily could honestly say, cooking was not something that she was really good at.  
  
That first morning, breakfast was quite a meal. Lily had cooked while James tried to keep Harry occupied.  
  
First Lily tried to make omelets, but things were not going as she wished so she ended up making scrambled eggs. Then she tried frying some of the ham that she found in the freezer, and burnt it, so she took the deli-cut ham she found. The toast came out a bit too dark, but tasted good enough and the basket of fruit came in handy.  
  
By the time breakfast was done, they were laughing and making the most of it.  
  
"I'm sorry James, maybe I should've paid more attention when mother tried to teach me how to cook. Petunia learned more than I did." Lily looked sheepishly at her husband. She now saw how unprepared she was to take care of herself and her family.  
  
"That's all right." Laughed James. "We'll learn together."  
  
Lily smiled. She was lucky, she thought, to have such an understanding husband, not somebody who expected her to know everything there was to know about keeping house.  
  
"There's one thing for sure, our lives here will be more interesting than I thought." Said James as he tried to scrape off a burnt side of the toast he held in his hand before putting some jam on it and some butter, they had found in the larder.  
  
Lily laughed and turned to look at Harry who was happily munching on his toast with jam. His face and hands were sticky and red but he didn't seem to mind at all.  
  
**~~**  
  
Things were getting better for Lily and James. During the next couple of days, Lily did much better with her cooking and James was learning to do the basic cleaning spells.  
  
"It was kind of Mrs. Nichols to pack this book along with our luggage." Lily said as she pointed her wand to the feather duster and it started to fly across the room, dusting all the surfaces around the house.  
  
"She might have thought that we would need help." Laughed James as he held up a thin book in front of his face. "Basic spells for the first time household" glittered on the cover and James was busy reading from page to page. "I never knew there were spells such as these!" He exclaimed.  
  
Lily laughed. "That just shows how ignorant you are about keeping house. Having too many servants was bad for you."  
  
"You should talk, you didn't know them either." James replied.  
  
"But I learned how to do all of this the muggle way. I didn't grow up with troops of servants ready to do the simplest task for me. I had to do chores when I grew up." Lily said.  
  
James didn't respond as he continued to read from the book.  
  
"No Harry, dear, that's mommy's." He heard Lily say and he turned to see what their son had done.  
  
Harry was sitting in his high chair by the table and had reached for Lily's wand and causing the feather duster fly around the room in incredible speed.  
  
James ducked as the feather duster passed over his head. Lily had taken her wand from Harry's grasp and quickly aimed for the zooming object. The duster stopped mid air, vibrating with banked energy. Lily flicked her wand and the duster fell to the floor.  
  
Harry was crying, upset that his mother had taken the wand.  
  
Lily put her wand out of Harry's reach and took her son into her arms. "Shush, my dear, shh! Don't cry Harry." She crooned to Harry.  
  
James looked on with a smile. After all they had been through during the last months. Their sacrifices and the sadness that had followed them, he would not change a thing, because what he saw before him was very important to him. Family. He had done everything for his family, and he would continue to do so.  
  
**~~**  
  
Sirius kept Peter company the days following the Potter's departure. They had tried to get in contact with Remus, but had received no response.  
  
"You can return home Sirius, I'm fine." Peter said one night as he and Sirius sat in his small sitting room watching the sun sink in the horizon.  
  
"Trying to get rid of me, Peter? I'm trying to protect you, you know." Said Sirius looking at his friend closely. On the last couple of days he had noticed Peter getting nervous and awkward. Although that was how he had known Peter as they grew up together on the last years he had thought that he had outgrown his tendency of jumping of fright at the slightest noise, and was growing more confident of his powers and abilities. But now, it seemed that hadn't been the case at all. He was as twitchy and scared as he had been when they were boys. Not that he blamed him either, perhaps Lily had been right, Sirius thought, perhaps asking Peter to be the secret keeper was too much for him.  
  
"Oh no, it's not that at all." Exclaimed Peter. "I just thought that you would like to take care of some personal things. You have been with me for almost a week, perhaps there are things that you need to do."  
  
Sirius thought about it for a minute. "Well, it is true that I left some things undone." He conceded. Peter sighed with relief. "But your safety is more important than all of those things."  
  
Peter looked out the window trying to look as relaxed as he wished he felt. But he wasn't feeling relaxed at all. It had been almost a week since the Fidelius Charm had been performed. He had told Voldemort of course and had been directed to report back as soon as it had been done. But things hadn't gone as they had planned. They had made plans with the idea that Sirius was to be the Potters' secret keeper, who would've thought that they would decide to make him their secret keeper instead.  
  
Two kinds of loyalty battled within him. Loyalty to his friends, who had accepted him into their group when the rest of the kids had made fun of him and left him on the sidelines. The friends that had helped him with his school work and had helped him whenever he had need of them. The friends that had been like his brothers for more than a decade. And then there was his loyalty to Voldemort. It was a loyalty born out of fear and the need to do whatever was necessary to protect his mother. Since he had been initiated into the Death Eaters, he had given information from the sidelines, he hadn't involved himself into any of the attacks that had emerged from that information. Now it was different. James and Sirius had made him the center of the dilemma. Before, the Death Eaters had been sent to take care of matters and he had known that his friends could take care of themselves. But now, things were different. Not only was he the possessor of the information that would probably change the course of history, but he also knew that this time, Voldemort himself would take things into his hands.  
  
He didn't know what to do. As he saw it, he only had two choices. Speak to Sirius and tell him everything, or stay silent and wait until he could report to Voldemort.  
  
He knew that if he spoke to Sirius, his friends would be angry and would probably do some damage, but he also knew that they would protect him and his mother and hide him. They planned to do the same now, take his mother to a safe place and help him into his animagus form to allow him to go into hiding to be as far away from Voldemort and the Death Eaters as possible. In different circumstances, it would work, as it was, it wouldn't be possible. The brand that was hidden beneath his sleeves would not allow him to stay hidden for long. Voldemort would know where he was and would follow him and kill him. It didn't matter if he stayed in his human form or in his animagus form, Voldemort would know him and kill him no matter how helpful he had been in the past. He would be killed and the Potters will die as well. It seemed to him that there really was no choice. Voldemort would have to be told and his life and his mother's would be spared.  
  
**~~**  
  
The days were getting shorter and the nights were turning cold. The forest behind the Potter cottage seemed barren and dark and the lanes leading to it were damp and dirty. But Lily and James didn't mind. They walked to the village often to buy provisions. Harry sat happily in his carriage looking around him eager to see everything.  
  
Their days had fallen into a simple routine that would've bored anybody, but to them it was new and they were enjoying themselves.  
  
They woke at mid morning for a late breakfast. Lily was getting better and better with her cooking thanks to a book that she had found with simple recipes and spells to help her with them.  
  
James had memorized the spells in the book that Mrs. Nichols had loaned them and he enjoyed taking his wand every morning after breakfast and pointing it to the duster, the broom, the vacuum cleaner, even at the dishes. He sat by the table with Harry in his lap and pointed at each item as it floated by to do summersaults and dancing steps to make Harry laugh. Lily didn't mind it at all, James was helping and it kept both James and Harry entertained while she decided on her menus for lunch and dinner.  
  
After the household cleaning and lunch was over. The small family took short walks around the lanes or the forest. Sometimes they took the carriage for Harry, other times he walked along.  
  
Lily was happy. She had thought that things would be different, that they would stay within doors waiting to see what was happening to wizard kind and hoping against hope that Voldemort would be soon defeated; but it hadn't been like that. They were enjoying themselves. Harry was growing, free of the fear that had enveloped his parents for many months. Things seemed so peaceful in Godric's Hollow that for hours without end, James and Lily would forget that Voldemort was still out there, looking for them, and wanting their son dead.  
  
**~~**  
  
Halloween was a week away and Lily and James were planning a great dinner that could likely rival the one in Hogwarts. They wanted to make every moment special for Harry, wanted him to remember all the good times, no matter how long they had to stay in Godric's Hollow.  
  
"What do you think of this recipe, Lily, do you think we can do it?" Said James excitedly as he looked over the cooking books they had found in their luggage, it seemed that Mrs. Nichols had been busy trying to make things easier for them.  
  
"Well, we could try it." Said Lily from the stove where several pots sat simmering in the fire as she pointed her wand from side to side as the large spoons stirred the contents inside.  
  
James wrote something in a piece of parchment in front of him. "Ok, that makes it ten more recipes to try." He said looking down the list in his hand.  
  
"We might not have enough time today to try them all, so we'll do more tomorrow." Lily said distractedly as she watched Harry walking slowly toward her, she was trying to make sure that all the pots were out of reach, she didn't want Harry to be burned by any of the dishes being prepared.  
  
"We still have time to chose what to include in the menu. Maybe we should invite the others to come, there is going to be too much food." Said James thoughtfully.  
  
"Oh, let's not, I want to spend this Halloween just by ourselves. We usually have had so many people around us during the holidays, and this will be our first Halloween on our own." Said Lily.  
  
"If you wish my dear." James smiled.  
  
Lily turned happily to look at the pots, more than one was vibrating as the contents started to boil.  
  
"Oh! James, take Harry. He is going to get hurt if he stays here." She exclaimed as she pointed her wand to the stove. The fire dimmed and the pots stayed still while steam started to fill the air above the stove.  
  
James had pointed his wand to Harry. "Accio Harry" he said and Harry levitated to James. Harry squealed with laughter as his father reached for him. "Yes, I know you like it." Smiled James down to Harry.  
  
"Mowe!" Said Harry.  
  
James threw his head back and laughed while Harry clapped happily in his lap. Lily turned to look at her husband and son and smile. They were so happy, she wished they could stay like this forever.  
  
**~~**  
  
"Have you received word of Remus yet?" Sirius asked that afternoon as he and Peter sat reading mail in the sitting room.  
  
Peter looked up from the parchment he was reading. "No." He said without emotion.  
  
Sirius didn't seem to notice this, he just frowned as he put the parchment he had been reading aside. "I'm beginning to worry. I sent an owl to him four days ago."  
  
"Maybe he has gone somewhere really far this time and it will take time for the owl to reach him." Peter said trying to control the nerves that had started to take over his body.  
  
"Could be, but this is the worst time for him to go away. We need to help you hide and send your mother somewhere safe." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"You don't need to do everything for me, you know. I can take care of myself." Peter snapped.  
  
This time, Sirius did take notice. "I know you can, Peter." He said.  
  
"Well, you don't act like it. You stay here all day as if only you can protect me. You owl Remus for help when I can probably do it on my own. You know you have things to do, but still you stay here. I'm not stupid Sirius!"  
  
Peter had never spoken like that to any of them before and this outburst surprised Sirius. But it also made him think.  
  
It was true that they had always been there for each other, but now that he thought about it, they did tend to do things for Peter. When they were growing up they would always stand around Peter whenever they felt that he was being bullied by other kids. When he needed help with schoolwork, they had been there with their own work for him to copy. Even when he got interested on girls, they had been there to plan dates for him. Now that Sirius thought about it, they hadn't let him do things on his own. Let him do mistakes that would probably allow him to grow as a person.  
  
In fact, it had only been after they had left Hogwarts that Peter had been able to separate himself from his friends and start doing things on his own. And he had done well for himself. He had taken care of his mother, better than anybody would've thought possible.  
  
He smiled sheepishly at Peter, who sat glowering at Sirius in silence. "I'm sorry we made you feel like that Peter." Sirius said. "We just care about you, that's all."  
  
"I know, but don't treat me like I don't know what I'm doing." Said Peter.  
  
"I won't. But just keep in mind that I will always be there for you Peter, whenever you need me." Sirius smiled.  
  
Peter seemed ready to say something but his expression changed to one of resignation and his left hand moved to grasp his right arm. "I know." He whispered and quickly left the room.  
  
Sirius frowned. What had gotten into Peter?  
  
**~~**  
  
The days were passing, and Lily and James had fun trying to decide their menu for their Halloween dinner.  
  
James had transfigured a chair for Harry. The seat hung low to the floor, allowing his feet to touch the floor. A tray was placed before him, trapping him against the back of the chair. Small wheels were at the base of the feet of the chair. Harry sat on his chair everyday and pulled himself around the house. Things had to be placed high so he couldn't reach them but Lily and James allowed him to go whenever he wished. They felt he needed a little freedom around the house in order to make up for the freedom he couldn't have as they waited for Voldemort's defeat.  
  
There were only two days left for Halloween and Lily and James sat around the table making plans for their dinner.  
  
Pieces of parchment lay around the table along with quills and cooking books. A variety of dishes lay around the counters as delicious aromas permeated the room.  
  
"Are you sure we can get butterbeer?" Said Lily as she took a small piece of a cake the stood in the middle of the table.  
  
"Yes. The recipe for it looks simple, I know we can have some." James said as he took some delicacy from a plate before him. "Hmmm.we are getting good at this cooking business, are we not?" James said as he looked at the variety of treats in his plate and licking the sweet honey on his fingers.  
  
"Oh yes, I don't think Otty will be happy to know that we can do quite well without his cooking." Laughed Lily.  
  
"Oh, but he is the best, he can do all kind of dishes in a matter of minutes." Said James.  
  
"Yes, he is much quicker than we are." Lily conceded.  
  
The pair continued to eat as Harry, who was sitting in his chair by his parents was happily munching on some of the sweets that his parents had prepared.  
  
"Well, that does it. We now have a menu for Halloween." Sighed James quite happily.  
  
Lily nodded as she ate a little more cake.  
  
"This will be the best!" Exclaimed James. "You'll see Harry," he said looking down at his son who looked up the moment he heard his name from his father's lips, "this will be one of the best Halloweens you'll remember."  
  
Harry laughed up to his father as he spread his sticky fingers in the air. James laughed and took his son in his arms, before spinning around the room. Harry squealed happily, James laughed and Lily giggled at the sight of her husband and son. Yes, she thought, this would be the best Halloween ever.  
  
**~~**  
  
"I have to go to London, Peter. But I will return tomorrow night to make sure you are all right. It's Halloween and I expect Voldemort and his lot will be out making mischief." Said Sirius one morning.  
  
Sirius and Peter were sitting down to breakfast, in the silent dinning room. Unlike his friends who were wealthy enough to have servants to do all the chores in the house, Peter had grown up watching his mother flick her wand around the house to clean. As a result, he had learned how to cook and do things on his own at an early age. On this morning, he had prepared a good meal for himself and his friend and sat feeling quite satisfied as his friend told him of his plans.  
  
Peter seemed startled for a minute before nodding his head. "All right." He said.  
  
"Just take care, and stay out of trouble. I got this feeling that tomorrow will be a special day." Said Sirius before leaving the table leaving a pensive Peter behind.  
  
Peter was a little worried. For the last couple of days, his right arm had felt warm. He knew that Voldemort wanted news and he was in the position to tell him the best news anybody could give him but Sirius' presence in his house had prevented Peter from leaving. Now Sirius was gone and he could leave. He knew that the moment he apparated before Voldemort, he would not be able to return.  
  
He finished his breakfast and went to the small parlor at the front of the house. He sat at a small desk in front of the windows and started looking through the drawers for parchment, quills and ink. He pulled all he needed to the desktop and started writing. For more than half an hour he sat before the desk. Stopping to read what he had written from time to time, as he chewed the tip of his quill with apprehension. Finally he seemed satisfied and rolled the parchment.  
  
He walked out of the room toward a small room situated in the back of the house. It was a little dark and large open windows surrounded every wall of the room. Long poles crisscrossed from wall to wall. He walked to the sleeping owl sitting on top of one of these poles. It took Peter some time to get the owl to wake up and when he did, he promptly tied the parchment to its leg. Minutes later, Peter stood by the door looking out as the owl disappeared among the clouds.  
  
**~~**  
  
James was sleeping in the couch with Harry by his side. Both had spent the morning playing trying to keep out of the way as Lily had kicked them out of the kitchen.  
  
Delicious aromas dispersed from the kitchens, and the day was bright and sunny. The dry leaves were falling from the trees around the small cottage and breeze blew them all around the countryside. The day seemed as birdcalls were heard throughout the wooden area.  
  
Lily was happily cooking in the kitchens. After she told James to take Harry and play with him, she had made progress in the dishes she was trying to prepare. She was making pies, muffins, puddings and trying to make some homemade butterbeer for their Halloween dinner for the next day. She wanted to leave some of the dishes done overnight, specially the butterbeer as it had to ferment over night to give make it taste better.  
  
A small radio was playing quietly in the background and the dishrag in the sink was cleaning the dishes as Lily prepared the food.  
  
She was humming and smiling as she flicked her wand and the pans starting to move slowly toward the open oven.  
  
Lily didn't bother to see whether the pans made it to the oven or not, she knew that they would get there eventually. She tidied up the counter and looked around to see if something else was needed. Everything seemed in order.  
  
"James, do you want a snack before I serve lunch?" She called. But received no answer.  
  
"James?" She called again.  
  
And again, there was no answer.  
  
Lily frowned. Where had James and Harry gone?  
  
She walked rapidly toward the backstairs and climbed to the upper rooms. She went into their bedroom but it was empty. She crossed the room toward the connecting door to Harry's room. But she also found it empty.  
  
She was starting to get worried. James usually didn't leave the house without telling her that he was leaving, specially if he was taking Harry with him. She had not heard the front door open or close and as she had been in the kitchen she knew that they hadn't left through the back door.  
  
She walked down the corridor, opening and closing the doors of the empty rooms. "James?" She called but received no response. She climbed down the stairs that lead down to the public rooms.  
  
She walked to the book room but she also found it empty. The ballroom had been locked as they hadn't thought to entertain while they stayed there, thus, she didn't bother to check in there. There was only one more room she could think of, the parlor.  
  
At first sight, it seemed empty as well, and it made Lily feel a little worried. But then she noticed dark hair protruding from the side of the large couch.  
  
Silently, Lily walked up to the couch and found James asleep with Harry clutched safely at his side.  
  
Lily sighed with relief. She knew she was being silly to worry so, after all, there was no way Voldemort would have attacked without her noticing. But she couldn't help the feeling of terror that had invaded her body. Now she relaxed and smiled at the picture that father and son made.  
  
James stirred, waking Harry up as he did so. Harry whimpered.  
  
"Shhh! Harry." Whispered Lily as she leaned to take Harry from his father. "Papa is asleep."  
  
"Yum?" Harry said looking at his mother with a hopeful glance.  
  
Lily chuckled. "Hungry, are you? Very well, let's see what we can get you."  
  
"That sounds good, I'm a little hungry myself." James said from the couch, rubbing sleep from his eyes.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry James, didn't mean to wake you." Lily said.  
  
"Don't worry, I'm sure that it was time for me to leave this couch anyways. How long were we asleep?" He looked questioningly at Lily as he tried to stretch the muscles of his back. He was sure that he would get a sore back after being in the couch for long.  
  
"Don't know really. I came looking for you after I finished with the cooking." Said Lily trying to keep Harry from grasping her wand, which she had tucked into the pocket of the apron she wore over her clothes.  
  
"Oh. Never mind then. Shall we eat? I am a bit hungry." James looked hopefully at his wife.  
  
Lily laughed. "I see where Harry learned to give that hopeful look when he wants something."  
  
James smiled up at her but said nothing as he followed her out of the room toward the kitchen.  
  
**~~**  
  
Darkness was falling when Peter locked the door behind him. He was in front of his house. The lane seemed deserted and quiet. He looked around with care and started to walk down the lane toward the end of town. He had a feeling he was being watched.  
  
He stopped and looked around him once more, but he didn't see anybody. The houses lining the lane stood next to each other, as lights started to blink through the curtained windows.  
  
He shrugged and continued walking. He needed to get to the edge of town. Somebody was waiting for him and he didn't dare being late.  
  
**~~**  
  
Halloween morning started as any other day usually did. Lily woke early the moment she heard Harry fussing in his room. James groaned and rolled on his side of the bed trying to keep the noise out and continued sleeping. Lily sighed resignedly and left the bed.  
  
Harry's room was littered with toys. The little bears drawn in the walls were slowly coming to life as the first rays of light spread through the room.  
  
"Shh! Harry. I'm here." Said Lily as she entered the room.  
  
"Mama!" Whimpered Harry, moving his head around the mattress toward the place where he had heard his mother's voice.  
  
"I'm here my dear." Lily said coming near the crib.  
  
Harry whimpered once more and lifted his arms toward his mother, hoping that she would reach for him.  
  
She did. Lily leaned over the mattress and took her son into her arms.  
  
Harry sighed happily and settled his head on her shoulder, liking the feeling of warmth and safety he felt in his mother's arms.  
  
Lily walked purposely toward the rocking chair near the window. Harry eventually settled in her arms and stayed quiet.  
  
"Are you hungry Harry?" Lily asked smiling down at her son.  
  
"Yum!" Harry exclaimed.  
  
Lily laughed. "Yes, yum. You got your father's appetite."  
  
"Of course he does, he is a Potter after all." Said James from the door. He was wearing a bathrobe and Lily could hear the shower on.  
  
"Well, the two of you better not stuff yourselves at all today, you won't have room for dinner else." Lily said as Harry started to wiggle in her arms.  
  
"Down!" Harry commanded. Lily promptly put him on the floor and Harry crawled toward the pile of toys placed against the nearby wall.  
  
"I'll get ready and then you can dress while I watch Harry." James said walking to the bathroom in a hurry leaving a bemused Lily behind.  
  
**~~**  
  
Peter had arrived to a small cabin. The landscape looked barren. No houses or farms anywhere in sight. The cabin itself looked more than a hut than a cabin, but once the threshold was crossed the proportions of the dwelling looked bigger than it did outside.  
  
"Come in Pettigrew." A cold voice filled the room.  
  
Peter shuddered as he closed the door behind him. The room became dark. Peter looked around, the only source of light seemed to be coming from a single candle at one corner of the room. His eyes became accustomed to the darkness and he noticed a shadowy figure standing near the candle.  
  
"M-m-my lord?" Peter stuttered.  
  
"You have some news for me. About time, I feared you had decided to leave my side after all." The dark figure said in the same cold voice Peter had heard the moment he entered the cabin.  
  
"Oh no, My Lord. I wouldn't do that." Peter exclaimed.  
  
A chilling laugh emerged from the lit corner. Peter shuddered with fright. Was he doing the right thing, he wondered, did he do right by coming here?  
  
"Your mother is safe now." Was the reply from his companion.  
  
"Thank you, My Lord." Peter whispered.  
  
"Come now, Pettigrew. Let's conclude what you came here for. Where are they?" Lord Voldemort turned to look at Peter. His snake-like eyes peering closely at the shaking figure by the door. "Nothing to say, Pettigrew?"  
  
"N-no, My Lord, I - I mean, yes, My Lord. I have something to say." Peter managed to say from his chattering teeth.  
  
"Well?" Voldemort's voice was full of impatience.  
  
"They are at Godric's Hollow, My Lord. In the Potter Cottage near the woods of Godric's Hollow." Peter said in a hurry.  
  
"Well done, Pettigrew. That wasn't so hard, now was it?" Voldemort said in a laughing voice. "You will be well rewarded for this, Pettigrew. You will indeed." His chilling laughed filled the air, making Peter shake harder than ever.  
  
It was too late now, he thought, the deed was done.  
  
**~~**  
  
Lily was extremely busy the whole morning. After serving a hot bowl of cereal, toast, jam, butter, muffins, milk and juice to James and Harry. She busied herself with pulling all the things she would need to prepare the special dinner they had planned.  
  
"Now, remember James that you promised to decorate the house." Lily said as she pulled pans and pots from the cabinets.  
  
"I remember." Said James in between bites. "It'll keep Harry entertained."  
  
"Just don't let him get a hold on your wand." Lily warned. "The last time he did so, I spent hours cleaning the slime from the sitting room."  
  
"I remember. I will be careful." James said.  
  
"Very well. Now, hurry up and eat, I want to start preparing the food." Lily said.  
  
"But you haven't eaten yet, and we still have the whole day to finish." Exclaimed James.  
  
"I'm not hungry and I'll probably be tasting every bit I cook, I'm not going to be hungry for long." Lily said as she started to pull piles and piles of vegetables, meat and fruit from the cooler.  
  
"But Harry is not done either. It takes him a while to put food into his mouth, you know." Said James.  
  
"Take him to the sitting room with you." Lily said. "He can eat as you start with the decorations.  
  
"But it's not going to take the whole day to put the decorations up. I can do that in a matter of hours." James was trying to finish eating as fast as he could. He just couldn't understand why Lily wanted to start so soon, they did have the whole day to do what was needed.  
  
"Probably, but I want to start in here and you two are more of a hindrance than help." Lily snapped as with a flick of her wand, knives flew to cut and chop vegetables.  
  
"All right, all right, we'll get out of here. Come Harry, your mother doesn't want us in the kitchen." James took Harry from his high chair and started walking out toward the sitting room, where they had agreed to start with the decorating.  
  
"Yum! Yum!" Harry screamed, a piece of toast clasped tightly in his chubby hand.  
  
"I'll bring it to you." Said Lily behind them.  
  
James took a fussing Harry to the sitting room where he sat him on the floor. Lily came in behind them carrying Harry's plate and cup.  
  
"Here you go Harry." Lily said, placing the plate beside him. Harry fell silent in an instant and took some of the fruit in his plate in his empty hand. "Now dear, make sure that you don't do anything dangerous. I don't want to worry about you and Harry while I'm the kitchen." Lily said to James.  
  
"Yes ma'am." Replied James. Lily looked at him and smiled, he never changed, she thought and walked back to the kitchen.  
  
"Well Harry, were do you want to start." James asked as he looked around the room.  
  
Harry looked at him curiously as he chewed his toast, his hands sticky and the juice of the piece of orange he had clasped in his other hand ran down his arm and dripped onto the carpet.  
  
James looked down at his son and smiled. "I guess you're right, food first." He said and sat down next to Harry and started to take some of the toast from the plate. Harry smiled.  
  
**~~**  
  
Sirius was trying to do as much as possible in town. He had arrived to his house early that morning and started to send owls to several people. He had the feeling of urgency that he couldn't explain.  
  
The house was empty and dark. Since Katie's departure, the house hadn't seem welcoming at all and he just couldn't stand the thought of visiting his family's house at all. It had been a while since he had graced that house with his presence after all.  
  
He sat brooding in his sitting room, a life-size portrait of him and Katie hung above the mantel. It had been taken weeks after their marriage, a gift from Lily and James. They looked so happy and it was difficult to face the fact that she wasn't there with him anymore.  
  
"I miss you." He whispered as he saw the Katie and Sirius in the picture look at each other lovingly and kissing each other.  
  
The hours passed and the full decanter that he had taken with him to the sitting room at the beginning of the day was slowly being emptied.  
  
It was already after noon, and Sirius groaned as he looked over at the empty decanter. When had he started to drown his sorrows in drink, he wondered. He rested his head against the back of his seat, a headache was starting to form and from the quantity of alcohol he had consumed, he couldn't be surprised at it. He needed to clear his head.  
  
He left the seat abruptly but had to grasp the back of the chair as his vision started to swim before him. He groaned, this was going to be harder than what he thought. He sat back down and sighed. He had so much to do, he thought. Peter would be waiting for him and he had finally received word from Remus saying that he would be back in England in the following week.  
  
Dumbledore had asked some members of their group to meet and make plans for the eventual defeat of Lord Voldemort. It would be different, Sirius thought, for in this meeting neither James nor Lily would be present. Although it was true that Lily had not been as involved since before Harry's birth, James had continued with his work for the Order taking his place beside the Minister of Magic, it was the only way for them to know the inner workings of the Ministry and the latest news. But it couldn't be helped, Voldermort was after them for some unknown reason and they needed to be kept safe.  
  
He felt his head starting to clear, his vision was no longer blurred. He stood up once more and slowly made his way out of the room.  
  
"I need some air." He spoke aloud and left the house by the back door and walked toward the garage.  
  
A black car was stationed under a canvas, but Sirius didn't even look at it. He walked to the very back corner of the garage, he pulled the curtain that hanged there and exposed his large motorcycle. He smiled. It had been quite a while since he rode it, and he thought, it was about time he took it up again.  
  
"Peter can wait a little longer." He said.  
  
He took the motorcycle around the car and climbed upon it once he was in the driveway.  
  
A roaring sound could be heard around Rowe Square. Many people walking around in Rowe Park looked around somewhat startled. But some of the neighbors smiled to themselves. It seemed that young Mr. Black was ready to have fun once more.  
  
**~~**  
  
Dinner was ready and Lily happily adorned the dinning room table with glittering little ghosts dancing among the dishes and tiny bats flying around the room. She thought it a good idea as she remembered the Halloween Feast she and James had enjoyed in Hogwarts, she was sure that Harry would enjoy them as well. She could hear Harry's laughter coming from the sitting room. James had successfully kept him entertained for the day. Remains of their potluck lunch still graced the tables and chairs on which they had eaten.  
  
"Will you please clean the sitting room James, Dinner is almost done." She called out to James.  
  
"All right!" James called back and moments later Lily could see the dishes dancing merrily in mid air as they made their way to the kitchen sink.  
  
Harry could be heard to laugh and clap as the dishes and utensils made their way to the kitchen to the rhythm of some imaginary tune.  
  
Minutes later, the house was ready for their special Halloween Dinner.  
  
"Ready?" Lily asked from the door to the sitting room.  
  
"We are." Said James pulling Harry who had been trying to catch one of the floating candles that James had conjured around the room.  
  
Lily smiled. "We should dress for the occasion don't you think? It is a special dinner after all."  
  
"Of course we need to dress for the occasion." James exclaimed. "I loved seeing you in your dress robes."  
  
"Flatterer." Lily laughed and led the way up to their bedroom.  
  
It didn't take long for Lily and James to be ready. Harry took a little longer as he kept grasping anything in sight. Soon they were ready and started their way down to the dinning room, which had been readied for the night.  
  
The lights were turned off and the candles lit. Floating candles adorned every inch of the main rooms. Tiny bats flew around the room and small ghosts danced around the table. Harry loved them all. He looked up at the bats and followed them with his eyes for several minutes before he noticed the dancing ghosts, which he tried to grasp the moment his mother sat him at the table.  
  
James laughed to see his son's fruitless task, but Harry didn't seem to mind as he giggled every time a ghost passed through his hands.  
  
"Where did you get them?" Asked James as he helped Lily bring the food into the dinning room.  
  
"What? The ghosts?" Lily asked with confusion as she was busily trying to remember what dishes had prepared. At James' nod, she responded. "They're not real, it's an easy charm I found in one of the books that Mrs. Nichols packed for us."  
  
"I see!" James exclaimed but Lily didn't know if he was impressed by her magic or by the different dishes being uncovered upon the table.  
  
Dinner was a happy occasion. James and Lily talked and laughed as they reminisced about their Halloween Feasts at Hogwarts. Harry was happily trying to put as much food as he could into his mouth as a group of tiny ghosts sat around his plate and set themselves to entertain him.  
  
Eventually, Harry got tired and started to get fussy.  
  
"I'll get him to bed." Sad Lily as she reached for Harry. James made to follow but she shook her head. "No, stay. It won't take long."  
  
James nodded and watched her leave the room with Harry leaning his head against her shoulder.  
  
Lily didn't take long changing Harry into his nightclothes. She then settled into the rocking chair and settled Harry into her arms. He was fussing and rubbing his hands into his eyes.  
  
"Shhh! Harry." Lily whispered.  
  
"Mama." Wailed Harry.  
  
"I'm here Harry. Shh!" Several minutes passed and Harry wouldn't fall sleep. Lily started humming and soon the melody turned into song.  
  
"Sleep my child and peace attend thee,  
  
All through the night,  
  
Guardian Angels God will send thee,  
  
All through the night,  
  
Soft the drowsy hours are creeping,  
  
Hill and dale in slumber sleeping,  
  
I my loved ones' watch am keeping,  
  
All through the night.  
  
"Angels watching, e'er around thee,  
  
All through the night,  
  
Midnight slumber close around thee,  
  
All through the night,  
  
Soft the drowsy hours are creeping,  
  
Hill and dale in slumber sleeping,  
  
I my loved ones' watch am keeping,  
  
All through the night."  
  
Before she finished singing, Harry fell asleep. Lily tenderly put him in his crib and turned off the lights.  
  
She returned to the dinning room and found it empty. The dishes had been cleared, the bats and ghosts had disappeared only the floating candles remained.  
  
She turned toward the sitting room. Here only candlelight remained as well, but she also noticed the fireplace had been lit and a couple of wine glasses waiting in the coffee table.  
  
"I was hoping for Harry to fall asleep soon." James said from behind her. Lily turned with a smile.  
  
"It took long enough." She said.  
  
"It has been a while since we've been alone." James whispered.  
  
"I know." Lily replied.  
  
James walked past her and grabbed the wine glasses. He offered one to her and she took it. Since Harry had been born, they hadn't been alone like this. In fact, she couldn't remember the last time they spent time on their own. She noticed James putting his wand in the pocket of his dress robes. Music started to play in the small radio in one corner.  
  
"I didn't know we had a radio in here." Said Lily looking around and taking a sip from her glass.  
  
"We didn't, I brought it over from the kitchen. But it seems that I did something because I can't get the WWN." James frowned as he said this.  
  
"We'll just have to be content with muggle radio then." Lily smiled.  
  
A slow melody started to play.  
  
"Would you do me the honor of dancing with me?" James asked offering his arm.  
  
Lily smiled and put down the glass before placing her hand on his arm. "It would be my pleasure." She whispered.  
  
The Lyrics of the song floated above them as they lost themselves in the words and the feel of each other.  
  
"My love, there's only you in my life,  
  
The only thing that's right.  
  
My first love, you're every breath that I take,  
  
You're every step I make,  
  
And I, I want to share all my love with you,  
  
No one else will do.  
  
And your eyes, they tell me how much you care.  
  
Oh, yes, you will always be, my endless love."  
  
"You are, you know." James whispered in her ear as he twirled her around the room.  
  
"I am what?" Lily asked breathlessly, she had forgotten how well matched they were when they danced.  
  
"My endless love." James smiled down at her.  
  
Lily's eyes started to tear. "And you are mine." She whispered.  
  
James leaned his head down and Lily raised hers, and their lips met with a tender kiss. It was then when they heard a disturbance in front of the house.  
  
**~~**  
  
Sirius had been riding his motorcycle for many hours now. Darkness had fallen and he believed it was time for him to return to his duties.  
  
He was in a real good mood. The feeling of the wind against his hair had given him the feeling of unlimited freedom. But the darkness reminded him that he should be with Peter. Voldemort and his Death Eaters preferred to do their deeds under the cloak of darkness, it allowed them to do what they wanted without witnesses. By them time others knew of what happened, it was already too late.  
  
He turned his bike toward Peter's house. He pressed the small golden button beside the motor and with a roar the motorcycle flew into the air.  
  
It took half an hour for Sirius to reach the outskirts of the town where Peter lived. He led his motorcycle down and drove down the lane. Lights were lit in every house, and he had to be careful with so many muggles around. He looked around at the houses as he passed them. All the inhabitants seemed to be dinning but he was curious when he noticed that one house among them all, was dark and silent.  
  
A sense of foreboding swamped his body. As he neared the darkened house, it grew deeper. The house was Peter's.  
  
Sirius climbed down from the motorcycle in a hurry. He tried the door, but it was locked, and everything was dark that he could not see a thing from the windows. He quickly withdrew his wand from his pocket. "Alohamora!" He pointed the tip of his wand to the locked door. The door opened slowly and Sirius pushed it open. "Lights!" He ordered and the candles around the walls lit themselves.  
  
The house was empty. But no sign of struggle could be seen. "Peter!" Sirius yelled as he walked around the house. There was no response. He returned to the entrance hall. "Where are you Peter?" Sirius whispered as he looked desperately up and down the lane.  
  
This seemed very ominous to him. He ran to his motorcycle and roared out into the lane. Several faces peered from the curtained windows, hoping to find out what had caused such a thunderous noise, but they saw nothing, only a puff of dust settling upon the road.  
  
**~~**  
  
"What is that?" Lily was startled.  
  
"It might be nothing." James said. "But I'll go check if you prefer."  
  
"Be careful James." Lily was wringing her hands as she watched James walking round to the small hall where the windows faced the front.  
  
For a few minutes nothing was heard and Lily started to think that James had been right and it had been nothing. Maybe the wind, she thought, any minute now James would return into the room laughing at her for her silly fears.  
  
But James didn't return.  
  
"James?" She called.  
  
"There's someone out there, Lily." She heard him say.  
  
"Who?" She asked.  
  
"I don't know.wait.Lily, RUN!" He screamed coming running into the room.  
  
"What? Why?" Lily was scared, she had never seen James so agitated before.  
  
"Lily, listen to me, you have to leave." James grasped her arms and shook her, as if trying to make her listen to him.  
  
"But why James, what is going on?" Lily cried.  
  
"Lily, take Harry and go! It's him! Go! Run! I'll try to hold him off-" He was pushing her out of the room.  
  
"James!" Lily cried turning to look at him.  
  
"Go! Keep Harry safe!" He said and turned toward the entrance hall where the sound of the front door snapping open could be heard.  
  
Lily didn't say anything more, she ran from the room, shoving furniture behind her as she went. She took the stairs two, sometimes three at a time. The sounds of raised voices and spells hitting the walls could be heard, but she didn't turn to see what was happening. All she wanted to do was to reach Harry's room.  
  
She stumbled upon the landing of the second floor. She ran toward the first door in the corridor. It was hers and James' room. She quickly turned to the open door at one corner of the bedroom. It led straight to Harry's.  
  
Harry was awake and crying.  
  
"Mama!" He wailed.  
  
"I'm here Harry, mama is here." She said as she reached for him.  
  
A blinding green flash was seen from through the windows and the door. "No!" She yelled as a cackle of high-pitched laughter reached her ears.  
  
Lily hugged Harry tightly against her bosom. Harry was still crying and Lily was shaking with fear. She knew that James could help her no more.  
  
She heard the door to the bedroom open, she turned and saw a somebody in a dark cloak walking toward them.  
  
She tried to shut the door but it was no use. A stream of light hit it and shoved it open.  
  
Harry started to cry harder.  
  
"Give him to me!" Voldemort ordered.  
  
"Not Harry, not Harry, please not Harry!" She screamed turning Harry away from Voldemort.  
  
"Stand aside you silly girl. Do you really think that you can stop me from getting what I want? Stand aside now!" Voldemort seemed to be getting angrier but Lily kept protecting Harry with her body.  
  
"Not Harry! Please no, take me, kill me instead- " She begged trying to get farther from Voldemort. But there was nowhere to run, the window was in front of her, and she knew she didn't have the time to make an escape from there. All that was open to her now was to make a stand, just where she stood. She placed Harry upon the windowsill. And turned to look at Voldemort.  
  
"That could be arranged." Voldermort said in response to her plead. "Stand aside now and give him to me."  
  
"Not Harry! Please.have mercy.have mercy." Lily sobbed.  
  
"Lord Voldermort has no mercy." Voldemort said in a cold tone. He lifted his wand. A moment later, Lily's lifeless body fell to the floor.  
  
Voldemort turned to look at the crying infant on the windowsill.  
  
"This is the end of you, Harry Potter." He laughed as he turned his wand toward Harry.  
  
Harry looked at the tall, dark cloaked man before him.  
  
"Mama!" He called.  
  
Voldemort laughed.  
  
As a green light flashed through the nursery room, Sirius was flying through the darkened sky toward Godric's Hollow. An owl was flying through the sky toward Hogwarts. And Peter was trying to make his way to London, where he was to meet with Voldemort and the Death Eaters for an attack on the Ministry.  
  
**~~**  
  
That's the end of Part III. Sorry again for taking long, but this chapter was very hard for me to write. I kept trying to put it off and make it last, but I couldn't I knew that it was time for that chapter to be written. I hope that you have enjoyed the story so far. I have started Chapter 1 of Part IV ~ The Aftermath, I don't know how long it will take me to write as I will be very busy at work for the next month, I'll try to write as much as I can, but can't guarantee that I will have something ready for you soon. But I'll try. Thank you all for reading, and don't forget to review. 


	45. Part IV Chapter 1

A/N: It's finally here, the first chapter to Part IV ~ The Aftermath. This is a shorter chapter than you are used from me, but as it deals only with one day, I think it's long enough. I hope you like it. I'm sorry it took me so long but summer is my busy season and I had so much to do and not enough time to do it, so my writing had to take a second place to everything. But I finally finished it and I'm going to start working in the rest.  
  
**~~**~~**  
  
Disclaimer: Everything that you recognize is not mine, it all belongs to the wonderful J.K. Rowling.  
  
**~~**~~**  
  
~Legacy of Two Generations ~  
  
Part IV - The Aftermath  
  
Chapter 1 ~ November 1, 1981  
  
An exhausted owl arrived at Hogwarts as the clock rang midnight. Dumbledore sat behind his desk. The day had been exhausting for him. He had gotten word that Voldemort was about to show his hand and might attack the Ministry once more. He had sent owls throughout the day, trying to contact every member of the Order. They needed to be in London before Voldemort and his Death Eaters arrived.  
  
He was thinking of the plans he had made with the Minister to protect the Ministry when a tapping was heard from a window behind him.  
  
He frowned at the sight of an owl standing on the other side of his window. There was no reason he could think of for an owl to come to him at the moment. Unless there was a change in plans and Voldemort had decided against attacking the Ministry in the morning.  
  
He walked rapidly toward the window and opened it. The owl dropped a letter on the floor and flew back out.  
  
Dumbledore looked down at the parchment with worry. It held a single sentence. "He is at Godric's Hollow." There was no signature. Nothing to let him know who had sent it, but he couldn't take a chance of it being a prank. It could be a trap, his mind screamed. It doesn't matter, he thought, Lily and James could be in danger and he had promised to help.  
  
The door to his office flew open as he neared it. He quickly made his way down the stairs and walked down the corridors until he left the castle behind. He was walking toward Hagrid's hut.  
  
He could hear the rustle of the leaves from the Forest's trees. A cool breeze made waves upon the lake's surface and some unknown pet of Hagrid's could be heard whimpering from behind the hut.  
  
He knocked on the door and instantly Fang's barking could be heard from within.  
  
"Who is it?" Hagrid's gruff voice was heard.  
  
"It's me Hagrid, I need you to do something for me." Dumbledore called.  
  
"Right Professor, 'old on a minute." The sounds of grunting could be heard along with Hagrid's "Move Fang, gotta open the door to Dumbledore." Finally, the door was opened and Hagrid's face peered from behind the door.  
  
"Sorry about that. Fang is in a funny mood tonight." Hagrid said as he opened the door wider for Professor Dumbledore to enter.  
  
"That's all right Hagrid." Dumbledore said as he entered the shabby cabin.  
  
Hagrid's bed was messy, it seemed that he was already asleep when Dumbledore knocked on the door. There was a warm fire burning in the fireplace and a small pot hanging on a nearby wall. There were several boxes and bags, which Dumbledore knew, were full of spices or tea leaves. And Fang was sitting by Hagrid's bed, his head leaning against his front paws.  
  
"Said you wanted me to do somethin'?" Asked Hagrid as he tried to hide a yawn behind one of his large hands.  
  
"Indeed I do Hagrid. I got word that the Potters are in trouble. I need you to get there as soon as you can." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Yes, sir. But. how can I do that, I can't use magic." Hagrid asked with consternation.  
  
"You can in this occasion, it is an emergency, Hagrid." Hagrid nodded his understanding. "I want you to send me an owl the moment you get there, let me know what the situation is. Stay there until you get word from me. Do you understand, Hagrid?"  
  
"Yes, sir. Will leave in a second, Sir." Hagrid said and started to pace around the hut gathering a few things that he will need.  
  
"Take care Hagrid. If we are too late, meet me at number 4 Privet Drive in Surrey." Dumbledore said and walked out of the hut, making his way quickly to the castle.  
  
The night was silent, the only sound heard was a loud pop as Hagrid disapparated toward Godric's Hollow.  
  
**~~**~~**  
  
It was very dark when Sirius started to descend. He was near the lane that led to the town to Godric's Hollow, the sense of urgency that had driven him from the moment he left Peter's house was getting stronger as he got nearer to the Potters' Cottage.  
  
He turned the corner that opened to the small lane leading to the town. The road was dark, the street lamps that usually lit the way were out and that made him feel very worried. Very worried indeed. The lights from his motorcycle lit his way to town.  
  
Finally, he noticed the outlines of cottages and houses lining the lane. He had reached the middle of town. He knew his way around the place as he had spent many months visiting along with the Potters. Just a little further, he thought, I'll get there soon. He looked around looking for the dense part of the surrounding forest that opened to the path leading to the Potter's cottage.  
  
He saw it, and with a roaring sound, he led his motorcycle toward the place he knew would open to the path. It was a rocky path, it was wide enough to allow a car to pass through as long as there was no car coming from the opposite direction. Both sides of the path were lined by trees, which passed quickly by as Sirius made his way to the cottage.  
  
He glimpsed a dim light coming from the end of the lane. "Hurry, hurry." He whispered as he drove the last mile through the woods.  
  
The road opened before him and a small hill came into view. The cottage that once had stood proudly above it was dark and nearly destroyed, it was a miracle that part of it still stood. The moon shone brightly against the surface of the lake that had been once hidden by the large house. Now it was clearly visible from the lane.  
  
"James!" He whispered. "No!" He screamed as he leapt from the motorcycle and ran toward the house.  
  
A faint pop was heard from the direction of the lane and he turned with his wand held high and ready to protect himself.  
  
"It's me, 'agrid." A gruff voice yelled.  
  
"Hagrid?" Sirius asked lowering his wand.  
  
"Recognized the bike." Hagrid was panting as he ran up the hill. "Dumbledore sent me."  
  
"What happened Hagrid? I just got here." Sirius turned back to look at the house. There was some smoldering and he could clearly see smoke coming from the ruins of what had once been a magnificent structure.  
  
"Dunno. Dumbledore told me to come. Seems he had reason to be worried." Hagrid whispered as he looked at the around the dark building.  
  
"James! Lily!" Sirius started to yell, as he climbed over some fallen stones and wood. He was now in where once had been the entrance hall. He pointed his wand around as he started to put out some the small fires that had begun.  
  
"James! Lily! Harry!" Hagrid and Sirius yelled as both walked through the rubble.  
  
"I don't hear anything Hagrid." Sirius exclaimed feeling angry and sad. His mixed emotions seemed to be getting in control of his mind and he didn't like the feel of it.  
  
"Can't either." Hagrid said gruffly.  
  
Suddenly, a cry rent the silent night.  
  
"Shhh!" Exclaimed Sirius. "Did you hear that?"  
  
"Yeah, what was it?" Whispered Hagrid.  
  
"It came from the bedrooms." Sirius said.  
  
"Are you sure?" Hagrid asked, how could anybody be sure where anything was?  
  
"Yes. Come, this way." Sirius led Hagrid toward the kitchens. The staircase that once stood in the entrance hall was no longer there, and Sirius knew that the only way they could climb up to the second floor was through the service stairs from the kitchens. "Lumos!" He whispered after he stumbled around the debris and he led the way down the darkened hall. Hagrid followed closely behind.  
  
The service stairs seemed intact. Sirius climbed carefully each step, making sure it was strong enough for Hagrid to follow. Slowly, they made their way up the stairs and sighed in relief as soon as they stood in the landing of the second floor.  
  
"The master bedroom is at the end of this corridor. If I know Lily and James, and I do, they must have decorated a room nearby for Harry." Sirius said.  
  
They hear whimpering as they walked closer to what had once been the master bedroom.  
  
At the end of the corridor stood a large oak door, it was open and led to an extravagant looking bedroom.  
  
"Here we are." Whispered Sirius. Hagrid kept looking around and behind him, whishing he was good at magic and could hold a wand in his hand. Sirius walked through the open door, Hagrid close behind him. The bedroom was dark, just as the rest of the house had been, but a dim light seemed to be coming through a side door.  
  
Sirius and Hagrid walked through the room toward the lit room. The whimpering they had heard earlier in the hall was getting stronger.  
  
"Harry!" Sirius called.  
  
"Mama!"  
  
"It's Harry!" Sirius screamed and ran to the side room. He could hear Hagrid running and panting behind him.  
  
The sight that met their eyes made them stumble in the door.  
  
One body lay on the floor. Lifeless. Harry was sitting in the windowsill. His eyes puffy and his cheeks wet with his tears.  
  
"Oh Lily!" Exclaimed Sirius falling on his knees.  
  
Harry cried. But Sirius didn't move, his eyes were focused on Lily's body, tears falling silently down his face.  
  
Hagrid stepped around him in an instant and reached for Harry. "There, there, 'arry. You're fine now." He whispered as he settled Harry in his arms.  
  
The room was silent and only the cries of Harry could be heard through the night.  
  
**~~**~~**  
  
Peter couldn't sleep. He had hidden in an abandoned house in London. Lord Voldemort should have joined him by now. Dawn was creeping over and the Death Eaters would soon apparate to join them. He had a feeling that things had not gone as planned. He didn't know why he felt that way, but he did. Things were not right.  
  
**~~**~~**  
  
Dumbledore paced around his office. The paintings of the Headmasters slept fitfully in their frames, as if somehow sensing the present Headmaster's fitful spirit.  
  
He had hoped that Hagrid's owl had arrived, and the lack of news made him think that perhaps they had been too late.  
  
He looked out the window. Day would soon arrive.  
  
**~~**~~**  
  
Hagrid had managed to take Harry and Sirius out of the bedroom and down the stairs. They were sitting in the remaining chairs in the dinning room. Candles had been lit. He had thought it better to get them out before Sirius did something drastic. The sight of Lily's slain body clearly affected him strongly. Not that it hadn't affected Hagrid as well, but somebody had to take Harry out of that room.  
  
"Oh Lily!" Whispered Sirius as if he could still see her body before him.  
  
"There, there Sirius. We must care for Harry now, he will need us." Hagrid patted Sirius's back as he dried the tears from his own face.  
  
"Harry! Where is Harry?" Sirius started to look around as if he had finally snapped from a hypnotic trance.  
  
"I got 'im." Said Hagrid as he showed the small bundle of clothes where he had wrapped Harry.  
  
Harry was still awake but tears still streamed down his cheeks and hiccupping as he sucked his finger.  
  
"Give him to me Hagrid." Sirius said.  
  
Hagrid passed the sobbing child to Sirius and watched as both, son and friend, mourned the loss of the two best friends and parents he had ever known.  
  
But he couldn't stand there, with nothing to do. He had an owl to send.  
  
Hagrid took a rumpled owl from the pocket of his coat. Next he took out a piece of parchment along with a small bottle of ink and large quill. He wrote quickly and quietly. Finally, he tied the parchment to the owls leg and took it to the window. It was open and the first golden rays could be seen in the horizon. Day would be upon them soon.  
  
He let the owl go and watched as it made its way quickly toward Hogwarts.  
  
He turned to look at Sirius and Harry. Harry had his head snuggled into Sirius' chest. While Sirius, sobbed raggedly above Harry's head.  
  
For several minutes, they stayed like that. Hagrid watched silently feeling a deep sorrow, he knew would never leave him.  
  
Finally, Sirius straightened his back and sat up. He dried his tears with a sleeve of his arms and looked down at Harry, who had finally fallen asleep.  
  
"I'll take care of you Harry, I promise." Sirius whispered.  
  
Hagrid cleared his throat. Sirius looked up in surprised, he seemed to have forgotten that Hagrid was there.  
  
"Shouldn't promise that ye know." Said Hagrid.  
  
"What do you mean?" Asked Sirius looking a little confused.  
  
"I mean to say, Dumbledore will know what to do now." Hagrid said.  
  
"What?" Sirius exclaimed. When Harry stirred in his arms, he whispered. "What does Dumbledore got to do with anything? I'm his godfather."  
  
"But he promised, didn' he. He promised to care for Harry." Hagrid said.  
  
"But I'm his godfather." Said Sirius.  
  
"Yeah, and the next one in line." Said Hagrid as he pointedly looked around the house.  
  
"You are right, until the Death Eaters are imprisoned he is still in danger." Sirius said.  
  
"What about You-Know-Who? Do you reckon that charred lump up there was him." Hagrid shuddered at the memory of it. Beside Lily's body, they found some charred remains. It was difficult to identify, at first he had thought it could've been James, but something about his robes made it clear that it hadn't been James.  
  
"Maybe, but he is not dead." Sirius said. "From what I could see, the body is destroyed but not him."  
  
"What do you mean? You mean he is a ghost?" Hagrid looked around frightened to think that Voldemort would still be around.  
  
"No, he is not a ghost, his essence was somehow separated from his body, he is powerless at the moment but he will return if he gets the chance." Sirius said.  
  
Hagrid shook his head. "Hope he don't."  
  
**~~**~~**  
  
The servants in Gryffindor Manor were woken by a shrill wailing.  
  
"What is going on? What is the meaning of this?" Mrs. Nichols asked as she belted her robes. She was standing in a small corridor, beside an open door, which clearly led to her bedroom. Torches lit the narrow corridor.  
  
"It's the elves Mrs. Nichols, they are wailing and we can't stop them." One of the footmen said after knocking on Roberts' door, which was a few yards away from the housekeepers'.  
  
"What?" Mrs. Nichols looked scared and apprehensive. "It can't be." She whispered.  
  
The footman looked surprised at her reaction but didn't say anything as Roberts' appeared by his bedroom door.  
  
"What is the meaning of this? What is that noise?" Roberts was clearly angry at being woken in such an abrupt manner. "Mrs. Nichols, what is this?"  
  
"Oh Nigel, it's the elves, they are wailing." Mrs. Nichols exclaimed.  
  
The footman was astonished. The butler had always been called by his last name, Roberts, by the masters of the house as well as the servants, that Mrs. Nichols was Mr. Roberts' sister didn't mean that she was exempt from calling him Roberts, in fact this was the first time he had heard the butler's first name since he had joined the Potter Staff. He looked apprehensively at Roberts, he was sure he would lose his temper at being called in such a personal manner. But the surprises weren't over for the young footman.  
  
"Can't be. They are safe. Dumbledore said they would be safe." Roberts said not even bothering to look at the surprised footman.  
  
"Oh Nigel, what does this mean?" Mrs. Nichols was trying to stifle her sobs in a large handkerchief she pulled from her sleeve.  
  
Roberts listened to the wailing for a moment. The house was silent and the wailing was clearly heard through the servant quarters.  
  
"I've only heard that wailing once before." Roberts finally said.  
  
"When Master Alliaster died." Mrs. Nichols sobbed.  
  
Roberts nodded. "I'm afraid that it means Master James is dead." He whispered.  
  
The footman gasped. "But Sir, how can you be sure?"  
  
"Because those are the personal elves that are crying. They are magically connected to their masters, they know when the master is dead." Roberts replied.  
  
"But what about Master Harry?" The footman asked, scared of what this would mean for all of them.  
  
"I don't know, they are only crying for Master James, he was their true master, but Master Harry could've been killed as well." Roberts put his arms around his sister, patting her back as she leaned her head against his chest. Her body shaking with silent sobs. "Go and get me an owl. I'll write to Dumbledore. Send somebody to the elves, they must be calmed, it may take some time." He ordered.  
  
The footman nodded and ran down the corridor.  
  
"There, there Alice, we must see what will happen now." Roberts whispered in her ear.  
  
She nodded, but her sobbing didn't stop.  
  
**~~**~~**  
  
Dumbledore stood by his window looking at the owl he just released flying away from Hogwarts.  
  
He had not expected to receive the worst kind of news imaginable. And now, there were things that he had to attend to. The students would get up soon, but he knew that this day would be remembered for all time.  
  
There was a knock on the door. Dumbledore was surprised. There were a few hours of sleep left, but there was only one person he knew who could possibly be awake at this early hour.  
  
"Come in." He ordered.  
  
Professor McGonagall entered. She was wearing a flannel sleep robes. Her hair was hidden beneath a cap and her feet were encased in a pair of fluffy slippers.  
  
Dumbledore looked at her, his eyebrows raised in question.  
  
"Something wrong, Albus?" She asked without preamble.  
  
"What makes you think so Minerva?" Dumbledore asked.  
  
"I can see your office from my bedroom window Albus, and I haven't seen so many owls flying in and out of here before as I have seen this night." Professor McGonagall said with a frown on her face.  
  
"I just got some news that needed to be attended to." Dumbledore said. He didn't want to talk about what had happened hours before. There were many things that needed to be taken care of and the news would leak out soon enough.  
  
"Couldn't they wait until morning?" Professor McGonagall seemed skeptical.  
  
"No, I needed to do before daylight arrived. I will have to leave Hogwarts for the day Minerva, I know that you will run things appropriately." He said.  
  
Professor McGonagall seemed surprised by this. Why would Albus Dumbledore need to leave for the day? If it had something to do with the Order, he would let her know.  
  
"What is wrong Albus?" She asked.  
  
Dumbledore shook his head. "I need to get things ready Minerva. I'll see you on my return."  
  
Minerva McGonagall knew when she was being dismissed. She nodded and walked out of the Headmaster's office. She knew that something had happened. But what could it have been? And why was Dumbledore sending Hagrid to Number 4 Privet Drive in Surrey?  
  
She had seen Dumbledore go to Hagrid's hut earlier. She was too late to learn the reason for the visit, but she did hear Dumbledore saying something about number 4 Privet Drive in Little Whinging, Surrey. If that's where Dumbledore was going, that's where she would go.  
  
**~~**~~**  
  
The first streams of daylight were appearing in the horizon when Hagrid saw an owl standing by the rubble in what had once been the entrance hall.  
  
Sirius had stayed in the kitchen, watching Harry sleep upon the table with Hagrid's coat around him to keep him from falling.  
  
Hagrid took the owl in his large hands and took the letter that it carried in its beak. The owl flapped his wings and flew out of sight moments later.  
  
Hagrid opened the letter. It contained Dumbledore's orders.  
  
"Take Harry to Number 4 Privet Drive in Little Whinging, Surrey as we had discussed. I will meet you there, Harry must stay with what remains of his family."  
  
Hagrid took his large red handkerchief from one of his pockets and blew his nose. The thought of Little Harry made him sad. So much had happened to the Potter family and to have it end like this was tragic.  
  
"At least 'e's gone now." He whispered. "You-Know-Who won't bother 'arry now."  
  
He walked back to the kitchen. Sirius was still sitting by the table, looking down on the sleeping toddler. Harry seemed so peaceful as he slept, as if the horrors of the night were just that and would die with the beginning of daylight.  
  
"Gotta take him now." Hagrid's gruff voice startled Sirius from his pensive mood.  
  
"Where? Where are you taking him?" Sirius asked, he didn't want to let Harry go. He was his godfather, he thought, I should be caring for him. But he understood why Dumbledore needed to take him. The Death Eaters were still on the loose and after this night's work they will be after Harry looking for a way to bring Voldemort back.  
  
"Litte Whinging in Surrey, to his aunt's house." Hagrid said. He enveloped Harry in some blankets.  
  
Harry, woken by the movement, started to cry. "Mama!" He wailed.  
  
"Shh! Harry." Sirius said taking Harry from Hagrid's arms. "You'll be alright."  
  
Harry whimpered.  
  
"You can't take him to Petunia. She will not care for him as I would." Sirius exclaimed.  
  
"But he needs to be with family. Dumbledore said so." Hagrid said.  
  
"I don't care what Dumbledore says. Harry cannot go to that woman." Sirius raged. Harry was starting to fuss.  
  
"Dumbledore promised Lily and James that if anything happened, he would take care of Harry." Hagrid tried to sound patient, but daylight was coming and he needed to be out of Godric's Hollow, with Harry, before anybody noticed what had happened during the night.  
  
"And they chose me to be his godfather. In case you don't know Hagrid, a godfather takes the place of the father in cases such as this." Snapped Sirius.  
  
"But Harry will be safer with the muggles. Dumbledore will take care of that. You want him safe don't you?" Hagrid argued patiently.  
  
Sirius thought about it for a minute. The sun was starting to peak in the horizon. Daylight was streaming through the area and smoke could be seen from some of the chimneys of the surrounding houses.  
  
Sirius sighed with resignation. "I suppose you're right. There are things I need to take care of anyways and it will be better if he stays with Petunia until everything has been taken care of." Sirius said. He had come to a decision, he needed to look for Peter, he was not going to leave James and Lily's death go unpunished.  
  
"Give 'im 'ere Sirius. It'll take me long enough to reach Surrey. Don't know where to get transportation." Hagrid grumbled as Sirius passed Harry to Hagrid.  
  
"How are you getting him there?" Asked Sirius as he grudgingly settled Harry into Hagrid's arms.  
  
"Dunno yet. I have to walk out of the village before anybody comes nossin' around. I s'pose I can take cart or something once I get to a larger town." Hagrid said as he settled Harry into his coat.  
  
Harry was fussing and crying for "Mama" as Hagrid tried to comfort him.  
  
"Take my bike, I won't be needing it anymore." Said Sirius.  
  
Hagrid looked up in surprise. "Are you sure?"  
  
"Yes, you need it more than I do and I have things to do. The bike will not be of use to me." Sirius responded. "It will take you the whole day to get there, but it will be safer than if you go around looking for transformation. The Death Eaters will be out in full force once word of this gets out, Harry will be in danger once it is clear that he survived and Voldemort didn't." Sirius didn't bother to acknowledge Hagrid's wince at hearing Voldemort's name, he was to used to it by now, most people didn't like hearing or saying his name, it was only a small group that did so.  
  
"If you're sure." Hagrid was looking forward to riding that bike. That motorcycle had been the envy of so many for years and the idea of him flying on it was thrilling.  
  
"Take it, make sure he gets there safe." He leaned to see Harry, cocooned in blankets between the lapels of Hagrid's coat. "Be happy Harry." He whispered. "I'll look over you, and so will Lily and James." He kissed Harry's cheek and with a faint pop disapparated.  
  
"Come Harry, need to get you to your aunt's." Hagrid said as he left behind the rubble that had once been the Potter Cottage in Godric's Hollow.  
  
The roar of a motor was heard echoing through the woods. Many people in the sleepy village of Godric's Hollow were awakened by the sound. Some, who had been out of doors at an early hour, made their way to the Potter Cottage where they could see smoke coming. The sight that met their eyes was one of tragic and horror.  
  
As the morning progressed news of the Potter's death reached every corner of the village. Those of wizarding blood knew how it had come about, and the fact that little Harry was not found in the ruins was testimony that Dumbledore had taken him to a safe place. Owls were seen flying out of the outskirts of the village and word spread like wild fire.  
  
**~~**~~**  
  
Dumbledore received many owls as the morning progressed. He responded none, except one.  
  
It was close to ten that morning when Dumbledore appeared in the front door of Gryffindor Manor.  
  
Tenants could be seen shuffling around the extensive grounds of the estate and gardeners were working diligently getting rid of the fallen leaves that covered the grounds.  
  
Seconds after his knock, the door opened and a saddened Roberts appeared. Roberts usually wore a black suit that had been presented by the Potters when he first became their butler. Black coat and slacks and a black tie around the neck of a starched white shirt. But on this morning his attire differed in one thing, instead of the white shirt he wore a black shirt.  
  
"Is it true?" He asked instead of his usual greeting.  
  
"I'm sorry to say that it is." Dumbledore replied.  
  
A deep sigh escaped Roberts, he had hoped that it wasn't that the magic Dumbledore had performed on the personal elves to keep them away from Master James had broken the bond that united them to their master, that they were wrong and Master James had not been killed, only hurt.  
  
"And Master Harry?" Roberts dreaded the answer.  
  
"He is alive, he survived Voldemort's attack." Dumbledore responded.  
  
Roberts sagged with relief. The Potter name was not lost and the family had a future after all.  
  
"Perhaps we should speak inside. I'm sure Mrs. Nichols must be worried as well." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Oh yes, of course. Come in Professor, perhaps you should wait in the parlor, I'll get Alice." He led Professor Dumbledore to the front parlor and then hurried to find his sister.  
  
Dumbledore looked around the room. It was the same as it had been the last time he had been in it. Frames with muggle pictures stood on top of the mantel. Pictures of Harry, Lily and James were abundant, but he could also see a few of Mrs. Potter and Mrs. Evans as well as some of the twins.  
  
Dumbledore sighed, almost all of the people in those pictures were now dead. Harry was the only survivor.  
  
He heard the sound of heavy footsteps coming toward the parlor, and the swishing sound of heavy skirts. Roberts and Mrs. Nichols were almost upon him.  
  
The door opened promptly and Mrs. Nichols shuffled into the room followed closely by Roberts.  
  
Mrs. Nichols was sobbing softly into a pristine white handkerchief. Mr. Roberts placed his arm around her and led him to one of the chairs.  
  
"She has been like this since the elves awoke the household with their wailing." Explained Roberts as Professor Dumbledore sat near the sobbing housekeeper.  
  
"There, there Mrs. Nichols, we are all saddened that it happened, but we must keep in mind that Young Harry is alive and well." Dumbledore said patting one of Mrs. Nichols' hands.  
  
"Oh, are you bringing him here? When is he arriving?" Mrs. Nichols asked as she dried the tears from her eyes.  
  
"I'm sorry Mrs. Nichols, but the Manor is not safe for Harry at this moment. Voldemort has disappeared but he was not defeated and as long as he can return Harry must be safe." Dumbledore said.  
  
"But you can do something that will keep him safe. This is his home, this is all his now, and he must learn how to take care of it now that Master James is not here." Mrs. Nichols exclaimed.  
  
"What I can do is not enough, Mrs. Nichols, the only thing that can keep him safe now is what protected him against Voldemort's attack. And that was his mother. She died trying to keep him safe, and it is her bloodline that will continue to do so. That means that Harry must go to her sister to be safe." Dumbledore explained.  
  
"Oh, but you cannot take him to that woman! They will not take care of him, they will treat him bad, I'm certain." Mrs. Nichols gasped. How could Dumbledore think of sending Master Harry to that woman?  
  
"Nevertheless, that's where he needs to be. As long as he is with his mother's blood, Voldemort cannot touch him. There are spells already in place that protect them from the Death Eaters, he will be safer there than anywhere else." Dumbledore said.  
  
"And he will able to grow up as a normal child." Said Roberts.  
  
"Nigel! How can you possibly say that?" Mrs. Nichols asked in shock to her brother.  
  
"Alice, just think of what this day means. You-Know-Who is finally gone, and Master Harry brought that to pass. This will not be a secret for long, I would be surprised if by this afternoon the whole Wizarding World does not know of it. He will be famous, people are bound to come here trying to catch a sight of him, you know they will. If he grows up with the Muggles, he will have the chance to grow up a normal child, no worries of what the Death Eaters could do to him, or trying to hide from reporters of curious people trying to meet him." Roberts said, he watched the family pictures on the mantel as he talked. He could remember what it was like for Master James when he grew up, and imagined how different it would be for Master Harry if he returned to Gryffindor Manor.  
  
"But what about his heritage, his inheritance. There is so much that he needs to learn and so much for him to do." Mrs. Nichols wailed. She didn't like the idea of not having Master Harry in the Manor, she had looked forward to seeing him grow up.  
  
"I think it would be a good idea if we contact James' solicitor, he will tell us what we need to know about the Potter finances and estate, but I assume that James made plans of every contingency and that the estate and all the Potter inheritance will be kept in trust until Harry is old enough to step into his father's shoes." Dumbledore said.  
  
"It is best if we do so. I also think Master James must have left orders to that effect. Master Harry is too young to understand the importance of his inheritance." Roberts said, agreeing with Dumbledore.  
  
"Very well, if that is what is best." Mrs. Nichols sighed with resignation.  
  
Dumbledore relaxed, he thought he would have a longer fight in his hands the moment he spoke of his plans for Harry. "Very well, I will make arrangements for Harry. He will be at his aunt's house no later than tomorrow morning. The spell retaining the elves to the grounds around the estate is still intact even if James is no longer their master. They will not be able to join Harry until that time he learns of the worth of his inheritance." Dumbledore directed.  
  
Roberts and Mrs. Nichols nodded their understanding. The elves were still disconsolate even though their wailing had long stopped.  
  
"I will return after Harry has been delivered to Petunia Dursley and we will contact the solicitors and see what orders James left in place." Dumbledore stood up. Mrs. Nichols and Roberts stood with him. "Don't worry, he will be safe now."  
  
"Thank you Professor, we know Master Harry will be safe in your hands." Roberts said. Mrs. Nichols has begun to cry anew; her crisp, white handkerchief clutched tightly in her hands.  
  
Soon after, Dumbledore was gone and Mrs. Nichols was sobbing silently against her brother's disarrayed suit.  
  
**~~**~~**  
  
Sirius apparated in an alley in the middle of London. He had an idea of where Peter could've gone after reporting to Voldemort.  
  
How was I so stupid? Sirius thought angrily. How could I have turned James and Lily into his hands? How was I supposed to think that Peter would have been the better choice? But I did, I actually thought he was a friend. Of the four of us, Remus seemed the better placed to betray us.  
  
"I'm sorry Remus, I'm sorry I thought you could betray James and Lily." Sirius whispered as he walked briskly through the streets. People looked at him askance. He looked wild, his hair tangled and his clothes dirty. But Sirius didn't notice or would've cared if he had.  
  
"Come, don't get near him." A woman hissed to her boy as Sirius walked by them. The boy looked curiously at the passing Sirius as the woman pulled him away by his arm.  
  
Sirius walked through the crowded city, and it wasn't long when he spied the figure of the man he was looking for.  
  
"Peter!" Sirius yelled across the street.  
  
Peter looked back, a look of terror written across his face. "Sirius!" He whispered to himself.  
  
He had known that after Voldemort's visit to Godric's Hollow, he would have to deal with Sirius and Remus, but he had planned to be with Voldemort, and he would protect him. Now he was alone. Voldemort was gone and Sirius was out for his blood.  
  
After he had heard the whispers around the city of what had happened at Godric's Hollow the night before, Peter had wandered around the city trying to find out the latest news. For the first time in history the wizarding world had come out of hiding attracting some attention from Muggles, something that the Ministry of Magic was not happy about. Cloaked wizards and witches were seen in groups in the sidewalks of the city talking about what had happened the night the before. The names of James, Lily and Harry Potter had become household names.  
  
"Poor little Harry, what will happen to him?" Wizards wondered.  
  
Peter didn't know what would happen now. The Death Eaters were out in droves but the Ministry, for once, had agents all over the country and many of Voldemort's followers were being killed or captured. He knew it wasn't going to be long before his name was linked to the Potter's death but Sirius was his greatest threat.  
  
As he stood across the street, watching Sirius coming nearer to him, a plan started to form in his mind. If he pulled it off, he would be free.  
  
People around them looked wary some sensed that a fight was about to start, and by the look of them, the tall wild looking man had the better chance of winning than the short wimpy looking one.  
  
Sirius bared his teeth in anger and advanced toward Peter.  
  
Peter started to sob, surreptitiously, he took out his wand and placed it behind him. Sirius was advancing, his wand clasped tightly in his hand.  
  
"Lily and James, Sirius! How could you?" Peter screamed and made as if going for his wand.  
  
A moment later an explosion erupted from where Peter had once stood. Muggles around them screamed, some were caught in the explosion and others ran. Sirius stood rooted. As the smoke cleared only Peter's clothing remained on the floor and muggle bodies littered the street.  
  
Sirius was horror struck until he saw a fat rat scurrying trough the bodies and escaping through the crater that had appeared in the middle of the street and leading to the sewers. He chuckled, then his booming laughter filled the air. Muggles were screaming and crying, as bodies lay deathly still around them  
  
Popping sounds filled the air as agents of the Department of Magical Catastrophes started to apparate around the area. Obliviators soon made their appearance as well as members of the Department of Magical Enforcement.  
  
Sirius didn't say a thing, he laughed and looked down at the crater where his former friend had disappeared through. He knew that things looked bad for him, but he didn't care. Lily and James were gone, and Harry was safe with Petunia. Dumbledore would keep him safe, that was all that mattered.  
  
Hit wizards walked toward Sirius cautiously. They looked warily at him as he stood laughing, finally, one of the hit man was brave enough to get hold of Sirius' arm. Sirius' didn't move. The others took courage and soon they were seen leading him from the area.  
  
**~~**~~**  
  
Professor McGonagall left the school at an early hour. She knew that Dumbledore was visiting Privet Drive that night, and Hagrid was going to meet him there. But why, she didn't know, and she didn't like the idea of being left in the dark. The moment she stepped out of the castle, she turned into her animagus form.  
  
A few minutes later, a tabby was seen leaving the Hogwarts' grounds and making its way south.  
  
The cat stopped now and then as groups of cloaked people were seen through the cities and towns it passed. The cat glared at the groups as if it didn't agree with their appearance, but it listened attentively at the news they whispered among themselves.  
  
Professor McGonagall apparated and disapparated in alleys throughout the cities and towns she passed, transfigured into her animagus form before stepping out of the alleys, she walked around the crowded streets, listening before finding another alley to disapparate from.  
  
She finally found her way to Surrey, and in her animagus form she started to look for Little Whigging. She walked through the awaking streets. Cars were pulling from their driveways as the inhabitants made their way to work. She stopped now and then to check the names of the streets. Finally, she spotted Privet Drive. Now all she had to look for was the house with the number four on its door. Just as she found Privet Drive, she saw a car drive by. A beefy man with a large mustache was behind the wheel. The man looked at the cat standing in the corner to Privet Drive. The cat looked back. The man shook his head as if clearing his head.  
  
Professor McGonagall looked away from the car and looked down Privet Drive and started to make her way down the street.  
  
Number four Privet Drive was a tidy looking house. Large bushes of plants stood in the garden lining the wall, the beg hedges around the back yard were clearly seen and the grass looked healthy and well taken care of. There was a small wall at each side of the garden.  
  
The cat climbed up to the wall and sat looking in through the windows.  
  
Everything seemed in order even though the screams and cries of an infant could be clearly heard through the house.  
  
Professor McGonagall shook her head. Why on earth did Dumbledore think he was doing?  
  
**~~**~~**  
  
The day progressed and the news of what had happened the night before had been spread through every corner of the wizarding world. Parties broke out in several towns and cities, celebrating the end of the darkest time in anybody's memory. Harry Potter became a well known name and toasts were said in his honor constantly in pubs and homes everywhere.  
  
Professor Dumbledore had started to make his way to Little Whinging apparating now and then in towns and cities along the way to see how matter stood in the wizarding community. He was hailed several times by partying groups hoping to get information from him. He declined to join them. The day was progressing rapidly and he wanted to have Harry settled as soon as possible. He had sent an owl to Little Whinging before he left, things were now set for the coming evening and Hagrid was making his way with Harry.  
  
He knew people were eager for news, so far, everything was very vague. The Daily Prophet had printed the bare facts along with some speculations. But the truth was, nobody knew what had really happened in Godric's Hollow the night before, and the only one who could was not old enough to do so and it would be something that Harry would forget as he grew older.  
  
Night started to fall. The celebrations continued. Muggles were noticing things although the majority just turned a blind eye to it all. Everything had a logical explanation after all.  
  
**~~**~~**  
  
Privet Drive had been quiet the whole day, except for those times when Petunia Dursley took out her son in his carriage toward the grocery store and later the park.  
  
The cat on the garden wall cringed every time the piercing cries rent the air. How a child could make that much noise, she didn't know.  
  
Unknown to Professor McGonagall, the house was being watched by another cat. Across the street from number four, hidden beneath the trailing plants in number three, a small cat lay quietly looking across to number four. It had perked up when Professor McGonagall had made her appearance. But nothing had happened, the new cat in Privet Drive just sat on the wall and looked into number four.  
  
Afternoon arrived and everybody returned from work. Children played in the streets for hours before being called in for dinner. But soon, it started to get dark and the streetlights were turned on. The dim lights of room lamps blinked behind the curtained windows and the sound of the televisions in each living room could be heard.  
  
Night was falling and the small cat quietly made its way out from the plants and left Privet Drive.  
  
Professor McGonagall stayed on the wall. She sat stiffly waiting for night to fall. She didn't even moved when the beefy man returned and tried to shoo her away. She saw him enter the house and later heard the sound of conversation from the dinning room.  
  
Night continued to fall. Dinner was obviously over in 4 Privet Drive as the sound of a television was heard from the living room and the last reports from the news came on.  
  
"And finally, bird-watchers everywhere have reported that the nation's owls have been behaving very unusually today. Although owls normally hunt at night and are hardly ever seen in daylight, there have been hundreds of sightings of these birds flying in every direction since sunrise. Experts are unable to explain why the owls have suddenly changed their sleeping pattern." The reporter's voice reached Professor McGonagall outside. She wanted to groan and shake her head, but she was so stiff from sitting on the wall for so long she didn't want to break her equilibrium. "Most mysterious. And now, over to Jim McGuffin with the weather. Going to be any more showers of owls tonight, Jim?"  
  
Professor McGonagall tried to shift her aching muscles while trying to hear what else the news reporter had to say.  
  
"Well Ted," said the weatherman, "I don't know about that, but it's not only the owls that have been acting oddly today. Viewers as far apart as Kent, Yorkshire, and Dundee have been phoning in to tell me that instead of the rain I promised yesterday, they've had a downpour of shooting stars! Perhaps people have been celebrating Bonfire Night early - it's not until next week, folks! But I can promise a wet night tonight."  
  
McGonagall was angry. How could they? She thought, how could they be so stupid as to allow themselves to act in such a way. Of course muggles were going to notice anything uncommon. Right time to leave secrecy behind just when it seemed that You-Know-Who was finally gone.  
  
It wasn't long after the news were over that she heard the Dursleys retiring to bed. It would be soon now, she thought, Dumbledore will make his appearance soon enough.  
  
She continued to sit stiffly on the wall as one by one all the lights inside the rooms of every house in Privet Drive were turned off and the only lights left were those of the street lamps. Professor McGonagall turned to look toward the opposite corner, where she was positive Dumbledore would make his appearance.  
  
**~~**~~**  
  
Dumbledore arrived at Little Whinging just as the sun was setting, but it was too early still to go to Privet Drive. Instead, he appeared in a small house in nearby Wisteria Walk.  
  
"I have been waiting the whole day!" I tiny old woman exclaimed the moment he apparated in a living room full of cats.  
  
"I imagined you would be." Chuckled Dumbledore as he watched the old lady pace around the room.  
  
"Where is he, where is Harry?" She asked as Dumbledore took the only seat that was not covered with cats.  
  
"He is on his way. Don't worry Arabella." Dumbledore said as an orange cat jumped on his lap and rubbed its head against his hand.  
  
"Humph!" Sniffed Mrs. Figg. "What is going to happen now?"  
  
"He will stay with the Dursleys. It's the only way he can stay safe, he will be out of danger if he stays here." Dumbledore said.  
  
"What makes you so sure of that? It seems to me that those gits have no sense of family honor, they will not want him here with them." Said Mrs. Figg.  
  
"Don't worry, I will make sure he stays." Dumbledore said.  
  
Mrs. Figg looked skeptical but didn't reply. Night was falling.  
  
"What do I have to do once he is with them?" she said instead.  
  
"Keep an eye on him. Attract their attention if you must, get close to them, just enough for them to trust you with his care if they leave home. We must know where he is at all times." Dumbledore said.  
  
Mrs. Figg nodded. "I had Mr. Tibbles keep an eye on the house the whole day, he says nothing has happened, except for a cat sitting on their wall."  
  
"A cat?" Dumbledore asked distracted.  
  
"Yes, it appeared on the wall early in the morning. Dursley had barely left for work when it did." Mrs. Figg said.  
  
"Hmmm."  
  
Night had finally fallen and the other houses were dark.  
  
"I'll send you further information later. But remember, keep an eye on Harry from now own." Said Dumbledore before he disapparated.  
  
Darkness had fallen quietly to Privet Drive. The houses were dark and all its inhabitants were sleeping peacefully in their beds. The only creature stirring was the cat that continued to sit on the Dursleys' garden wall.  
  
Silently a man appeared in the far corner.  
  
Mrs. Figg had left her home as soon as Dumbledore had disapparated and crossed the alley that made the shortcut between Wisteria Walk to Magnolia Crescent. She walked briskly in the darkness, one small kitten following close behind. In Magnolia Crescent she turned to Privet Drive and hid behind a hedge in the corner just in time to see Dumbledore put out the lights in the streetlamps.  
  
She peered closely trying to see what was happening. Soon, her eyes got accustomed to the darkness and could see Dumbledore talking to a witch sitting on the Dursleys' garden wall.  
  
"Who is that Mr. Tibbles, I can't see who it is." She whispered.  
  
A soft "Meow!" was heard at her side.  
  
"Hmmm? The cat you say? Well I only know of one person who can transfigure into a cat and that's Professor McGonagall." Mrs. Figg whispered and continued looking toward the couple that was clearly in deep conversation.  
  
Suddenly, a roar was heard from the sky. Mrs. Figg looked startled into the sky and saw a flying motorcycle making its way to Privet Drive.  
  
"Fool!" She exclaimed. "He is going to wake everybody up." And she looked at the surrounding houses dreading to see any light coming from any of them. But she didn't see a sliver of light.  
  
The motorcycle landed in front of 4 Privet Drive. Dumbledore and McGonagall were now standing nearby. A gigantic man stepped from the bike.  
  
"Meow?"  
  
"It's Hagrid." Mrs. Figg said. "How could Dumbledore trusted Harry into his care? It's not that he is mean-spirited but let's face it he is not one of the most careful of men."  
  
She saw Hagrid handing a bundle of clothes to Dumbledore. "Harry." She whispered as Hagrid started to wail and McGonagall shushed him. Dumbledore spoke, she was too far away to hear what he had said but she tried to strain her hearing to see if she could catch something. But she couldn't. The group in the garden turned to the door in number 4 and Dumbledore placed the bundle on the front steps.  
  
It was done. Harry was now in his aunt's care.  
  
Mrs. Figg saw Dumbledore leaving a letter among the blankets before they all left Privet Drive behind as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.  
  
Mrs. Figg left her hiding place in silence and walked toward the bundles laying silently on the steps of number 4. She kneeled beside them and watched a sleeping child within.  
  
"Hello Harry." She whispered.  
  
The infant stirred as the night started to get chilly.  
  
Mrs. Figg took Harry into her arms and tried to keep him warm. Harry didn't wake but eventually settled to sleep peacefully not knowing that his name was now famous and that the years to come would be different now that his parents were not at his side.  
  
Sunrise was near when Mrs. Figg left the steps of number 4 and walked back to the corner where she had hidden earlier.  
  
She signs of the neighbors stirring within the houses, it wouldn't be long before the Dursleys found their nephew at their door. She hid once more and looked toward number 4. She could see the bundle of blankets on the steps and could see the curtains being drawn in the house.  
  
She stilled when she saw the door open and cringed when a scream rent the air.  
  
Windows and doors were opened all around the street, hoping to see the source of the scream, but Petunia had taken Harry into the house and the door had been closed. Mrs. Figg sighed with relief and looked down at the small kitten at her side. "Stay here. Keep an eye on them."  
  
"Meow!"  
  
She nodded and walked briskly back to Wisteria Walk.  
  
**~~**~~**  
  
A/N: That's it, the first Chapter, as some of you may have noticed that part where McGonagall was listening to the news was from The Sorcerer's Stone Chapter 1. I was thinking of how I'm going to break this part down and I decided that I'm going to write a chapter for each year until Harry's sixth year at Hogwarts, so that makes this Part 16 chapters long, unless I have to divide a year into two chapters. We'll see. I appreciate all the reviews, specially from all the new readers, I like to know that new people are finding my story and liking it. The next couple of weeks are going to keep me away from the computer. My days are busy lately and my schedule full, but I'll write whenever I get the chance and I'll upload it as soon as I have it ready. I'm going to keep this story in the section of Lily and James until we get to Harry's Sixth Year. Right now it's going to be very general so it doesn't make sense to change it yet. Let me know what you think about that, I know some of you agreed that I should change it to Harry but I don't know yet if I should as this is not going to be a HP/HG story nor a HP/GW and although I like Ron and Hermione together I want to focus more on Harry. Oh well, I still have time to decide. Please review! 


	46. Part IV Chapter 2

A/N: Thank you all for waiting so patiently for the next chapter, I truly appreciate all your comments and your ideas. Sorry I took so long but I have been truly busy in the last couple of months. But, I'm finally here and the second chapter is done, I hope you like it.  
  
~*~*~*~*~ Disclaimer: The Harry Potter World belongs to JK Rowling, I just happened to have borrowed it for this story.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
Chapter 2 ~ Starting Anew  
  
Petunia was startled to find a bundle of clothes on her doorstep, but what she found inside was more shocking.  
  
Her nephew, Harry Potter, had been left in her care and she didn't know what to do. A letter had been found among his clothes, addressed to her. The news that her sister and her husband were dead took her by surprise. Even though they didn't get along, and it had been some time since they spoke, Lily was her sister and the only living relative she had. But now, it wasn't so. She was alone. Only Harry remained now.  
  
She was in shock as she sat speechless in the kitchen. Harry had been placed in the middle of the table as Dudley sat on his high chair poking him with a spoon. Vernon was pacing around the room, pulling his hair and mumbling to himself.  
  
"We should've guessed that they would end in such a way. Weirdoes the whole lot of them." Vernon was mumbling. "But that they would think that we would take their spawn!"  
  
"But the letter said." Petunia said snapping out of her thoughts.  
  
"Doesn't matter what the letter says. We should take him to an orphanage, I tell you." Vernon roared. "And that's too good for him."  
  
"But he is my nephew." Petunia whispered looking at Harry. He was lying quietly on the table, his startled green eyes looking around the strange room. He has Lily's eyes, she thought and sighed.  
  
The letter that she had found along with her nephew was clasped tightly in her hand. She looked down and read it again.  
  
"Dear Mrs. Dursley  
  
I am sorry to let you know of the death of your sister, Lily Potter. Her death was unexpected and violent, but by her sacrifice she kept her son safe from harm. I leave him in your care now. As long as he is within your household, he and your family will be safe from harm. The magic that protects him will be stronger as long as he is with you. I warn you that in order for your family to be safe from harm, Harry must stay with you.  
  
This night's work will make Harry a well known personality in the wizarding world, eventually he will be expected to take his place in it and follow in his father's footsteps. Until that time, I am sure that you will do what is necessary for his well being.  
  
Remember my warning, keep Harry safe.  
  
Albus Dumbledore"  
  
Petunia didn't know what to say. It was also a matter of family honor that made her want to keep Harry with her, but if his presence kept her family safe, that was even better. There was also the matter of his inheritance. As the last of his family, Harry was due to inherit a fortune. Something that could make Vernon think better of taking him to an orphanage.  
  
"Vernon?" She said.  
  
"Hmmm?" He turned to look at her. His temper had gotten the best of him from the moment he had seen Harry in Petunia's arms.  
  
"What do you think will happen to his inheritance?" She asked.  
  
Vernon's eyes danced with greed. "It is enormous isn't it? Your mother's share is just a drop compared to what he could have now."  
  
"As Mother left all of her fortune to Lily, I must assume that Lily left her to her son. The paintings alone are worth more than fifty million pounds, and that's only part of what her total worth was." Petunia said.  
  
"And your brother-in-law was swimming in gold. You saw their house in London, and I remember hearing that there are other properties." Vernon said with glee.  
  
Petunia nodded. "There is the country Estate, Gryffindor Manor, and some minor properties throughout the country."  
  
"It seems to me that as his guardians we have the right to some of it." Vernon said.  
  
"But we don't know how, the letter doesn't say anything about those type of arrangements." Petunia exclaimed.  
  
"Makes no matter. We can contact your Mother's former solicitor. He must have the name of the man in charge of the Potters' estate." Vernon said with energy. He liked the thought of being Harry's guardian, living in the Potter's House in London would give his social status a boost. There would be clients lined up to make business with him.  
  
Petunia turned to look at her nephew once more. He was so quiet that if it hadn't been for Dudley's grunts trying to hit him she would've forgotten he was there.  
  
~*~*~*~*~ The very next day Petunia and Vernon made their way to London in search of Mrs. Evans' former solicitor.  
  
"Do you remember where is his office?" Petunia asked as they drove by several buildings where several names of Law Firms could be seen.  
  
"I think it's that small one at the corner." Said Vernon as he navigated the car through the rushing traffic. "With who did you leave the boy?"  
  
"Mrs. Figg. I saw her walking one of her cats and I asked. She accepted, but she said she wasn't going to tolerate any infant to bother her cats." Petunia said as she glanced to the back seat where Dudly was safely strapped.  
  
"Hmmm. That will keep him in control. I reckon that we can beat that dangerous thing out of him." Vernon said as he turned into a parking lot by the building at the corner.  
  
Petunia didn't think it was possible, but it was better not to speak of it.  
  
The building was small, but elegant. Unlike the rest of the buildings in the area, which were all modern and reached great heights, this building was obviously old. The stone was carved with figures that neither Vernon nor Petunia knew what they were. The doors were thick and polished and a porter sat beside them greeting all the visitors.  
  
"Good Morning Sir, Ma'am." He greeted them as they entered the cool hall. "Something I can help you with?"  
  
"Yes, we are looking for a Mr. Nikolei. A solicitor." Vernon said as Petunia tried to shush Dudley, who had began to fuss in her arms.  
  
"Mr. Nikolei's office is in the third floor, Sir. Suite 305 it is." The porter said motioning to the elevator at the end of the hall.  
  
"Thank you." Said Vernon and led Petunia down the hall to the open elevator.  
  
Their steps resonated through the hall as they walked. The colorful tile on the floor shone underneath them.  
  
They took the elevator and Vernon pushed the button for the third floor. There was a slight motion when the elevator started to climb and it stopped very abruptly a few seconds later.  
  
"What was that number again?" Asked Vernon as they stepped out of the lift.  
  
"Suite 305." Said Petunia as settled Dudley more comfortably in her arms.  
  
"301, 302, 303." Vernon read as they walked down the corridor looking for the office they needed. "Aha, 305!" He exclaimed the moment he saw the number.  
  
On the door was the name "Adolphus Nikolei, Solicitor." It was made out of a thick frosted glass with a wooden frame. Just like all the others they had seen so far. Vernon opened the door and they found themselves in a well-appointed sitting room.  
  
There were comfortable looking chairs and sofas around the room. On the walls were colorful paintings depicting tranquil landscapes and fun sceneries of country life. Across from the door was a desk and behind it, another door.  
  
"Good morning, can I help you?" Said a middle aged woman sitting behind the desk.  
  
"We are here to see Mr. Nikolei." Said Vernon standing straight and looking down at the woman who was obviously Mr. Nikolei's secretary.  
  
"Do you have an appointment?" She asked.  
  
Vernon looked as if he was outraged. "No we don't." He snapped. As if a man in his position had to make an appointment to see a solicitor.  
  
"In that case, please take a seat. Mr. Nikolei is with a client right now. I'll ask him if he can see you today. What is your name?" She said paying no attention to the Dursleys at all.  
  
"Dursley." Vernon said as Petunia took a seat and started to feed Dudley.  
  
"I will let him know you are waiting when he finishes." She said as she made notes in her appointment book without turning to look at the Dursleys at all.  
  
Vernon sniffed with indignation. He was not pleased. "Can you believe this service? Making us wait as if we were nobodies."  
  
Petunia nodded her agreement but didn't say anything as she kept her attention on Dudley.  
  
"I hope he is not long, Dudley will need to nap soon. He always naps after eating." Petunia said.  
  
"Humph! As the service is not one of the best, I would not be surprised if they made us wait for hours." Vernon said.  
  
"Oh dear, I hope not." Whispered Petunia as she took a second bottle from her bag, one was not enough for Dudley.  
  
They didn't have long to wait. Minutes after their arrival a couple left the inner office and with a "Thank you Marie" they left the office.  
  
The secretary stood from the desk and went inside with her appointment book in her hands. She closed the door behind her as the entered the inner office.  
  
Vernon was getting impatient, while Petunia busied herself with putting away the empty bottles and settling Dudley firmly in her arms.  
  
A few minutes later the secretary returned to the sitting room. "You can enter now, he will see you." She said.  
  
"Finally." Snapped Vernon and led Petunia into Mr. Nikolei's office.  
  
The office was very spacious. There were bookcases all along the wall, where different books in law were easily seen. Behind Mr. Nikolei's desk was a large file cabinet with drawers clearly labeled with each letter of the alphabet.  
  
"Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, welcome. How can I help you?" Greeted them Mr. Nikolei. He looked just as they remembered him. An older man, in his mid fifties, with gray hair, weather beaten face, dressed in a black suit and tie with a starched white shirt. There were a few papers on his desk, but they seemed to contain only notes.  
  
"We are here because of .of.er." Vernon looked at his wife pleadingly, what should he say?  
  
"Because of my sister." Petunia said and Vernon sighed gratefully.  
  
"Ah, I see." Mr. Nikolei said as he turned to take a file from his cabinet. "Potter, Potter." They heard him whisper as he flipped through the folders. Finally, he located the one he wanted and turned back to settle in his chair. "Yes, I got the news yesterday. Very sad, very sad indeed." He shook his head in sadness. "I gather their son is well." He looked closely at the Dursleys.  
  
"Of course he is well." Snapped Vernon.  
  
Mr. Nikolei nodded and read through his notes in the file. "Yes, he will be well taken care of." He said.  
  
"What is happening with the inheritance?" Vernon asked abruptly. "I assume that as his guardian we must move to the house here in London."  
  
Mr. Nikolei's eyebrows went up so fast that they looked like a pair of caterpillars dancing excitedly. "Well, no." He said.  
  
"What do you mean No?" Vernon seemed to have been taken aback.  
  
"Harry's inheritance will be kept in trust until he comes of age. Mr. Potter's instructions were very clear. All the properties, monies and accounts will be kept in trust and tied up in investments until his son became of age. Mr. Potter's solicitor and myself along with some others will act as his trustees until that time it is deemed opportune for him to take the reins of his inheritance." Mr. Nikolei said.  
  
"Do you mean that I'm expected to clothe, and feed him from my own pocket? That is unacceptable." Roared Vernon. "I will not keep him if that is the case."  
  
"Let me warn you Mr. Dursley that if Harry leaves your home, you and your family will be in danger. The madman that killed his parents has many followers but the moment you accepted Harry into your house, a protective spell took effect and it will remain in place only if Harry is with you." Mr. Nikolei said but Vernon had started pacing that it seemed he had not heard what was being said to him.  
  
"This is intolerable." He was saying. "I will not take from my own pocked to care for him."  
  
"If you seat and listen Mr. Dursley, I will explain how this will work until that time when Harry is ready to learn of his inheritance." Snapped Mr. Nikolei.  
  
Vernon listened this time, and with a sullen expression he took his seat.  
  
"As his guardian, you will receive a monthly amount for all of Harry's needs. The amount accorded by Mr. Potter's will is of ten thousand pounds every month. You will receive the check in the mail, there will be no need for you to come and pick it up. In case of an emergency, you will let us know and we will take care of any expenses. Harry will not take control of his inheritance until he come of age. There will be of course some training, which will be given to him when the appropriate time comes. Professor Dumbledore was given legal guardianship of Harry, but because of the circumstances he had signed those rights to you until that time when Harry is ready to go to Hogwarts." He made no mention of the Dursleys shudder at the mention of the famous School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. "I have been told that in the Magical World, there are certain rules that must be obeyed at all times, but as we are, what was that word they say.oh yes, muggles, there will be no need to bother with the rules. They will not concern Harry at any rate until after his first year in school. If there is any question you can refer them to me." Mr. Nikolei said. He pulled out a piece of paper from the file. "If you are ready, here are the terms of the monthly payment and I need your signature at the bottom."  
  
Vernon looked at Petunia, both had the same thought in mind, that money could be well used. As long as Harry lived with them there was no need for the others to interfere with them.  
  
"Very well." Said Vernon and signed the paper. Mr. Nikolei turned to Petunia who signed in the line next to her husband's.  
  
"Right. Here is your first check. You will receive the rest on the first of every month." Said Mr. Nikolei and turned a check to Vernon, you took it readily. "If there is nothing else?" He looked questioningly at the couple before him.  
  
"No, we are settled." Said Vernon. He helped Petunia to her feet, because, she was weighted down by a sleeping Dudley.  
  
Mr. Nikolei saw the Dursleys leave his office. He sat behind his desk, thoughtful. I hope Dumbledore knows what he is doing, he thought. Mr. Nikolei couldn't forget the way the couple had acted after Mrs. Evans' death, and by their reaction at hearing that they would not be allowed to touch any of Harry's inheritance, it made him wary the thought of Harry growing up with them.  
  
~*~*~*~*~ "That is not possible, they loved each other as brothers!" Exclaimed Mrs. Nichols that same morning in Gryffindor Manor.  
  
The staff was sitting around the kitchen with the Daily Prophet in the middle of the table. Everybody was murmuring and in a state of agitation.  
  
"Calm down Alice, it might be a mistake." Said Mr. Roberts from the head of the servant's table.  
  
"But Sir, he killed twelve muggles and Mr. Pettigrew, he was a close friend as well." Said a footman looking scandalized as the news on the front page of the newspaper was on everybody's mind.  
  
"He would never betray Master James, never. They are wrong, it was an accident and he was blamed for it." Snapped Mrs. Nichols glaring at the footman.  
  
The footman was abashed but everybody knew that he had only said what was on the mind of all the Wizarding World.  
  
BRETRAYAL AND MURDER  
  
The Ministry of Magic released this morning the news of the capture of Mr. Sirius Black. According to Ministry documents it is said that Mr. Black (a well known friend of the Potters and godfather to their son Harry who a few days before was the means for the disappearance of You-Know-Who) was the cause of the Death of twelve muggles and one wizard.  
  
On the day following the defeat of You-Know-Who, Mr. Black attacked and killed Mr. Peter Pettigrew in plain sight of muggles. The street was destroyed and the explosion caused the death of twelve muggles found in the vicinity. Obliviators had to work overtime to clear the minds of the dozens of muggles that witnessed the attack. According to a Ministry source, witnesses said that Peter Pettigrew was saddened and outraged. It seems that Mr. Black had been the cause for You-Know-Who's visit to Godric Hollow where the Potters had hidden, using the Fidelius Charm (an ancient spell used for hiding). According to testimony given by Professor Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Chairman of the International Confederation of Wizards, Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot and Order of Merlin First Class, Mr. Black had been chosen by James Potter himself to be their secret keeper, as such, he was the only one that could give their whereabouts to You-Know-Who.  
  
The Potters were attacked and killed on Halloween night, two days ago. Harry Potter, their son, was the only survivor. It is not known how, but in the process You-Know-Who himself was defeated. It has not been determinated yet weather he was killed or just dispossessed of his powers.  
  
Mr. Black has been convicted of murder and conspiracy to murder and sentenced for a lifetime in Azkaban.  
  
Every household in the magical community had been talking of nothing else. The thought that a close friend of the Potters had betrayed them caused outrage. Flowers had been left in great numbers at the hill in Godric's Hollow where the Potter Cottage had once stood. The inhabitants of the once sleepy town had come together and cleared the debris. Only part of the structure had remained and it was around this structure on which wizards and witches of all ages apparated to leave a token of appreciation.  
  
Of Harry Potter, there was no sign. People visited the Manor at all hours trying to catch a sight of the now famous infant, but no one had seen him so far. Rumors had it that he had been taken to live with muggle relatives, but nobody knew where they lived.  
  
The days passed and life in the wizarding world started to settle down after a long period of uncertainty and fear.  
  
~*~*~*~*~ Remus had returned to England a day after the attack. The news that awaited him on his arrival were not happy. In just two days, he had lost all of his closest friends.  
  
He mourned the death of James, Lily and Peter, and felt a deep sense of betrayal that fuelled his anger and hatred toward Sirius. They had known that there was a spy in their group, but he had never thought that Sirius would've been the source. But there was nothing that he could do now. Sirius was in Azkaban and would stay there for a long time.  
  
At the moment, he was pacing Dumbledore's office at Hogwarts. He had only just arrived and the students were busy in their classes.  
  
He turned abruptly when he heard the door open behind him.  
  
"Ah, Mr. Lupin, I wondered when I would see you here." Said Dumbledore as he walked into the room.  
  
"Where is Harry, Professor? Is he safe?" Remus asked without preamble. Doubt and worry for Harry's future had been gnawing at him since he heard of James and Lily's death  
  
"He is safe. We got him out just in time." Dumbledore said as he turned to his desk and sat on the large chair behind him.  
  
"Where is he?" Asked Remus standing in front of the desk.  
  
"With his aunt." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"Petunia? Why on earth would you take him there? She is not going to care for him, he is not going to be happy there." Exclaimed Remus.  
  
"Now, now, we must hope for the best. He is safe there. That is the only place where Voldemort and his followers cannot touch him." Said Dumbledore.  
  
"Are you sure? Shouldn't he go to the Manor? He needs to be taught about his inheritance." Said Remus with a frown. He didn't understand why Harry couldn't be safer in the Manor than he would be with Petunia.  
  
"He will go there, when the time is right. The events of that night have made the name of Harry Potter a famous one, no child should live in the spotlight. With his aunt, he will grow up as a child should. The spell that protects him can only work if he is with her. It is his mother's blood that protects him. In a sense, it is Lily that is protecting him now, and will as long as he stays with her sister, her blood relative." Dumbledore said.  
  
Remus sighed with exasperation. "How could this happen? You said they were going to be safe." He exclaimed.  
  
"They chose the wrong person to be their secret keeper." Dumbledore responded.  
  
"How could he do it? He was our friend, for goodness sakes, he was like a brother to James!" Yelled Remus, passing his fingers through his hair as he paced around the room.  
  
"None of us thought it of him." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Should've expected it though, we knew there was a spy, and we knew it must be somebody who was very close to Lily and James." Remus said as he finally sat on one of the chairs in front of the desk.  
  
"True, but it is still a surprise to us all." Dumbledore replied, looking sadly at the young man sitting in front of him.  
  
"And now Peter is dead. What was he thinking? He never got a chance against Sirius." Scoffed Remus. "What will happen to his mother now?"  
  
"We have placed her in a safe house, nobody will be able to reach her. She is distraught of course. The Ministry has awarded him an Order of Merlin posthumously, it will be given to his mother on the burial site." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Was there anything left at all? According to what I have learned of the incident I was led to believe there was nothing left, except some bloody robes." Remus asked.  
  
"There were bits left." Dumbledore responded.  
  
"Bits?" Remus asked in horror.  
  
Dumbledore nodded. "The largest part found was a finger."  
  
Remus looked horrified.  
  
"As you said, Mr. Pettigrew had no chance against Sirius." Dumbledore said. He knew that everything was a shock to Remus. He had been away, recruiting members for their group, when the attacks took place. He had returned to England as soon as he got word.  
  
Remus stood abruptly from the chair and walked to a window, which looked down to the lake. His silence unnerved Dumbledore. It was sad to think that of the four young men who had made Hogwarts a happy place, only one remained. Remus.  
  
Suddenly, Remus started to sob.  
  
Dumbledore stood abruptly from his chair and walked toward Remus.  
  
"It's all right Remus. They were your friends. Your family. You have every right to grieve for them." Dumbledore said in a soothing voice.  
  
"How could he do it? Why them?" Remus sobbed.  
  
"Those are things, to which we have no answer." Dumbledore said.  
  
The two men stood silent in front of the window. Remus eventually stopped sobbing. But the memories kept intruding. It was a good thing there was a full moon coming, he thought, it would make him forget.  
  
~*~*~*~*~ Diagon Alley was full of people, as always. Shoppers crossed the alley looking at the items displayed in the windows.  
  
A small family was noisily crossing through the pedestrians. A portly lady and five young boys, two of which were clearly twins, and an infant girl. .  
  
"Take your brother's hands Charlie. I don't want you lot getting lost in this." The lady yelled back to the older boy.  
  
"But the twins keep trying to get away." Whined the boy.  
  
"All right you two. If you don't want to go into the carriage you better take hold of your brother's hand." She snapped, turning back to look at the group behind her.  
  
The twins promptly took hold of their brother's hands. Another boy grabbed hold of his mother's skirts and jogged along her as the group resumed their walk.  
  
"We are going to Gringotts first. Remind me Charlie to go the apothecary, there are some ingredients I need." She said as they neared a large white building at one end of the alley.  
  
A cry came from within the carriage.  
  
"Oh, your brother is hungry. Charlie, keep an eye on your brothers while I take care of Ron."  
  
"Yes, mum. Come you lot." Charlie said to the twins and pulled the other boy from their mother's skirts and led them to a table outside the ice cream shop.  
  
The lady looked to see if they were settled and after making sure they were fine, led the carriage toward them.  
  
"Ice cweam!" One of the twins shouted.  
  
"Not now Fred." His mother was obviously busy tending to the youngest boy.  
  
Fred pouted but his twin pointed to something across the alley and made him forget about ice cream.  
  
"Don't move you two." Shouted Charlie when he noticed the twins sliding from their seat.  
  
"Percy dear, don't put that in your mouth." Mrs. Weasley said when she noticed her son grabbing hold of a saltshaker, ready to put it in his mouth. "Charlie, get that away from him."  
  
Charlie grabbed the shaker and pulled it out of his brother's grasp. Percy started to cry.  
  
"Oh, for goodness sake!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed.  
  
"I'll take them to see the animals mum, they like looking at them." Said Charlie.  
  
"Oh, all right. Just make sure they don't touch anything." Mrs. Weasley commanded.  
  
Charlie nodded and led his three younger brothers toward the pet shop nearby.  
  
"Too bad Bill had to go to Hogwarts this year. I don't know what I'm going to do when Charlie goes next year." She whispered and continued to feed Ron.  
  
Minutes later some screams were heard further down the alley.  
  
"Oh no, what now. What have they done?" Mrs. Weasley sighed in exasperation as she settled Ron into the carriage next to his sleeping sister.  
  
The four boys ran up to her. Percy looking very pleased with himself.  
  
"What happened?" She asked the instant they reached her.  
  
"A rat came from the sewers and some ladies screamed." Charlie panted. "Percy grabbed it though."  
  
"He did?" Mrs. Weasley looked down at her son who was happily showing her the fat little rat hiding in his hand.  
  
"Can I keep it?" Percy asked.  
  
"Oh, I don't know." Mrs. Weasley said looking down at the rat with disgust. "It came from the sewers Percy."  
  
"Please mum!" He urged.  
  
"I'll help him take care of it." Charlie said.  
  
The twins were crowding around Percy to get a better look at the rat.  
  
"Oh, all right. We better find a cage for it then." Mrs. Weasley gave in.  
  
"There is the old cage that we used for Errol." Charlie said.  
  
"You can use that then. Come, let's get to Gringotts before it gets too late. Put that away Percy." Mrs. Weasley said as she started walking toward the wizard bank.  
  
Percy put the rat in his pocket and happily followed his mother as the twins grabbed Charlie's hands and followed.  
  
~*~*~*~*~ Azkaban was a dark and gloomy place. The morose cloaked figures of the Dementors walking by the dungeons made the atmosphere seem gloomier than it was. Screams and moans could be heard from almost every cell. Except one.  
  
Sirius sat quietly in his cell. There was only a small pallet against a wall, rather thin with threadbare rags as blankets and pillow. The floor was dirty and no windows could be seen anywhere. A bench was placed adjacent to the bars of the cell.  
  
Sirius looked out through the bars to the other cells around him. He could see prisoners writhing with pain and some rocking with madness.  
  
It was not a place he ever thought to be.  
  
He heard laughter coming from one of the cells nearby, he knew it contained a former Death Eater within. He had helped with his capture some months earlier. Sirius chuckled at the irony of it all.  
  
His heart was filled with hate and a deep want for revenge.  
  
"Someday, Peter. Someday." He whispered before leaving his bench and lying down on the pallet.  
  
~*~*~*~*~ "Will you keep that brat quiet, I can't hear the news." Shouted Vernon one evening.  
  
Harry was crying with hunger as he sat in an old high chair by his cousin Dudley, who had taken hold of the pieces of fruit that had been placed in front of Harry.  
  
"Shhhh! Honestly!" Exclaimed Petunia. "I don't know how you can cry so loud. Duddy was never like that."  
  
She placed a small plate in front of Harry. Harry whimpered but was soon contented with the fruit.  
  
"I don't see why I should have to see to you." Petunia grumbled, throwing a dark look at Harry. "If they really want to see to you, they should've supplied a servant."  
  
"What was that my dear?" Asked Vernon as he entered the kitchen with his empty cup of tea.  
  
"Nothing dear." Said Petunia. "More tea?"  
  
Vernon gave her his cup and she promptly filled it from the pot standing on the stove.  
  
"Why is he making such a racket?" He asked frowning at Harry.  
  
Petunia pursed her lips and looked toward her nephew.  
  
Harry looked up and smiled as he caught sight of his aunt and uncle.  
  
Petunia snorted with disgust. "Don't know, must be his character."  
  
"Maybe Marge was right. We should take him to an orphanage." Vernon said.  
  
"You know we can't do that. We already made it known throughout the neighborhood that we have taken him in. If they find out that we took him out to an orphanage we might lose our standing in the community. What would they think? No, it's better if he stays. Besides, we would lose the money his trustees send us. We can use it to give so much to Dudley." Petunia said as she turned to wash the dishes that were piled in the sink.  
  
"Hmmm.You might be right." Vernon said. He heard the jingle of the news returning from a commercial break. He left the kitchen quickly to hear the rest of the program.  
  
Petunia hummed as she washed the dishes, ignoring the whimpering from Harry as Dudley hit him with his spoon.  
  
~*~*~*~*~ The days passed, and then the months followed. Dudley's second birthday was arriving and Petunia was planning a birthday party for him and had invited all the neighborhood children. "Oh Vernon! You should see what I got him. The cake is so big, he will certainly like it." Exclaimed Petunia as she was explaining all her arrangements to her husband one night.  
  
Vernon chuckled at her enthusiasm. "I'm sure he will like it. I already made the arrangements for the clown. I told him that I better see every child in here smiling if he wants to get paid."  
  
Petunia nodded. "Oh yes, there are so many people out there trying to get paid for things they didn't do."  
  
"Exactly, and I will not be swindled out of my hard earned money by a clown." Vernon said sternly.  
  
Dudley was busy eating some cookies from the plate at the center of the table, while Harry sat quietly in his chair looking at his cousin with curiosity.  
  
"What about him? Where is he going to be?" Said Vernon as the frowned at Harry.  
  
Petunia pursed her lips. "Mrs. Figg has agreed to watch him." She said.  
  
"Good, I will not have him ruin any of Dudley's party." Vernon growled before joining his son eating the cookies.  
  
Petunia grunted her agreement.  
  
"Yum?" Harry exclaimed reaching for a cookie.  
  
Dudley started to cry. "Mine!"  
  
"Those are not for you boy!" Roared Vernon pushing the plate away from Harry.  
  
Harry whimpered with disappointment.  
  
"I'll take him to his room." Said Petunia and she took Harry roughly from his chair and marched up to the smaller bedroom in the house.  
  
Vernon stayed down in the kitchen calming Dudley down by placing the cookies directly in front of him.  
  
"There you go son. He is not going to take them from you." He said as Dudley entertained himself with the cookies.  
  
~*~*~*~*~ Dudley's birthday arrived. Petunia woke up very early looking excited and full of enthusiasm.  
  
"You are going to come home early, right?" She asked Vernon for what seemed like the tenth time that morning.  
  
"Yes. Marge will be arriving in a few hours, it won't take me long to pick her up." Said Vernon as he watched Harry eat from his plate. "When is Mrs. Figg going to pick him up?" He asked.  
  
"In an hour. She asked that he was fed before I dropped him off. She said she shouldn't be bothered with such a trivial thing." Petunia said.  
  
"Humph!" Snorted Vernon, he obviously thought they shouldn't be bothered with such a thing either, but the thought of the monthly check sent to them made him keep his peace.  
  
The family continued to eat in silence, the only sounds were those that Dudley made as he ate and of Vernon grunting as he read the newspaper and read something that he didn't like.  
  
"The things that young people do these days. In my youth, my parents would've taken a rod to my backside if I had done half the things these young hooligans do these days. And what do the parents do now? Nothing, that's what! And then the rest of us have to pick up all the mess their children crate." Vernon roared after reading a report that had obviously made him angry.  
  
Petunia nodded her agreement as she helped Dudley eat some bacon.  
  
"I'm leaving, I want to be in the airport early enough to greet Marge." Said Vernon as he stood from his chair and put aside his newspaper. "See you later my dear." He kissed Petunia's cheek before turning to kiss his son. Dudley didn't seem to care for it as it interrupted his eating. He wailed.  
  
"I'll take him to Mrs. Figg when I take Duddy to the park." Petunia glared at Harry as she hugged Dudley.  
  
Dudley liked it even less than his father's kiss as he started to twist and whimper in his mother's arms. Harry sat in silence eating a piece of buttered toast and watched his cousin and aunt with curiosity.  
  
"Mama?" He asked after Vernon had left the house.  
  
"I'm not your mother. She is dead, you hear. Don't call for her anymore." Snapped Petunia as she started to empty the table.  
  
Dudley started to cry. "Food!" He wailed.  
  
"Oh Duddy dear, here you go. I'm sorry, don't cry." Petunia whispered as she took back the plate of brownies that he had been eating.  
  
The house seemed to tremble with his screams and neighbors passed the house shaking their heads with discontent.  
  
~*~*~*~*~ It was an hour later when Mrs. Figg opened the door to find Mrs. Dursley in her front door carrying a fussy Harry in her arms.  
  
"Humph!" She snorted her dislike but didn't say anything. Petunia didn't seem to have noticed. Mrs. Figg pointed to a chair nearby and watched Petunia place Harry upon it.  
  
"Thank you for watching him for us. With all the kids running around the house, I won't have the time to watch him. And with all the other kids much bigger than him, he might get hurt." Said Petunia with feigned concern.  
  
"Indeed." Said Mrs. Figg.  
  
"I'll leave you to it then. I'll pick him up around eight this evening." Said Petunia as she walked back toward the door where she had left Dudley playing in his carriage.  
  
"Humph!" Snorted Mrs. Figg after the door had closed behind Petunia. "I reckon she hasn't fed you properly, has she?" She said looking down at Harry as he played with one of her cats. "I'll fix that up in a minute." She smiled and walked purposely to the kitchen.  
  
As she prepared vegetables, and fruits for Harry, she could hear Harry giggling in the living room.  
  
She smiled at the sound. "Poor little tyke. All alone with that prune of an aunt. Don't know what Dumbledore was thinking when he left little Harry with her. That child is going to grow up very troubled." She whispered as she ripped the meat of a leg of a roasted chicken.  
  
She continued to pile food in a plate. The cats seemed to have congregated in the living room with Harry, as she didn't see any of her feline friends coming to beg for food.  
  
When she walked into the living room with her hands filled with plates full of food, she found Harry laughing as the cats played around him.  
  
"Now, now, move you lot. Harry needs to eat." Mrs. Figg said to her cats.  
  
The cats seemed to understand as they quickly moved from around Harry and left some space for Mrs. Figg to come through.  
  
Mrs. Figg placed the plates in the coffee table nearby. Harry watched her curiously.  
  
Mrs. Figg picked Harry up and sat him in the floor just next to the table. They were instantly surrounded by the cats all begging for a little food. Harry giggled and enjoyed the rest of the meal as he ate and gave some food to the cats.  
  
Mrs. Figg watched him with amusement as she nibbled on her meal.  
  
~*~*~*~*~ It was after nine when Petunia appeared in Mrs. Figg's door to pick Harry up.  
  
"What took you so long?" Growled Mrs. Figg when she opened the door.  
  
"I'm sorry I'm late Mrs. Figg, but it took me longer than I thought to clean the house." Petunia said. She didn't want her neighbor to know that they had forgotten about Harry. If it hadn't been for the empty high chair around the table, they would've forgotten him altogether.  
  
"Humph! Just don't do it again." Said Mrs. Figg picking up Harry, who had been asleep in chair nearby. "Here you go." She passed Harry to Petunia who tried to look lovingly down at Harry as she settled him in her arms.  
  
"Well. Thank you again, Mrs. Figg." Petunia turned her back to the house and started walking down to the corner to Privet Drive.  
  
Mrs. Figg pushed aside the curtains from her window and watched them go until they turned the corner.  
  
"I hope Dumbledore knows what he is doing." She said as she scratched Mr. Tibble's head.  
  
~*~*~*~*~ The days passed and summer was now upon the land. Gryffindor Manor was busy with the usual summer chores as tenants and servants alike worked to keep the grounds and the house in their absolute best.  
  
On this sunny morning, Mrs. Nichols was sitting quietly in what had once been used as Harry's nursery next to the large master bedroom.  
  
She looked saddened as she watched Minnie cleaning around the room, moving the toys and clothes that had been left behind.  
  
Both were too lost in their own thoughts to notice Mr. Roberts standing in the doorway. He sighed. This was the third time in the last week that he had found his sister hidden in Master Harry's bedroom.  
  
"He is all alone." Mrs. Nichols whispered.  
  
"He is not, Alice. He is with his aunt and you heard what Dumbledore said, as long as he is with her, he will be safe." Mr. Roberts said as he came into the room to join his sister in a small chair.  
  
"But she is not going to treat him right. You must remember how they treated Poor Mistress Lily and Mrs. Evans. He needs us." Mrs. Nichols said. "His birthday is coming up and I know they are not going to do anything to celebrate it with him."  
  
"We can do something here." Said Roberts.  
  
Mrs. Nichols looked startled by the idea. "Oh, do you think we could? Could we do a big party to celebrate his birthday?"  
  
"We'll have to discuss it with the solicitors and with Stuart, he is the estate manager after all. I'm sure we can do something." Said Roberts, he would do anything to get his sister out of her despondency.  
  
"Oh, we must write to them then. You go and get Stuart and I'll get the owls, we have so much to plan." Mrs. Nichols explained and ran out of the room with some of the energy that her brother had not seen her display for some time. He followed her out of the room at a slower pace happy to be doing something to break the routine that the household had fallen into.  
  
Neither of them had noticed Minnie stop working on her cleaning to listen attentively to what they had said. After they had left, she squeaked with excitement and disappeared from the room.  
  
~*~*~*~*~ July 31st neared. Gryffindor Manor was enveloped in a festive atmosphere. The elves had heard from Minnie that the Manor was going to celebrate Master Harry's birthday and were busy cleaning every single corner of the house. The tenants had heard it from Mr. Stuart after Mrs. Nichols and Mr. Roberts had asked him if it could be possible. The solicitors, who were acting as trustees of the estate had seen no problem with allowing the estate to celebrate de day. Every person who lived in the estate was happily taking part of the festivities. It was because of that, that the festivities seemed to be as big as the annual Harvest Festival.  
  
The last day of July rose warm and sunny. The grounds in Gryffindor Manor were richly decorated with magical balloons, floating in the air expanding and contracting as they changed colors. There were tents throughout the lawn. Children were playing and the pond was full of happy swimmers.  
  
In the Quidditch Pitch and impromptu game was underway and many were happily watching as the players zoomed around the field.  
  
People were eating and dancing among the tents, and music permeated the air.  
  
Gryffindor Manor was happily celebrating the birthday of its master, while in Privet Drive everything was silent and ordinary.  
  
Vernon and Petunia Dursley were busily eating lunch as their son, Dudley sat heavily in his chair trying to finish everything that was placed before him.  
  
Harry Potter sat silently on his chair. A small plate before him, oblivious to the importance of the day.  
  
Vernon heard the sound of letters falling through the slot. He rose from his chair as Petunia was piling more food before Dudley. He returned minutes later looking through the stack of letters held in his hands.  
  
"Bills! What is the country falling to when a man can't sit at his table without being bothered by bills?" Vernon asked with disgust as he threw some of this offending envelopes in a small table beside the door. "Now, what is this?" He asked with curiosity as he held a colorful envelope in his hand.  
  
Petunia looked up. "What is what, dear?" She asked.  
  
"This envelope, it looks like a card." Vernon said looking closely at the envelope.  
  
"Look at the address. Who is it for?" She asked.  
  
"Don't know, doesn't have a name just our address." Said Vernon with a frown. "No return address either."  
  
"Strange. Open it." Said Petunia putting aside her spoon and allowing Dudley to eat on his own.  
  
Vernon opened the envelope a card fell to the table. A large HAPPY BIRTHDAY with the picture of a ball was in the front.  
  
"It's a little too late for this. Dudley's birthday was months ago." Said Vernon.  
  
Petunia didn't say anything, she looked nervously at the card and then at Harry. "I don't think it's for Dudley dear."  
  
"Who else is it going to be for?" Asked Vernon with a condescending tone. He chuckled and opened the card.  
  
HAPPY BIRTHDAY HARRY! It said, several balls were drawn around the page. No signature could be seen.  
  
Vernon looked furiously at Harry.  
  
"I'll not have some strange happenings in this house." He roared.  
  
"Now dear, let him have it, he is going to destroy it anyways, and it doesn't look dangerous." Said Petunia looking nervously at the card.  
  
"Humph! I suppose. It does look rather cheap really." He said happily remembering the expensive cards and gifts that were sent to Dudley on his birthday.  
  
He shoved the card to Harry, who looked curiously at it, not really knowing the significance of it.  
  
It was an uneventful afternoon for Harry. He spent the day in his room, his aunt Petunia would only take him out for meals and when she wanted to check if he needed a change.  
  
Night eventually fell and Harry was settled in an old crib. Nearby was a dresser. Petunia placed the card upon it before shutting the lights and closing the door behind her. Harry whimpered in the darkness.  
  
Suddenly, the card glowed and the balls drawn on it started to zoom across the page. Harry giggled and watched happily as the balls left the surface of the card and started to zoom above the card.  
  
Harry eventually fell asleep, the glowing balls zooming before him.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
A/N: There you go. As you may have noticed the chapters in this part are a little shorter than I'm used to writing, I have decided that I'm not going to go into great detail in the next chapters, and I'm not going to write about every single year of Harry with the Dursleys, my imagination just doesn't stretch that far. Now, I have read all the reviews that have been written and some of you have some questions or opinions about this part of the story.  
  
Gryffspopgurl - About skipping to Harry's 16th year, the reason I'm not skipping to that year right after Lily and James' death is because I like continuity, I don't like leaving things undone and there are some things that will happen to him in his early childhood that will have an impact when he gets older.  
  
Hpgurl, LateroseMartin, and Exodus - I think that I agree with Exodus and might include a new character for Harry, as much as I like Ginny and Hermione, I just don't think they are right for Harry, and don't get me in the subject of Cho, I'm just glad that things happened as they did in OotP.  
  
Shelley Knight - I hope you are happy with the result of the Dursleys' visit to Mr. Nikolei.  
  
Alli - I'm glad that you took the time to read it all and that you enjoyed it.  
  
Snow angel, Snow princess and Lady Reaper of the Shadows - Thank you for continuing reading, I appreciate all of you who have been there since the beginning and those who have joined me along the way.  
  
Thank you all, I hope I didn't miss anybody but if I did, sorry and please continue reading and reviewing. I like to hear from my readers.. 


	47. Part IV Chapter 3

A/N: I'm so sorry it has taken me this long to post this chapter, but time has been a luxury that has not been on my side lately and unfortunately my ff has taken the brunt of it. As you may have noticed, I decided to make Harry grow up faster than I had originally planned, and if you read very carefully you will notice that there are some things that happen as he grows that are written in the second chapter of The Sorcerer's Stone. This chapter just brings us closer to the Hogwarts years so it's not going to be long when Sixth Year starts and we can focus on what happens to Harry after OotP. I hope you enjoy this chapter and I hope to have the next chapter soon.  
  
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Disclaimer: HP characters and places do not belong to me but to JK Rowling, only some parts of the plot are original.  
  
~~**~~**~~**  
  
Chapter 3 ~ Hard Times  
  
The magical government was in disarray during the year after Voldemort's disappearance. Everybody was still wary of what had happened on that fateful night on Halloween. The Ministry's Aurors were still patrolling the streets hoping not to encounter the dark being that had terrorized their world for fifteen years.  
  
They didn't find him, instead, they encountered a large number of his followers, the Death Eaters, and various battles broke out where some were killed and others apprehended.  
  
Mr. Bartimus Crouch was extremely busy on the months following the death of the Potters. All the different Ministry Departments were put under his charge to help with the apprehension and trial of the prisoners.  
  
The old Minister who had once been such a close friend of the Potters had now been replaced by a conservative woman, Millicent Bagnold. Many changes were created in the departments, the Department of Mysteries was closed to all except for those working in it. Knowledge that had once reported to all departments was now classified. Everybody was wary of everybody specially since many were Ministry workers were found to have given information to the Death Eaters and You-Know-Who.  
  
There was confusion in the Ministry. Many claimed to have done things without meaning to. The Inperius, Cruciatus and Avedra Kadevra Curses had been used indiscriminately by the Death Eaters. Now, the Ministry knew that some had acted under control of the Death Eaters and had been innocent of their actions but who had been controlled and who had done it by their own free will? Nobody knew how to see the difference.  
  
"The idea that a Malfoy acted under the Imperius Curse is unbelievable." Mr. Weasley said to his wife one night. "Don't know what old Crouch was thinking letting him go. I wager Malfoy had some hold on him."  
  
"Now, now dear. He might be telling the truth." Said Mrs. Weasley even though she agreed with her husband.  
  
"Humph!" Scoffed Mr. Weasley. "The day that lot doesn't join a crazed dark wizard is the day I become Minister of Magic. That family is known for their bigotry. The whole family is and their connections are rotten to the core. It is a surprise that some are not as bad."  
  
"Now dear, we are connected to them as well." Said Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"Not very closely connected, I'm happy to say. To be part of that family is not something I would be proud of." Mr. Weasley exclaimed.  
  
Mrs. Weasley nodded as she tried to feed her little girl. "Ginny has started to talk, dear. You should've been here." She exclaimed with excitement as she grinned down to her daughter.  
  
"Already? The boys took longer to learn how to talk." Mr. Weasley seemed surprised.  
  
"It's different with girls dear. All children are different in some way." Mrs. Weasley explained.  
  
The room was full of children playing around the floor. A two year old was happily playing with his older brother and his rat. The twins were being entertained in a corner, playing with a board game. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley looked around the room, looking pleased with themselves. Two of their children were now attending Hogwarts and their family was now complete with the birth of their daughter. They looked at each other and smiled. Life couldn't be any better.  
  
~~**~~**~~**  
  
The Daily Prophet was full of the latest news from the courts, where everyday a Death Eater or one of their supporters was presented for trial. The whole magical community read avidly every piece of news. People were still scared and kept a close eye on their neighbors. But in the muggle world, everything seemed normal and nobody knew how closely they had all come to total destruction.  
  
The Dursleys went through their days as they normally did. Nobody discussed the reason why their nephew now lived with them. That he was there was disturbing enough. But they knew that one day he would ask, and they were prepared for that day.  
  
The days passed and things were getting settled in the Ministry of Magic. Only the discovery of Crouch's son in the company of Death Eaters, and the charges pressed against them, brought days of turmoil and confusion. His story was closely followed by the whole community, his trial was attended by everybody who could get inside, while many waited outside hoping to hear the news of the outcome as soon as it was over. Their attack on Frank Longbottom and his wife was vicious and unpardonable. The Longbottoms were well-known Aurors in the community, their permanent convalescence caused by the attack created an uproar within the Magical World. The conviction and imprisonment in Azkaban of those charged in the attack were wildly discussed in the magical world. Mr. Crouch's popularity plunged alarmingly after his denouncement of his son in plain view of a large audience at the trial. His character and that of his son was widely attacked and the trials took second place to more important matters.  
  
Everybody was trying to build back their lives without the dark cloud that had been hanging over them for so long.  
  
But the one person whom they all discussed was no longer part of their world. The name of Harry Potter became part of history. Books were written and historians discussed him at great length. The magical world read of him avidly hoping to learn more of the child that had saved them from Lord Voldemort. They had been prevented from meeting him, but they couldn't be stopped from speculating what had become of him.  
  
But Harry Potter didn't know how special he was. Time passed and he grew up with his aunt and uncle, and a spoiled cousin who obviously didn't care much for him. The only person he thought tolerated him more than his family was the old lady who took care of him when the others went out. Mrs. Figg was an old lady who lived in nearby Wisteria Walk. She lived with a household full of cats and Harry was expected to help with their care every time he was left with her. Those were times Harry didn't look forward to.  
  
Nursery School was no better than being at home in Privet Drive. Dudley made sure kids grew wary of being near Harry. Dudley teased, hit and made life terrible for Harry and kids didn't want to be next in line by being friends of Harry Potter, as a young boy learned early in the school year. Harry could be seen playing by himself in the playground as other kids played in groups playing ball or running around the schoolyard. The teachers had become concerned and had talked to the Dursleys about the problem. Nothing happened, it just made Dudley more difficult in school and Harry more silent. Teachers were dumbfounded, what could they possibly do to make Harry more sociable in school?  
  
Life with the Dursleys became more difficult as he grew older. During the first years with the Dursleys Harry was just ignored. He was locked in the smaller bedroom and kept there the whole day. But as he grew old enough to do things he was expected to help with the cleaning, the gardening and finally, the cooking. He was moved from the bedroom to the small cupboard under the stairs, that way he was nearer the kitchen when Petunia wanted help with the cleaning. He didn't mind doing things around the house, it was something to do when he didn't have anything else to do, but the jeering and gloating of his cousin watching him struggle with a mop or a broom that were too big for him to handle, or laughing when boiling water almost fell on Harry's head when he was helping to prepare dinner made him dread the times when his aunt wanted him to do some cleaning. And the cupboard had become a source of fright to a small four year old.  
  
Things didn't become easy when they had company. Specially, when Aunt Marge (Vernon's sister) came to visit.  
  
It was late spring and Dudley's fifth birthday was coming upon them. As they did every year, Vernon and Petunia were planning a party. But this time, it would be special, Aunt Marge was coming to stay with them.  
  
"At what time is she arriving?" Asked Petunia while she served breakfast.  
  
"At noon. I don't know why the trains can't arrive at a more opportune time, at this rate, we're going to miss lunch." Grumbled Vernon.  
  
"I'll have it waiting for you dear." Said Petunia happily as she put a plate full of bacon and eggs in front of Dudley.  
  
Vernon grunted as he continued eating behind a newspaper held high before him.  
  
"Here, eat." Commanded Petunia as she put a small plate in front of Harry. Only one egg and a strip of bacon rested upon it.  
  
Harry didn't say anything he just ate hungrily. He had learned very early on that it was best not to complain or say anything, even if he didn't agree with something. Just as long as he stayed quiet and did what he was told, everything would be fine and he wouldn't be punished.  
  
"How is the party shaping up?" Asked Vernon as he put aside his newspaper.  
  
"Oh, it's coming along perfectly, this will certainly be the party of the season." Exclaimed Petunia happily as she hugged Dudley.  
  
"Mum!" Grumbled Dudley as he fussed in her arms.  
  
"He'll have the best party in the neighborhood." Petunia said.  
  
"What about him?" Vernon nodded toward Harry, who had his head firmly down and didn't look around him as he ate.  
  
"He'll have to attend. Many of the neighbors have mentioned that they'll bring their children to play with both." Petunia pursed her lips with aversion.  
  
"Just as long as no weird things happen." Snapped Vernon.  
  
Harry really didn't understand why his Uncle Vernon kept saying that about him. He wasn't aware that any weird things happened around the house, unless you mentioned the fact that his hair was always wild no matter what they did to it. But that wasn't his fault, it just grew that way. But for three years he had heard the same complaint.  
  
"Better get going, I want to be at the station early enough to receive her." Grunted Vernon as he left his chair.  
  
"Bye dear, don't forget to pass by the store in your way home to buy the ice cream." Said Petunia to his retreating back.  
  
"Won't forget." Yelled Vernon back.  
  
Harry continued eating as his cousin wailed for more food. He knew it was a special day, and for the first time in his life he would attend a birthday party. He hadn't been allowed to attend any of Dudley's birthday parties before. On previous years he had spent the day with Mrs. Figg, looking at pictures of all her cats and grooming the dozen cats living currently with her.  
  
He dusted and cleaned the floors while his Aunt Petunia worked in the dishes for the party. Dudley was in his bedroom playing with the new toys that had been given to him that morning.  
  
By noon, the house looked sparkling clean. The trays of food waited in the refrigerator and lunch was waiting on the table. Dudley was already eating a plateful in the kitchen, while Harry beat the dust of the pillows from the couch.  
  
He was just putting the pillows back in the living room when the front door opened and Vernon and his sister walked in.  
  
"Where is my angel, where is my nephew?" Aunt Marge's booming voice could be heard throughout the house.  
  
"Here I am." Piped Dudley appearing in the kitchen doorway.  
  
"Ah, you are growing so fast. He takes after you Vernon." Aunt Marge looked pleased at what she saw.  
  
Vernon puffed his chest out. "Of course he does Marge, he is a Dursley through and through."  
  
"Indeed." Said Petunia coming into the entrance hall after Dudley, who was being tightly hugged by his aunt.  
  
"Petunia dear, you look well." Said Marge letting go of Dudley, to his immense relief, and turned to hug and kiss her sister-in-law.  
  
"You boy, come and say hello to your Aunt Marge." Ordered Vernon as he noticed Harry standing by the entrance to the living room.  
  
"Hello, Aunt Marge." Said Harry promptly.  
  
"Humph! You still here boy? Don't know why you kept him Vernon, an orphanage would've been better." Marge said pushing Harry aside and making her way to the living room.  
  
"We've discussed this Marge, you know our reasons, it would've looked bad of us to send him away when everybody knew of his existence." Vernon said.  
  
"You're right of course, but don't be surprised if he ends up being a hooligan just like his father." Snorted Marge.  
  
"Hopefully we might beat it out of him." Said Vernon sagely. "Would you like some whiskey Marge? I just got an imported French Whiskey I'm sure you are going to like."  
  
"Oh, go on. It will settle the dust in my mouth. Really, the food in trains could be better, I told the ticket man so. If one is expected to pay for food, it should be worth it. Only a little plate of salad and a small portion of meat, what is that supposed to feed?" She complained while Vernon served two glasses of whiskey one for himself and another for his sister.  
  
"Things are falling apart in this country. One cannot find a good sized portion anywhere. But don't worry, Petunia has lunch prepared for us." Vernon said as he passed a glass to Marge.  
  
"Good, I'm starving." Marge said and drank the whiskey in one gulp. "Should get the luggage to the bedroom."  
  
"I'll take it, you go ahead to the kitchen." Offered Vernon.  
  
Marge happily left things to her brother and walked into the kitchen.  
  
She found Dudley sitting in his seat with a large plate in front of him. Harry was putting the plates and utensils around the table.  
  
"At least he makes himself useful." Grunted Marge as Harry carried a platter of potatoes to the table.  
  
Petunia didn't say anything but glared at Harry as if daring him to break any of her platters.  
  
Vernon soon joined them and everybody sat around the table as plates started to go around and everybody served themselves.  
  
Afternoon was soon upon them and Petunia left Harry cleaning the dishes while she, Vernon and Marge decorated and made things ready for the party. The children would be arriving soon and everything should look perfect when the doorbell rings.  
  
Petunia was excited as the balloons and ribbons were in place. Everything looked festive and perfect to celebrate her son's fifth birthday.  
  
Half an hour later, Dudley had been dressed in a new suit bought for the occasion and Petunia, Vernon and Marge sat happily in the living room waiting for the first guests to arrive. Harry had been left on his own devices in the kitchen where he happily grabbed small pieces of food from the platters that had been placed in the table waiting for the visitors.  
  
The doorbell rang. Soon the house was filled with childish giggles and screams. The adults sat around the living room looking at their children with indulgent glances as they ran around the room. When there were enough children, the games began.  
  
They played peg the nose to the clown. A large face of a clown was pasted on one of the walls and the children were blindfolded and one by one they tried to peg the nose to the clown. None came close to it but Harry, something that didn't make Vernon and Petunia happy.  
  
Then there was a show, the clown Vernon had hired had arrived when the children were trying to peg the nose on the clown poster.  
  
The children oohed and aahed as the clown did his tricks and made balloon animals at the request of all the children.  
  
Then they played musical chairs. Marge sat close by to keep an eye on the children, but every time Harry came in front of her she would stick out her cane and try to trip him. He barely stayed in the game long enough because of her. He eventually fell and was taken out of the game. He didn't complain but sat in one corner rubbing the pain from his shins.  
  
Food was served after the game. Everybody ate enthusiastically until the cake was brought out and then served with ice cream.  
  
The time came to open the presents that had been brought by the guests. Dudley ripped the paper energetically from every box and showed off everything that had been given to him.  
  
Harry couldn't help but notice the difference between his cousin's birthday celebration and his own. The previous year nobody had bothered to tell him it was his birthday until he was left in Mrs. Figg house when his aunt and uncle took Dudley to see a movie he wanted to see. If Mrs. Figg hadn't given him a muffin with a candle and wished him happy birthday, he wouldn't had known it was his birthday at all.  
  
He was saddened by the thought and wished that somewhere, there was a person thinking of him.  
  
~~**~~**~~**  
  
Sirius sat on the pallet in his cell. The constant sound of the moans and screams of the other occupants in the nearby cells were heard through the prison. The dismal sight of the dementors patrolling the cells made the oppressing atmosphere settle heavily over the inmates of Azkaban.  
  
The crazed laugh of a woman nearby reached Sirius. "Shut it Bellatrix!" He yelled. It only made the woman laugh louder.  
  
Sirius gnashed his teeth in exasperation. He didn't mind the moans of the screams of the others, but somehow, he found Bellatrix's laugh irritating.  
  
Finally, the laughing stopped and Sirius relaxed. He often thought that the only thing that would make him go mad in Azkaban was Bellatrix's laughter. It was the only thing that unnerved him where the Dementors didn't.  
  
He lay on the pallet, planning his revenge on Peter. There was nothing he could do now. Harry was safe; that was all that mattered.  
  
The tension that had settled over his body drained slowly. Minutes later, a dog lay on the pallet where Sirius had once lain.  
  
~~**~~**~~**  
  
"How can you possibly allow the Dursleys to take that money? They are not using it for Harry's well-being you may be sure that they are lining their own pockets with that money." Remus exclaimed to Mr. Nikolei.  
  
"Mr. Lupin, you know what the will says. They must be paid the 10,000 pounds monthly. I have told you so for the past three years." Mr. Nikolei said calmly.  
  
"But you have done nothing to keep them away from that money. That's stealing, it is." Remus said.  
  
"Mr. Lupin, you must know that the money it's the only reason they are keeping the child. Professor Dumbledore has repeatedly told you that Young Harry can only be safe as long as he remains with the Dursleys. If that money was not given to them, they would have certainly placed him in an orphanage and that would've placed him in danger." Mr. Nikolei explained.  
  
"For how long will this continue?" Asked Remus with resignation.  
  
"Until Young Harry is ready to learn of his inheritance." Said Mr. Nikolei.  
  
"That could well be until he finishes school, that is still years from now." Groaned Remus.  
  
"It is. But the withdrawl of the money doesn't influence the Potter inheritance at all. Mr. Potter made provisions for that and the money is taken out not from the estate itself but from a separate account Mr. Potter opened for that purpose." Mr. Nikolei responded.  
  
"James certainly thought of every contingency. That was James all right, always thinking ahead." Remus smiled. "But I still don't like it. I know the Dursleys are not using that money for Harry's benefit."  
  
"Be that as it may, the will was very explicit. Young Harry's guardian will receive 10,000 pounds until the day Young Harry leaves the household. It doesn't say that it has to be used for all of Young Harry's expenses only that it must be used for the care of the child. As far as we are concerned, the fact that they have taken him in and are providing food, housing and clothing, they are fulfilling their part of the bargain. We cannot renege on the money now. Not unless they actually put him out of their house and as you know, they are greedy enough not to want the money from stop coming." Mr. Nikolei said.  
  
"You are right of course, that money will keep them from throwing Harry out of their home. But I can't stop from feeling that they are the wrong people to care for him." Sighed Remus.  
  
"We all have our reservations Mr. Lupin. I agree with you, I don't believe the Durlesys are the right people to care for Young Harry, but Dumbledore must know what he is doing giving guardianship to them. I am not one of you, my knowledge of spells and charms is rather limited but he assures me that Young Harry is safe as long as he stays with his aunt." Mr. Nikolei said.  
  
"Yes. He has told me the same thing. I do not know much of this spell he speaks of, it's rather ancient magic and that has gone out of practice, that's why nobody has heard much of it. Only scholars and historians know of it of course, and Dumbledore is one of the topmost scholars of ancient magic." Remus said. "Ancient magic is rather strong and difficult to control, that's why it isn't practiced anymore. Only a few can perform it and only after long years of study and meditation."  
  
"It sounds strong indeed, if can keep Young Harry safe from these Dark Wizards I've heard about." Mr. Nikolei sounded impressed.  
  
"It certainly is. I will leave you Mr. Nikolei, I have other plans for this afternoon." Said Remus and after saying his goodbyes left the study of the solicitor.  
  
Mr. Nikolei sighed. He understood perfectly the emotions that ran through Remus. He himself was not happy with providing that money to the Dursleys, he knew that it would not be used for the reason it was intended for and that Harry would lack many things in that household. But he also believed what he had told Remus. He believed it was the money that kept Harry safe in the Dursley household. As long as that money was sent to them, they would think carefully before sending Harry away from their house. And Harry needed to remain with them. He didn't know much about magic, as he had told Remus, in fact he didn't know it existed until James and Lily Potter had hired him to be one of the trustees of the Potter Estate. They had explained to him everything about Hogwarts and the Ministry of Magic, he had to work with both after all to keep the estate intact. It had been hard for him to believe in what he thought were fairy tales, but the earnest character of both James and Lily Potter had convinced him that they were telling the truth. It was too bad that Fate had cut short their acquaintance, he would've loved to learn more of the hidden world that he and others like him didn't know existed.  
  
~~**~~**~~**  
  
Mrs. Figg kept a close eye on Harry Potter. As he grew older, she knew that sooner or later the magical side of him would make an appearance. She hadn't seen him do any sort of magic yet, not since he had been left with the Dursleys. She wondered if the environment didn't have anything to do with it. She knew that when he was an infant with his parents he had shown clear signs of magical powers, but when he was taken from the magical world and left in the muggle world that magical side of him seemed to have gone dormant.  
  
"Are you sure he is safe?" Remus asked for the third time as he stood by the window looking out from Mrs. Figg sitting room.  
  
Mrs. Figg sighed with exasperation. "How many times do I have to tell you? Yes, he is safe. Growing up rather nicely, no thanks to those dolts."  
  
Remus smiled and turned back to sit on the one chair that wasn't inhabited by cats. "Why do you have to keep so many cats?" Complained Remus as dusted cat hair from his robes.  
  
"They give Mr. Tibbs and Minerva a nice cover. The neighbors are used to my cats running around and they can keep an eye on the Dursleys without complaints." Mrs. Figg said as she stroke the fur of a sleepy cat that had settled on her lap.  
  
"What about you? Don't you get bored here?" Remus said looking around the room with curiosity. There was nothing in sight that could show her magical ancestry. No magical pictures, no radio playing the WWN, nothing that would give up her cover.  
  
"Not much change from my own life to that of a muggle." Mrs. Figg shrugged. "Although I do miss my radio soaps."  
  
Remus laughed. "Only you would miss the soaps. You might want to check that telly thing, I've heard the muggles have their own programming that can be quite interesting." He smiled.  
  
"I've seen it." Scoffed Mrs. Figg. "It's not the same thing."  
  
"When is he coming?" Remus asked suddenly.  
  
Mrs. Figg glanced at the old grandfather clock in a corner of the room. "He said he was coming to have lunch. He should be here any minute now. Hogwarts is closed for the summer, Dumbledore has more time to come for reports."  
  
Remus nodded and looked down at the cats playing around the room.  
  
A pop sounded in the kitchen. A second later, Dumbledore appeared in the doorway.  
  
"Glad to see you could join us Mr. Lupin." He said.  
  
~~**~~**~~**  
  
Harry was now seven years old and life at the Durleys was as hard as it had ever been. School was not better, he didn't have any friends, as kids were afraid to talk of him because of Dudley. But he didn't care, it was preferable to make himself inconspicuous in school, it was the only way Dudley wouldn't bother him. It was enough that he had to live with him, he didn't want to deal with his cousin in school as well.  
  
But all his precautions weren't always enough.  
  
It was the beginning of spring and Dudley's birthday was fast approaching, that made Dudley more impossible than usual as he bullied everybody in school to come to his party with presents.  
  
On this sunny day, Dudley and his gang were laughing as they pushed a small boy among themselves.  
  
Harry was watching from a distance, feeling sorry for the small boy and hoping that a teacher would notice. But there didn't seem to be any teacher around and the small boy had started whimpering with fright.  
  
"What, don't you want to play with us anymore?" Dudley jeered. The others laughed.  
  
Harry had had enough.  
  
"Leave him alone!" He yelled.  
  
Dudley and the others turned angrily to see who had yelled at him. Their victim looked pleadingly at Harry and made his escape when he noticed that the others were occupied glaring at Harry.  
  
"What is to you?" Asked one of the boys in the gang.  
  
"Wanna take his place." Piers, Dudley's best friend, sneered.  
  
The others chuckled with amusement.  
  
Dudley smiled nastily at Harry. "Maybe he does want to take his place." He said.  
  
Harry looked at Dudley's nasty expression. "Uh-oh!" He whispered before turning and running away from the gang.  
  
"Get him!" He heard Dudley yell to the others before heavy footsteps followed him.  
  
He ran through the whole schoolyard. Dudley and his gang followed him everywhere. Children stopped playing to look at the chase. Some looked fearful, others laughed and cheered as the gang ran through them.  
  
Harry turned toward the kitchens, he knew there were several trash cans there and he could easily hide among them. He had a far lead on Dudley and his friend he had time to hide.  
  
He jumped over the trash cans, but instead of falling behind them, he found himself sitting by the chimney above the kitchen's roof.  
  
"What the-?" He looked around. How did he get up here? He asked himself.  
  
"You are in trouble now!" Yelled Dudley cheerfully.  
  
Harry turned to see down at his cousin and saw several children below looking at him in surprise and behind them an angry teacher was coming toward the building.  
  
"Harry Potter! You better get down from there this instant." She yelled.  
  
"How am I supposed to that?" He whispered as he looked around, hoping to find a ladder of some sort. He couldn't see any.  
  
Dudley and his friends were laughing. The other children were looking up in surprise and the teacher was yelling in anger.  
  
"Oh boy!" He whispered. He was in trouble indeed.  
  
It took an hour to get Harry down from the roof. Break was over and the children had long gone back to class, except Harry of course. The teacher had sent for the Headmistress and the caretaker. The caretaker returned with a ladder, long enough to reach the roof, and climbed steadily to help Harry down.  
  
The Headmistress waited at the bottom, she had sent the teacher to class.  
  
Once Harry was safely down, she pounced on him.  
  
"What in heavens were you thinking climbing up to the roof?" She yelled.  
  
"I didn't, I mean, I did but I didn't mean to." Harry said.  
  
"Humph!" She snorted with disbelief.  
  
"It's true, I swear. I meant to hide behind the trashcans but somehow I ended up on the roof. I don't know how it happened, maybe the wind got me in mid jump?" Harry said.  
  
"Do you really think I would swallow that nonsense? Are you saying that by some sort of magic you ended up in the roof? Honestly, do you think I'm stupid?" The headmistress raged.  
  
Harry looked down at his shoes. He really was in trouble now.  
  
~~**~~**~~**  
  
The Dursleys weren't too happy with Harry that evening. The Headmistress had sent a scathing letter with Dudley about Harry climbing up the school buildings. Dudley was ecstatic.  
  
"I will not have it I tell you! This is unacceptable." Uncle Vernon roared.  
  
Aunt Petunia stood by the stove, with her lips pursed and her arms crossed glaring at Harry. Dudley was sitting in his customary chair in the table waiting for dinner. Harry was standing in the middle of the room.  
  
He didn't say anything, he knew that it would only make Uncle Vernon more angry.  
  
"Climbing buildings! What do you think you were doing?" Uncle Vernon was pacing, his face was mottled with anger.  
  
"I didn't mean to do it." Harry whispered. It was better than the others didn't hear him because Uncle Vernon continued with his pacing and roaring.  
  
"This is nonsense, I will not accept nonsense in this house. Go to your cupboard, and don't you dare to get out until you are told to do so." He ordered.  
  
Harry walked slowly out of the kitchen to the cupboard under the stairs. He wasn't frightened by it. He was used to it. He had been living in the cupboard for some years now and being locked in the cupboard wasn't new. He knew that the others will eat and wouldn't bother to bring him anything, all he had to do is keep silent and wait for midnight to fall. He would leave his cupboard then and get something to it.  
  
That was the only way to survive with the Dursleys, be silent and wait.  
  
But he couldn't help wishing that there was someone out there that could take him away to a more loving place.  
  
~~**~~**~~**  
  
The days passed and Harry stayed in his cupboard. But he didn't stay long enough to miss Dudley's birthday.  
  
As usual, the house was full of celebration. Large gifts were placed in the table waiting to be opened by an eager Dudley and a large meal was being prepared for him and his family.  
  
"Keep an eye on the pan, don't burn the food." Aunt Petunia snapped when Harry entered the kitchen.  
  
Harry nodded and stood in front of the stove, stirring the contents within the pan.  
  
"Oh, my baby, Duddykins, my love. Happy Birthday!" Aunt Petunia exclaimed when Dudley walked into the kitchen.  
  
"Ooh, presents." Dudley exclaimed, his eyes were wide open looking at all the packages on top of the table.  
  
There was a chuckle from the door. It was Uncle Vernon. "Happy Birthday son!"  
  
"Oh, we're going to have a wonderful day." Aunt Petunia exclaimed, clasping her hands with excitement.  
  
"Can I take Piers?" Vernon asked excitedly.  
  
"Of course dear, anything you want, it is your special day." Aunt Petunia said.  
  
Dudley smiled and sneered at Harry as he finally noticed him in front of the stove. "I'm hungry!" He exclaimed.  
  
"Hurry up boy!" Uncle Vernon yelled.  
  
"Be careful with it." Aunt Petunia growled.  
  
Harry filled the platters carefully before moving them to the table. There were platters of bacon, eggs, sausages, ham, bread and a pot of warm coffee and another with tea.  
  
He took his place in silence and ate while his cousin and uncle piled their plates. Aunt Petunia always ate daintily from her plate, a large napkin in her lap.  
  
Harry shook his head, he had a very weird family, he thought.  
  
Breakfast was eaten in a hurry, as Dudley wanted to open his gifts. Harry had to take the empty platters out of the way as soon as breakfast was over. He didn't return to the table as each gift was opened and exclaimed over. He washed the dishes instead, he knew he wasn't welcomed, and watching his cousin open his gifts only made him think of the ones he didn't get on his own birthday, even if his family bothered to remember.  
  
He heard the paper ripping and Dudley's squeals of happiness as the gifts were opened, Harry just tried to keep the sounds out of his mind. It did no good to wish his cousin to share his things with him.  
  
Finally, all the gifts were opened and Dudley and Uncle Vernon had taken them to Dudley's room.  
  
"Come dear, put your coat on." Aunt Petunia told Dudley after he returned to the kitchen.  
  
"We'll pass for Piers after we leave him with Mrs. Figgs." Said Vernon nodding to Harry.  
  
Harry sighed. Of course, Mrs. Figg, how could he have forgotten?  
  
It was not a happy day for Harry. While Dudley and his family went to the theater and to eat at an expensive restaurant, Harry had to help Mrs. Figg to care for her cats. Later in the day they sat on a couch while Mrs. Figg showed him pictures of all the cats she had ever had. Harry was bored.  
  
There was a cat that Harry thought acted strange. A tabby with strange markings around the eyes. The cat stood silently in one corner and followed him around the house, it made no noises, nor did it played as the other cats did.  
  
He happily left when the Durleys passed to pick him up.  
  
Mrs. Figg saw the car disappear around the corner from her window. "They are gone." She said.  
  
"Oh, I'm must be getting older if staying in my Animagus form is making all the muscles in my body ache." A woman exclaimed from one corner of the room.  
  
Mrs. Figg turned to smile at the older lady that was sitting in one of her couches.  
  
"That poor boy, how could he stand it? If you had said the name of one more cat I was going to scratch you." The woman exclaimed.  
  
Mrs. Figg laughed. "If I make his visits tolerable, Minerva, then he won't be allowed to come back. Those Dursleys are torture loving people."  
  
"I don't know what Dumbledore was thinking, leaving him with those people. He doesn't know anything about our world." Professor McGonagall exclaimed.  
  
"Really sad, him growing up without knowing anything of the legacy of his parents." Mrs. Figg shook her head sadly.  
  
"'Tis good he doesn't know. Can't you imagine what those muggles would do if they could get their hands on the Potter inheritance?" Professor McGonagall asked.  
  
Mrs. Figg kept silent. Everybody knew the size of the Potter inheritance. The lands, the money, everything was of great value, and the thought of little Harry Potter growing up without knowledge of what his parents had left behind brought sadness to all of those who had known the Potters and the love they had for their family and those who worked their land.  
  
~~**~~**~~**  
  
Professor McGonagall and Mrs. Figg were not the only ones who worried about Harry not knowing of his inheritance.  
  
Those living in the Manor, taking care of the properties that now belonged to him were also worried that Master Harry didn't know about the land.  
  
"What did Dumbledore say, Nigel?" Asked Mrs. Nichols, the Manor's housekeeper, as her brother, Mr. Rogers the butler, returned from his annual trip to Hogwarts.  
  
"The same Alice. Master Harry is not ready to come home." Roberts sighed.  
  
"Oh dear, I had so hope to see him." Mrs. Nichols said.  
  
"I know Alice. But we must wait. Professor Dumbledore says that as long as there are unidentified Death Eaters free, Master Harry is not safe and must stay with the Dursleys." Roberts explained.  
  
"Humph! Those people know nothing about us, about our world. What are they going to teach him? Nothing. You remember what happened with Mistress Lily." Mrs. Nichols exclaimed.  
  
"I remember, but there is nothing to do for the moment, he will return, eventually." Said Roberts.  
  
Behind the door, a pair of large, bat-like ears listened carefully to what was being said by the housekeeper and the butler.  
  
The large ears and the shoulders dropped at the thought that Master Harry was not returning home.  
  
"Master Harry needs his Minnie." The small house elf sighed. Large crystal tears ran down her wrinkled face as she slowly made her way down to the kitchens.  
  
~~**~~**~~**  
  
Sirius lay on the dirty pallet in his cell, trying to keep out the moans and screams coming from the other cells.  
  
There was only one thing that made him forget of where he was, and that was Harry.  
  
"He is eight now." He whispered. "Three more years until he goes to Hogwarts. James would be proud."  
  
The thought of James brought anger to his heart and made him remember Peter. He growled in anger at the thought of Peter safe and alive somewhere in the magical world where he could easily harm Harry.  
  
"You'll pay for what you did Peter. Don't think that you are safe." He whispered.  
  
Slowly, the sounds of Azkaban started to penetrate his thoughts. He groaned and closed his eyes, trying again to keep them out. He didn't want to remember that he was in Azkaban.  
  
~~**~~**~~**  
  
The years passed and Harry continued to grow. Unknown to him and to the Dursleys, they were being watched. Mrs. Figg kept constant vigilance on Privet Drive. Dumbledore sent somebody once a week to collect the reports from Mrs. Figg.  
  
They were taking precautions, to keep Harry safe. Dumbledore had sworn to James and Lily that he would keep Harry safe, and he planned to keep his promise.  
  
Harry awoke early one morning. He hoped that he could stay in his cupboard, this was not a day he was looking forward to. Aunt Marge was coming to visit. Dudley's birthday was coming up and she wanted to be here for that special day.  
  
Harry groaned. The thought of Aunt Marge's visit didn't bring joy to his heart. He just knew she was going to do or say something to make him feel inferior to the rest of the family. He snorted, she should know by now that her brother took care of that every single day.  
  
He hoped there were other choices open to him. Other family members that he could visit or go to when things got bad at the Dursleys's. But there were none. Neither Aunt Petunia nor Uncle Vernon made any mention of his family. They never talked about his father's family and he knew that on his mother's side only Aunt Petunia was left.  
  
He didn't like the thought that there was nobody else in the world that cared for him. Not that he could say that the Dursleys cared much for him.  
  
He often wondered why the Dursleys even bothered to keep him. He knew that he had left in their care when his parents were killed in an accident when he was only one year old. It was a story that he heard once he was old enough to understand. But now he wondered why he was here. It was clear to him that the Dursleys didn't want him to be there. Painfully clear. So, why keep him at all? They could have easily taken him to an orphanage. Aunt Marge kept saying that often enough. They could have given him for adoption or given him to another family. There were many things they could've done, instead, they kept him. But why?  
  
He sighed with exasperation. It wasn't the first time he thought about his situation. There were nights, when he was sent to his cupboard without dinner and stayed up for hours thinking about his life and the reason he was here, that he thought about every single aspect of his life. He knew that that Dursleys didn't want him there, and if he was honest, he didn't want to be there.  
  
He was suddenly woken from his thoughts. He could hear his aunt moving above him. He heard her coming down the steps. She would soon be knocking on his door.  
  
"Get up, you!" He heard his aunt yell.  
  
"I'm awake." He said.  
  
"Come and make breakfast, everything should be ready for Marge's visit." Aunt Petunia said as she walked to the kitchen.  
  
Harry sighed. He stood from his small bed and dressed quickly. He didn't want Aunt Petunia to come and scream at him some more for taking long. He pried spiders from his shoes and socks. Finally, he opened the door and followed his aunt into the kitchen.  
  
Aunt Petunia was waiting for him next to the stove.  
  
"Stir the eggs and keep an eye on the sausage." She snapped at him.  
  
Harry nodded and went to stand in front of the stove. The eggs and sausages sizzled in the large pans.  
  
"Morning, my dear." Uncle Vernon said as he came into the kitchen. He carried the newspaper in one hand and the mail in the other. "Dudley up yet?"  
  
"He should be down soon, he enjoys schools so much, the poor darling." Said Aunt Petunia.  
  
Harry shook his head silently.  
  
"I've sent the application to Smeltings. We should hear later this year about his acceptance." Uncle Vernon said with pride.  
  
Smeltings was a private school Uncle Vernon had attended when he was a child. Both Harry and Dudley were about to start their last year in their current school. Harry, of course, would attend Stonewall High, the local public school. The Dursleys saw no need for him to get the education that Dudley required.  
  
"Oh, my dear Duddykins, he is growing so fast." Aunt Petunia dried the small tears off her eyes with a white handkerchief.  
  
Harry heard his cousin walking down the stairs. He walked slowly into the kitchen.  
  
"Morning, son." Said Uncle Vernon as Aunt Petunia hugged Dudley and kissed his cheek.  
  
"Morning." Mumbled Dudley.  
  
Harry knew that Dudley was thinking of the math test they would have that morning.  
  
"By the time you return home from school, son, Aunt Marge will be here." Uncle Vernon announced happily.  
  
"Too bad I won't be here to welcome her." Said Dudley carefully, glancing sideways at his father.  
  
Harry snorted. He was happy that they would be at school instead of greeting Aunt Marge.  
  
"Marge would certainly enjoy seeing you first thing." Aunt Petunia said thoughtfully.  
  
"Oh, no mum. I have a test today, it would not be right to miss it." Dudley said with feigned concern.  
  
"That's nothing son, we know you are the best in the class, that test would be only a waste of time." Uncle Vernon exclaimed.  
  
"Marge would like to spend time with you, it's not often that she can get away to come and visit." Aunt Petunia said decisively.  
  
"But mum, the test!" Dudley said.  
  
"Of no import. You'll stay home today to greet Aunt Marge." Said Uncle Vernon.  
  
Harry smiled at his plate. Today seemed to be looking up for him. A whole day in school without Dudley it would be so peaceful.  
  
"You boy!" Uncle Vernon turned to Harry. "You'll stay and help your Aunt to get the house ready for my sister. You hear?"  
  
"Yes Uncle Vernon." Harry said with resignation, he had looked forward to a day by himself at school, now it seemed that it wasn't to be.  
  
"I'm leaving my dear. I'm only going to the office to meet with a very important client and then I'll go to the station to get Marge. We'll be here late in the afternoon." Uncle Vernon said as he put his newspaper aside and started to rise from the table.  
  
"Have a good day, dear." Said Aunt Petunia as she turned her cheek for her husband's kiss.  
  
"Take care of your mother, son. Aunt Marge will be here soon enough." Uncle Vernon ruffled Dudley's hair.  
  
He didn't say another word to Harry, didn't even looked his way, before he walked out of the kitchen. Minutes later they heard the front door close behind him and then the sound of the car pulling from the driveway reached them.  
  
"Ok, Duddykins, go and play while we clean." Aunt Petunia said to Dudley once the plates where empty. Dudley quickly left his chair and went to the sitting room to watch TV. "You, get the wax and the vacuum, I want every carpet clean and every floor sparkling." She said turning to Harry.  
  
Harry sighed. He had wanted so much to go to school.  
  
Noon had passed. Luncheon had been served and the house was now sparkling clean. Aunt Petunia seemed happy by their efforts and Dudley continued to seat in front of the television.  
  
Harry was waiting in his cupboard.  
  
Uncle Vernon had given them a call to tell them that he was at the station and Aunt Marge's train would arrive any minute.  
  
Harry was exhausted. He had spent hours cleaning the carpets. Aunt Petunia had decided that vacuuming wasn't enough they needed to be washed as well. Hours spent the whole morning on his knees. First, he washed every carpet in the house and then he waxed every tile in the kitchen, and every board in the sitting room.  
  
It was tiring work, he thought, but not as tiring as spending time with Aunt Marge. Aunt Marge wasn't really his aunt, and she was no blood relation of his. She was Uncle Vernon's sister, and from the beginning she had made it quite clear that she didn't consider him part of the family, that he didn't belong.  
  
It was hard living with the Dursleys, but it was harder still when Aunt Marge came to visit. She enjoyed telling him that he was lucky her precious brother had kept him, he could have left him in an orphanage, she said, that he belonged there. Usually, Harry just tried not to listen to her. It was a litany he had heard all his life.  
  
The sound of a car pulling up in front of the house was heard.  
  
"Dudley, my dear, your father is here!" Aunt Petunia yelled from the kitchen. She knocked hard on the cupboard's door. "Get out, you! Aunt Marge is here."  
  
Harry sighed with resignation. "Coming!"  
  
Aunt Petunia was standing by the door, Dudley by her side. Harry walked slowly to join them as the door opened and Uncle Vernon walked in.  
  
"Marge is here!" He exclaimed as he put the luggage aside.  
  
"Petunia, my dear, you look great." Aunt Marge exclaimed and kissed Aunt Petunia's bony cheek.  
  
"So do you, Marge. It has been a long time." Aunt Petunia said.  
  
"Well, you know how it is. My darlings need constant supervision, it's not enough to just give them food and keep them in the kennels. Raising dogs is hard work." Aunt Marge explained. She carried her favorite dog, Ripper, underneath her arm.  
  
"I understand, that's what makes your visits such a joy to us." Aunt Petunia said.  
  
"And there is my little gentleman!" She exclaimed as she turned to look at Dudley. "Will you look at yourself! You are growing up so fast. Soon, you will be just like your father." She hugged Dudley tight against her.  
  
Harry could see Dudley's face full of horror above Aunt Marge's shoulder. But he knew that he would never let his parents or his aunt know about how he felt about such things. He made sure that he acted the perfect gentleman in front of his family, it allowed him to get away with his bullying at school and in the neighborhood.  
  
Aunt Marge let go of Dudley and looked at Harry. "You still here? Humph!" She snorted her distaste. Ripper growled, but to Harry's relief, Aunt Marge turned from him without another word and walked into the sitting room.  
  
"Take the luggage upstairs." Ordered Uncle Vernon before following his sister and wife, who was asking Aunt Marge if she wanted refreshments.  
  
"Yes Uncle Vernon." Said Harry as he grasped the handle of the suitcase.  
  
Dudley sneered and followed his parents into the sitting room.  
  
Harry sighed with relief. He didn't mind not joining them at the moment and getting the luggage to the guest room instead.  
  
It took him a few minutes to get the luggage to the guest room. He tried to spend as much time as he could getting the luggage upstairs, he wasn't looking forward to joining the rest of the family in the sitting room, as he knew he was expected to do. He knew the moment Aunt Marge saw him, she would start with her usual litany about everything that was wrong with him. But it didn't take him long to finish and he slowly made his way to the sitting room.  
  
Uncle Vernon was standing by the fireplace, talking about his important meeting that morning. Aunt Petunia was sitting in her favorite chair by the window, a cup of tea cradled in her hands. Aunt Marge was sitting in the couch beside Aunt Petunia's chair with Dudley at her side and a bag of candy in his lap. Obviously, a gift from Aunt Marge. Both, Aunt Marge and Uncle Vernon had a glass of whisky in their hands.  
  
Harry walked slowly into the room. Nobody paid him any attention as he sat in a small chair by the door.  
  
Uncle Vernon finally stopped his story, and to Harry's dismay, Aunt Marge could now turn her attention to him.  
  
"Humph! Not grown much, have you. Family must be short." She said.  
  
Harry didn't say anything. There was nothing for him to say, he didn't know what his family was like. He had never seen a picture of neither of his parents, for all he knew both could be short. It really didn't matter to him.  
  
Dudley sneered at Harry, he enjoyed Aunt Marge's visits. One, he would get gifts and money every time she visited. Two, Harry always got in trouble when she was with them. And Dudley always enjoyed watching Aunt Marge ripping at Harry.  
  
"Bad blood, that's what it is. It always shows." Aunt Marge was saying. Aunt Petunia was nodding and Uncle Vernon was smiling at his sister.  
  
"Indeed. Don't know much about them, of course, but it does shows in him." Uncle Vernon said.  
  
"Probably nothing to know. People like that don't like proper people to know about them. Try to pass off as ordinary folks and hide their bad blood." Aunt Marge exclaimed.  
  
Harry tried to keep all her words from his mind. He didn't like what she said, didn't matter that he knew nothing about his family, but it still made him angry. But he also knew that there was nothing for him but to allow them to have their say, he didn't want to be punished. All he had to do is just sit there and think of other things, they would finish soon enough.  
  
"Lucky, that's what he is. If he had been left in my doorstep, I would have taken him straight to the village orphanage." Aunt Marge exclaimed. "No need for me to spend any of my money on him. You are too good-hearted Vernon. Nobody expected you to take him in. No gain on it."  
  
Uncle Vernon only nodded but didn't say anything, the thought of the check that had arrived that morning kept him from saying anything.  
  
Aunt Petunia only glared at Harry behind her cup as if daring him to contradict them.  
  
Harry kept silent.  
  
"Well, no matter. Anything to eat Petunia? Food in the train was horrible." Said Aunt Marge turning to Aunt Petunia.  
  
"Of course, Marge. I have food prepared for you, I knew that the food in the train would not be any good." Aunt Petunia said with disgust.  
  
"Would you like to refresh yourself before going to the kitchen, Marge?" Asked Uncle Vernon.  
  
"No need. I'm rested now." Said Aunt Marge as she patted Ripper, who had been in her lap the whole time. "No time like the present, I always say." She put Ripper down on the floor and she walked out of the room behind Aunt Petunia and followed by Uncle Vernon and Dudley.  
  
Harry stayed in his seat for a moment longer before standing from his chair. He started to follow them, but before he crossed the door a loud whine came from his feet, he turned to see Ripper growling at him, his tail underneath one of his feet.  
  
"Oh, sorry." Harry said as he looked warily down at the dog.  
  
Ripper continued to growl at him. Harry moved away but the dog followed him and made to bite him.  
  
Harry run out of the room, the dog followed right behind him. Harry tried to run from Ripper, but he followed him wherever he went. Dudley stood by the kitchen door, laughing, while Aunt Marge ignored what was going on and Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon didn't bother to say anything except to yell at Harry to be quiet.  
  
Harry ran out of the house, the dog continued to follow. The only way to be out of reach from the dog was the high limbs of the tree in the yard. Harry run to it and climbed the tree. The dog stayed by the trunk growling up to him and barking.  
  
Harry could see Dudley laughing behind the window, Aunt Marge stood behind him sneering. Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon were not in sight, but Harry knew that they wouldn't help him.  
  
He decided to stay in the tree, surely, he thought, Ripper would get tired soon enough and leave him alone.  
  
By the end of the afternoon, Harry had been in the tree for hours and the dog was still growling and barking underneath him.  
  
It wasn't until after midnight, after neighbors had complained about the noise Ripper was making, that Aunt Marge called Ripper to order and Harry was finally able to leave the tree.  
  
He stumbled into his cupboard tired and depressed. How long, he wondered, could he stay with the Dursleys until he could leave? He didn't want to be there anymore. There had to be something better for him.  
  
~~**~~**~~**  
  
A/N: There you go, I hope you like it. I'm starting on the next chapter, hopefully I can get more time to work on this story and can get the next chapter posted soon. Thank you all for reviewing, I enjoy knowing how much you like the story. Enjoy and Review! 


	48. Part IV Chapter 4

A/N: Hello, sorry it has taken me so long to post another chapter, but I have been too busy with school papers and work to do much lately. I hope you enjoy this chapter, it's not as long as some, and it's also the last chapter of Part IV, I decided I wanted to stop here and not go into the years we know about through the books.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Desclaimer: I don't own HP or anything relevant to it.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Chapter 4 ~ A New Life  
  
Harry didn't leave his cupboard for the next couple of days and the Dursleys didn't seem to mind. In fact, they seemed to prefer that he stayed hidden during the time Aunt Marge stayed in Privet Drive.  
  
Harry hid in the darkness of his cupboard. He could hear Dudley chuckling every time he passed by the cupboard and Ripper growling on the other side of the door.  
  
It wasn't that he was scared. He wasn't. He was embarrassed. And he didn't like feeling like a fool, not that anybody would care if he did or not. But his self-esteem was suffering greatly from the incident.  
  
He sighed with relief when he emerged from his cupboard the last day of Aunt Marge's visit. He had listened in silence as the family ate their breakfast. He heard Aunt Marge gushing over Dudley and knew that Dudley had emerged from it with new crisp pounds in his fat hands. He heard Uncle Vernon grunting as he took the luggage to the car. And he listened with relief as Aunt Marge said goodbye to Aunt Petunia. A sense of satisfaction filled his body as he heard the car leave the driveway and silence had fallen over the house once more. He opened the cupboard door with care and peered from one side of the door, ready to close the door quickly just in case. Nobody was around. He smiled, and after stretching his arms and legs he walked quickly to the kitchen.  
  
Aunt Petunia was clearing the table.  
  
"Wash the dishes on the sink, you can finish this." She snapped as she pushed a plate of leftovers to him.  
  
Harry nodded and sat to eat his meager meal in a hurry.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
The days passed and spring gave way to summer. Harry tried to keep away from his cousin as much as he could, but it wasn't very easy when his friends preferred to spend their free time in the Dursley's House.  
  
Aunt Petunia cooked with excitement when the boys were in the house. She made large meals and allowed the boys to run over the house.  
  
Harry groaned every time he heard Dudley talking to his friends over the phone and making plans for their visit in the afternoons. There was only one thing that was good about the whole situation, and that was the presence of Aunt Petunia. As long as Aunt Petunia was working in the kitchen making the various dishes for the boys, she required Harry to help around the kitchen, and as long as he worked with her, Dudley and his gang could touch him.  
  
For the first time in his life, he was glad to spend so much time with his Aunt Petunia.  
  
July 31st arrived and the Dursleys forgot about Harry's birthday, as usual. Harry lay on his bed, waiting for his aunt and uncle to wake up. He knew that Dudley would make an appearance until later. He couldn't help but make comparisons between himself and his cousin.  
  
Unwillingly, his thoughts turned to his parents. Who were they? What were they like? Those were a few of the questions that Harry asked himself over and over again. They were questions that he had no answers to. His aunt and uncle had never talked about them. The only time he heard them mentioned was when either his Uncle Vernon or Aunt Marge said disparaging things about him or his parents. He never said anything, because he didn't know much of his parents. How could he defend them if he didn't know who they were? Aunt Petunia never said a thing about her sister. Harry had asked about them when he was younger, but his questions were never answered and he was bid to not ask anymore. It was an order that was hard for him to follow.  
  
He finally heard his aunt coming down the stairs. He stretched and opened his cupboard's door.  
  
"Come and watch the food." Aunt Petunia snapped.  
  
Harry nodded and walked quickly to the stove. He could hear his Uncle Vernon coming down the stairs.  
  
He sighed, he wished he could be anywhere but in Privet Drive.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Sirius was resting on his pallet. The atmosphere around him was dreary as the darkened halls of the prison gave way to the silent moans and groans of the other inhabitants of the dark cells.  
  
Sirius himself groaned with exasperation. He had been in Azkaban for so long now, he had no idea the exact number of years he had been imprisoned. But it didn't matter. He knew he had to find a way to get out soon. Harry was getting older and he would soon be accepted into Hogwarts. Sirius wanted to be there, he wanted to make sure Peter didn't get to him before anybody else.  
  
But what to do? Azkaban was feared for one reason only, the Dementors. And it was the Dementors that made Azkaban a difficult place to escape from.  
  
But Sirius had a mission. And he planned to see it through. He had promised Lily and James that Harry would be safe. He had promised to be his father when James couldn't be there. Events had made him renege on that promise but he wasn't going to allow Fate to keep him away. Harry needed guidance and he will see that Harry got what he needed. He had spent enough time with the Dursleys as it is. He needed to know about his family and the legacy they left behind.  
  
James and Lily's death would not be in vain.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Gryffindor Manor was in a festive mood. The lake was calm and small boats had been tied around the shore. Tents were erected around the lawn and a large racecourse had been cleared surrounding the lake. Banners, flags and multicolored decorations flew in the cool breeze.  
  
People around the village were preparing food and decorations to add to those placed by the tenants and inhabitants of the Manor.  
  
It was a very special day, indeed. It was the annual celebrations of the birthday of their master, Harry Potter.  
  
Mrs. Nichols happily hummed as she and the maids of the Manor took the platters of food that Otty had prepared to the tents in the lawn.  
  
Roberts stood by the kitchen gardens supervising the legion of footmen and house elves preparing the barrels and casks of cider and juice to take to the tents.  
  
Minnie and Lotty had been busy finishing the decorations that were seen throughout every garden and tree in the estate.  
  
By noon, people had congregated around the lawn near the lake. The sweet aromas of the food and drinks permeated the air. The children were playing and people were ready to begin the games.  
  
In the center of the lawn was a small tent. The flaps had been removed from all around it and beneath the cover stood a large chair with presents around it. It had been placed there every year on this same date, to represent the person whom they had come to celebrate.  
  
Music started and laughter could be heard for miles around.  
  
Gryffindor Manor was celebrating hoping that some time soon their master would join them and be part of the celebration.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Harry lay on his bed in the darkened cupboard. It had been an uneventful day. But he could help but repeat the birthday wish he had done for the past few years. That the new year was better and he could finally leave and be part of another world different from the one he had grown up in.  
  
Summer was soon over and fall was upon them. Harry and Dudley would return to school for their last year together, by this time the next year, they would both go on their own way. But in the meantime, Harry had to try to keep away from Dudley he wanted to have a more peaceful school year.  
  
By the end of August, Aunt Petunia decided to take them shopping. Dudley needed new materials for school.  
  
Aunt Petunia woke them up very early. They would all go with Uncle Vernon to the city, where they would shop and eat out until they could return at the end of the day with Uncle Vernon.  
  
Dudley grumbled and groaned as he ate, he didn't like waking up early if he didn't have to. Harry didn't mind. He always woke up early. He was just looking forward to spending the day outside of the house.  
  
"Eat everything son, it might be a while before you eat today." Uncle Vernon said as he piled more food on Dudley's plate.  
  
" Hmmm!" Groaned Dudley.  
  
Harry sat on his chair without saying a word. His plate was not as full as Dudley's but he was content just eating and not being picked on by his cousin or his uncle.  
  
"We are leaving in half an hour, you better get ready Dudley if you don't want any more breakfast." Uncle Vernon said as he sipped the last of his coffee.  
  
Dudley nodded and waddled out of the kitchen. Harry sighed and started to pick the empty plates from the table.  
  
"What are you going to do with him?" Harry heard Uncle Vernon ask Aunt Petunia and knew that he was talking about him.  
  
"Have to take him with us. Mrs. Figg is indisposed, she said." Said Aunt Petunia.  
  
Uncle Vernon seemed displeased, but there was nothing for him to do. Harry was never left alone in the house and if Mrs. Figg could care for him, then there was nothing for them to do but take him along. At least, Vernon thought, I don't have to be with him during the day. And he knew that his wife was more than capable to deal with Harry on her own.  
  
Half an hour later, Harry found himself sharing the back seat with Dudley on their way to London. Uncle Vernon was growling and complaining about things, just as he always did. But Harry wasn't paying attention. He looked out the window at the scenery flashing by. It wasn't very often that he went along with the Dursleys on their days out and he planned to enjoy this day as much as he could.  
  
It didn't take long for them to arrive at the outskirts of London. Harry watched raptly as pedestrians and cars tried to make their way around the congested streets toward work.  
  
"I'll drop you off Downtown and I'll pick you up later this afternoon." Uncle Vernon was instructing Aunt Petunia.  
  
Aunt Petunia nodded, she seemed to be excited to be in London and was looking forward to a whole day of shopping.  
  
"Wait for me in the same place I drop you off." Uncle Vernon continued. "If we have the time, maybe we can have dinner before we drive back home."  
  
"Where dad?" Dudley asked with enthusiasm.  
  
Vernon chuckled. "I'll let you choose."  
  
Dudley sat with a smug smile on his face. Harry didn't say anything, he wouldn't mind eating out of the house for a change, and if the only way to do so was to allow Dudley to choose what they would eat, Harry wasn't going to say anything against it.  
  
The car stopped in front of a park. Harry could see young children playing with nannies watching nearby. There were shops and restaurants all around the park. Uncle Vernon had chosen a good spot to drop them off in.  
  
"We'll wait for you dear." Aunt Petunia replied.  
  
"Have a fun day." Uncle Vernon yelled as he pulled away.  
  
"Let's see. Dudley needs new school clothes, new shoes and new materials for school." Aunt Petunia was saying as she grabbed hold of one of Dudley's chubby hands and started to steer them to the clothes stores nearest to them.  
  
Harry hurried after his aunt and cousin, trying to keep up. He couldn't help but try to look at everything around him.  
  
He couldn't remember being in London. He might have been as an infant before his parents died, but as he didn't remember anything from that time, he could say that he had been in London before.  
  
The tall buildings and busy sidewalks grabbed his attention constantly and he almost got separated from his aunt and cousin for not paying attention to where they were going.  
  
They went into every store they could. They bought clothes for Dudley, shoes for Dudley, toys for Dudley, markers, pencils and every kind of school supplies for Dudley. They even bought some dresses for Aunt Petunia before taking a break and eating at a small restaurant they found.  
  
Harry could help but be happy that Mrs. Figg was indisposed and couldn't keep him with her this morning. He looked out the window watching the pedestrians pass by.  
  
He was very surprised when an old, little man stopped in the window in front of him, bowed and waved before continuing on his way. Harry looked around, maybe it was not him whom the old man waved at, maybe there was somebody who knew him behind him. But there was nobody around. Harry couldn't think of a reason why a complete stranger had waved at him.  
  
And then a crazy idea entered his head. Maybe that old man knew who he was, maybe he had known his parents and had recognized him and wanted to say hi. But minutes later he thought better of it. He was just mad to think that somebody who knew his parents would recognize him. He had been too little for anybody to know how he looked now and if there had been friends of his parents alive, they would surely had tried to contact him at any time.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
"It is time to gather the names for the next year." Professor McGonagall said to Dumbledore one morning.  
  
"Is it indeed? How soon time seems to pass by." Dumbledore smiled at his Deputy Headmistress.  
  
Professor McGonagall seemed a little disconcerted by his reply. Why would he be surprised by her announcement, they this every year since she had become Hogwarts Deputy Headmistress.  
  
"Very well," continued Dumbledore not noticing Professor McGonagall's confusion, "the list needs to be retrieved before the day is over. We must be ready to receive our students tomorrow."  
  
"I will write the letters, as always, and the owls will be ready to be sent starting next week." Professor McGonagall said.  
  
Dumbledore nodded, he knew that he could leave the matter in his Deputy's capable hands. But there was something that was disturbing him. "Harry's name is upon that list, is it not?" He asked rather suddenly.  
  
"Indeed it is." Professor McGonagall said. "He will join us next year."  
  
"There will be some trouble getting him his letter." Professor Dumbledore said.  
  
"With those muggles as his guardians, I will not be surprised." Professor McGonagall agreed.  
  
"Now Minerva, we have talked about this. He is safe with them." Professor Dumbledore replied rather softly.  
  
"I don't see how he can be safer with them than with anybody else. There has not been reason for him to be so isolated. No Death Eaters have tried to get anywhere near that house. It has been almost nine years, perhaps it is time for him to know everything and be taken to the Manor." Professor McGonagall said.  
  
"No, he is too young to understand it all. He must stay put. The time will arrive when he will know everything he needs to know. For now, it is better to keep him in the dark. There is no need for him to know every dark aspect that brought on the death of his parents, he is better off not knowing." Professor Dumbledore replied.  
  
"If you think so." Said Professor McGonagall, but it was very clear by her tone that she didn't agree with him at all.  
  
"When the time comes for you to send that letter, let me know, I'll make sure that he receives it." Said Dumbledore.  
  
Professor McGonagall nodded before leaving the Headmaster's office.  
  
Dumbledore was lost in his own thoughts and didn't notice that his Deputy Headmistress had left his office. The thought of Harry back into the wizard community brought back memories when a young dark-haired James Potter started to get ready to go to Hogwarts.  
  
"You're going to have your hands full, Albus." Aliaster Potter had laughed after the acceptance letter had been received. "And with the Black boy with him, there is going to be trouble."  
  
"You mean Sirius Black?" His wife had asked with confusion.  
  
"Yes, him. James and Sirius have been as thick as thieves since they met." Aliaster had said with a glowing sparkle in his eyes.  
  
"I'm sure that Hogwarts can withstand anything that young Potter and Black could do. Minerva is more than capable to keep them in tight reins." Dumbledore had laughed.  
  
Dumbledore knew that things would be different for Harry. He hadn't had the opportunity to live with a loving family. But he was sure that his father's sense of adventure lived within his heart.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
A dog was lying on the floor in the cell that belonged to Sirius Black. The usual moans and groans that filled the air were few on this day. The dementors seemed to be on guard, as if waiting for a visit of someone important but the inmates didn't seem to notice any of it.  
  
The dog stirred and sniffed the air. Voices could be heard from far away, and they seemed to be coming nearer.  
  
The dog had disappeared, in its place a large man lay against the wall. He sat and listened as the visitors got closer.  
  
"Weasley, make sure that all of this is included in that report. No use talking about it if it's not written." The voice of the Minister, Mr. Fudge, echoed upon the corridor.  
  
"Yes Sir." Another voice said.  
  
Sirius sat in silence listening and watching the Minister and his entourage pass by his cell. A few of the Minister's companions looked his way, and Sirius smiled rather sinisterly at them. One or two whimpered with fright and walked faster to join the others. The rest just kept their eyes averted from the inmates of the cells.  
  
The maddening laugh of a woman filled the air. The visitors jumped with fright and looked around them rather nervously.  
  
"W-w-who is that?" One of the minister's companions said.  
  
"D-d-don't k-k-know." Another said.  
  
"SHUT IT BELLATRIX! You're scaring our visitors." Sirius yelled at the top of his lungs. He then turned to the Minister's group. "She is not going to bother you, none of them will, they have lost their minds, nothing they can do to you." He said with a mocking tone and then turned back to looking at the wall of his cell and closed his eyes.  
  
"M-m-mental, the whole lot." One of the visitors said.  
  
"Let's get out of here." The Minister ordered, but his voice shook and his face was pale.  
  
He quickly led his entourage out of the corridor. Sirius heard the sound of a heavy door closing at the end of the hall.  
  
He snorted with derision. "They should spend nine years here, see how they like it." He mumbled.  
  
The prison fell silent again. And in Sirius's place, a dog reappeared.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Christmas was fast approaching and Harry was recruited to help Aunt Petunia with the shopping. Harry didn't mind at all. It meant a day without Dudley's sneering face even if he had to miss school.  
  
"Hurry up, you! I want to go to the toy store, Duddy has a list of things he wants and I want to get as much as I can." Aunt Petunia ordered as they crossed the street toward a large toy store in Downtown London.  
  
"Yes, Aunt Petunia." Harry mumbled as he tried to balance the boxes and bags that he carried.  
  
He knew what was in each package, and he also knew not to get his hopes up and wish for a gift from the Dursleys. The fact that they had remembered his birthday some months ago didn't mean that they had changed their minds about him. In fact, if he was truthful, he preferred that they forgot his birthday instead of remembering. For when they forgot, he could imagine what he could get as a present, but when they remembered, the only things he was sure to get were insignificant. On his last birthday they had given him a coat hanger and a pair of Uncle Vernon's old socks. He much preferred the presents he got from his imagination.  
  
They spent the whole morning going in and out of shops. It felt more like a whole day to Harry but when they returned home in a taxi it was only early afternoon and Dudley hadn't returned from school yet.  
  
"Take those things to my room and then come to help with luncheon." Ordered Aunt Petunia just as they walked into the house. Harry was carrying bags and boxes while the taxi driver was pulling more from the trunk of his car.  
  
"All right." Mumbled Harry, even though he was sure that Aunt Petunia could not possibly hear him behind all the boxes.  
  
His vision was rather limited as climbed up the stairs. The boxes rose high above his head and he had to peek from the sides to see where he was going. He sighed with relief as he cleared the stairs, he never thought them dangerous but that had been with arms free; but with boxes, he was rather cautious hoping that he wouldn't lose his balance. There was no way he could save himself if he did.  
  
He walked down the corridor toward his aunt and uncle's room. He inched his way to the door and noticed it closed but rather to his surprise it sprung open. Harry shrugged, maybe Aunt Petunia had forgotten to close it before they left and the wind blew it open. He didn't bother to remember that the windows were usually kept closed and that there was no wind even though it was a rather cold day.  
  
He dumped the boxes on the bed and placed the bags on the floor next to it. He then went back outside and started back up with a new batch of boxes and bags. The taxi had long gone and Aunt Petunia had started to prepare the ingredients for their meal.  
  
Harry was tired, but he didn't dare complain. He knew it wouldn't do any good to do so, he would only be made to do more work.  
  
"What took you so long?" Snapped Aunt Petunia glaring at Harry as he entered the kitchen. "Take those carrots and chop them."  
  
"Yes, Aunt Petunia." He sighed and sat at the table where a cutting board, a knife and a bag of carrots waited for him.  
  
They worked in silence. Harry used his knife with experience. Aunt Petunia stood by the sink, peeling potatoes while watching out the window toward their neighbor's house.  
  
An hour later, the smells of sizzling meats roasting in the oven, sauces and vegetables boiling on the stovetop, and sweets and pastries cooling on the counters waited as Dudley was dropped off from school.  
  
"Duddy darling! How was school?" Exclaimed Aunt Petunia as soon as the front door was closed.  
  
"Fine." Said Dudley with a shrug.  
  
"Just drop your bag in your room and come to eat, sweetums, you need to build up your energy." Aunt Petunia gushed.  
  
Harry heard Dudley banging his way up the stairs while he stirred the sauce warming in a pan.  
  
"Place the plates on the table. Dudley needs his food." Ordered Aunt Petunia.  
  
Harry nodded and grabbed four plates and silverware from a cabinet. By the time Dudley appeared on the kitchen door, Aunt Petunia was filling his plate from platters in the middle of the table.  
  
"Sit here, Duddy dear." Aunt Petunia motioned to the chair closest to her.  
  
Dudley smiled at the sight of his full plate and waddled toward the chair.  
  
Harry took the chair opposite and piled some food on his own plate. Aunt Petunia sat in the chair next to Dudley's and took only a serving of vegetables and ladled sauce over them.  
  
Dudley talked and ate at the same time. His mother smiled indulgently as she listened patiently.  
  
Harry ate in silence. He didn't care to listen to what Dudley had to say, he was only boasting about the bulling he did in school. He knew that he couldn't say anything to Dudley, his parents believed he was the perfect example of a boy his age, they were blind to his imperfections and Dudley could do no wrong in their eyes. And Dudley wanted to keep it that way. He knew that he could get away with anything as long as his parents believed the best of him.  
  
The front door opened and closed again. Uncle Vernon was home for lunch. Sometimes he would join them for their midday meal, most of the time he didn't; but Aunt Petunia always made sure that there was a place set for him and that there was enough food on the table for him.  
  
Harry always thought that Dudley took advantage of this fact and preferred it when his father stayed out for lunch. It meant more food for him, as Aunt Petunia ate very little and Harry wasn't allowed to eat more than was necessary.  
  
Uncle Vernon rubbed his hands as he stepped into the kitchen.  
  
"Smells good." He said taking the remaining empty seat.  
  
Harry smiled at the sight of this cousin's crestfallen face.  
  
Aunt Petunia smiled proudly under her husband's comment.  
  
Harry could hear the voices of the reporters from the midday news, it seemed that Uncle Vernon turned on the TV before coming into the kitchen.  
  
"Great day at the office. I just got a file for a new customer and if I can get that account it would mean those new windows you were wishing for dear." Uncle Vernon announced to his wife.  
  
"Oh Vernon! That would be great." Aunt Petunia exclaimed. She had wanted to redecorate for quite a while, and since she had bought new furniture just last month she had hoped to change the design of the sitting room windows for a more classical style.  
  
Uncle Vernon looked smug at the thought of that new account.  
  
Harry just listened in silence, he knew that it didn't matter if Uncle Vernon got the account or not, it would be of any good to him.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Winter passed and gave way to spring. Dudley's birthday was soon coming upon them. A fact that Dudley didn't let anybody forget.  
  
"We are going to the zoo this year." Dudley sneered at Harry one morning. Harry shrugged.  
  
"You're not going of course. Mrs. Figg will take care of you." Dudley continued.  
  
Harry rolled his eyes. Where else would he spend the day?  
  
"I'm going to ask mum if I can take Piers. She'll say yes." Dudley said.  
  
"I'm sure." Mumbled Harry.  
  
Dudley grinned with glee. "And you are going to spend the day playing with cats."  
  
Harry shrugged again.  
  
Dudley didn't seem to like the fact that Harry didn't seem to be rattled by the news that he wasn't going to take part in his birthday celebration.  
  
"You're turning eleven too." Dudley suddenly said.  
  
Harry shrugged. He knew what Dudley was trying to do, but he didn't want to give him the satisfaction of making him show emotion.  
  
Dudley glared at Harry it seemed that no matter what he said Harry didn't care. So he did the best next thing. He shoved Harry.  
  
"Hey!" Harry exclaimed from the floor.  
  
"Serves you right." Said Dudley and walked away.  
  
Harry shook his head. How much stranger could his cousin be?  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Dumbledore found his Deputy Headmistress waiting in his office one evening. Finals were coming up and soon the school year would be over.  
  
"Hello Minerva, what can I do for you?" He asked with a smile, he was sure that she was about to complain about the Weasley twins' latest prank. They were on their way to breaking the record of complaint owls he had sent to parents that had originally been established by James Potter and Sirius Black.  
  
"I have the updated list of new students." She began. Dumbledore nodded, she always brought him a list of those students who had received their letters and had already sent a return owl. "There is only a handful of names missing, they haven't received their letters yet."  
  
"Very well. I'm sure that you are more than capable of taking care of them." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Of course." Said Professor McGonagall in her unmistakable tone of voice that told Dumbledore that there was no reason to think she could not do her duty. "But you did tell me to let you know when it came time to send young Mr. Potter his letter." She sniffed. She clearly thought that it was an insult to her abilities that the Headmaster thought she could not make sure that Harry Potter received his acceptance letter.  
  
"Ah, yes. Is it that time now? I was sure that there was still time for that." Dumbledore said with a smile.  
  
"You did tell me to let you know a month before I send his letter." She said.  
  
"Yes, of course. Write the letter and the supply list. I'll make sure that he gets it." Dumbledore replied.  
  
Professor McGonagall sighed with displeasure but she knew better than to argue. "As you wish." She said before leaving the Headmaster's office.  
  
Dumbledore smiled and looked out of the window in thought. He knew that his Deputy Headmistress was hurt that he wanted to make sure that Harry received the letter when she had done that for the rest of the students for years. But he also knew that Harry's situation was different than the others. The Dursleys were more than capable of making sure Harry never received his letter, allowing him to remain in ignorance of his real nature and legacy for much longer than necessary. It was enough that they hadn't told him anything about his parents and the real reason for their demise, and he was sure that Harry had never seen the letter that he had left with him on the night when Dumbledore himself had placed Harry on the Dursleys' doorstep.  
  
There was only one person he trusted to do the job.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Hagrid sat humming as he stirred a boiling pot on his fireplace. A large dog lay beside him. The night was warm and it was warmer still within the cottage.  
  
A knock on the door cut through the tune that filled the room.  
  
"Comin'!" Called Hagrid as he walked heavily to the door. He smiled at the sight of the person behind the door "Professor Dumbledore, Sir. What I can I do for yer?"  
  
"Hello Hagrid, sorry to disturbing your evening." Dumbledore said as he came into the room.  
  
The dog became alert and sniffed toward the voice of their visitor came. Secure that it was a person he knew and trusted, the dog lay down his head once more and fell asleep.  
  
"Think nothin' o' it Sir. Would yer like a cup o' tea?" Hagrid asked. "I'm boiling water for it."  
  
"Of course Hagrid, I thank you." Said Dumbledore.  
  
Hagrid smiled with pleasure and poured some of water from a jug that had been placed before the fire into a pot. He placed a couple of tea bags inside and walked to the table, placing the pot in the middle of the wooden table. He next walked to a couple of cabinets next to the fireplace and grabbed two mugs.  
  
" 'ere you are, Sir." Hagrid said as he poured some tea into a mug and passed it to Dumbledore.  
  
"Thank you Hagrid." Dumbledore smiled as he reached for the sugar bowl sitting next to the pot.  
  
"Well Sir, what can I do for yer?" Hagrid asked once more as he sipped from his mug.  
  
"I have an important job for you Hagrid." Dumbledore replied.  
  
"Oh, Sir, o' course." Hagird sat up with pride. He would do anything for Dumbledore, he had been the only to stand up for him when he was in trouble and had helped him to stay at Hogwarts.  
  
"I'm going to need you to make sure that Young Harry Potter gets his acceptance letter, I'm sure that there might be trouble getting it to him and you must do everything possible to make sure that he gets it." Dumbledore said.  
  
"Love to do it. Knew that Dursley lot would be trouble." Hagrid said rather angrily.  
  
"Now, Hagrid. They are his family, the only ones he has left. It was best that he grew up outside our world, but now it's time for him to return to us and be part of our world once more." Dumbledore explained.  
  
"I'll do it, Dumbledore, Sir. Make sure that he gets his letter." Hagrid announced.  
  
"Good, knew I could count on you. You must make your preparations, I would not be surprised if it takes you some time to get in contact with him. Take your umbrella with you, I'm sure you're going to need it." Dumbledore said a sparkling light in his eyes.  
  
Hagrid flushed and looked guiltily toward his large, pink umbrella, which stood unobtrusively by the fireplace. He was sure that Dumbledore knew he hid his broken wand within its handle and sometimes tried to do magic.  
  
"Yes Sir." He mumbled.  
  
"Don't worry Hagrid. This time, you must do whatever is necessary to make sure Harry gets his letter. I'm counting on you." Said Dumbledore and after drinking the last of his tea he walked toward the door. "Come to see me after you have made your preparations and are ready to leave. There are somethings I have that you might need if you succeed." He said just before he opened the door and walked out of Hagrid's humble abode.  
  
"Heard that Fang, I've got a mission." Hagrid said with a huge grin.  
  
The pot started to shake and large bubbles hissed. Fang yelped with fright and ran away from the boiling pot.  
  
"Oops." Exclaimed Hagrid and quickly removed the pot from the fire. "Had forgotten about it."  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Mr. Nikolei sat silently behind his desk. July was soon approaching and the sun shone brilliantly through the windows. It was a warm day and sky was clear, but Mr. Nikolei didn't seem to notice. Piles of papers and folders littered his desktop and he wrote rapidly in a pad making notes and revising papers from the folders in his hand.  
  
"Mr. Nikolei, there someone here to see you." His secretary said after knocking softly on his door and opening it just a bit to see her employer within.  
  
"Who is it? I'm a little busy." Mr. Nikolei said without turning to look at his secretary.  
  
"A Mr. Roberts, Sir. He says that he is here to discuss something about the Potter Estate." The secretary replied. Usually, she would've said to any visitors that Mr. Nikolei was quite busy and wasn't attending anybody without an appointment, but she knew that the Potter Estate was a very important client to Mr. Nikolei and he always attended anybody coming to visit him with that purpose.  
  
"I see. Give me a couple of minutes to clear my desk and show him in." Mr. Nikolei said and with a sigh started to put together the papers and shoved them into the folders around his desk. He had expected someone from the Manor, he was quite sure of the subject they wanted to talk about.  
  
"Yes, Sir." Said the secretary before shutting the door once more.  
  
By the time the door opened again and the young lady led an older, lean man into the office, Mr. Nikolei had cleared his desk and had pulled a new folder that he placed before him. The name Potter was clearly labeled at one side of the folder.  
  
"Sit, Mr. Roberts, sit. Bring us some tea." He ordered to the secretary, who nodded and withdrew from the room.  
  
"Thank you, Mr. Nickolei." Sighed Mr. Roberts as he took a seat before the solicitor's large desk.  
  
"I assume you are here to speak to me about Young Potter." Said Mr. Nickolei.  
  
"Indeed Sir, I am." Roberts said.  
  
The secretary entered once more, a tray with a put and two cups in her hands. The two men remained silent as she served them tea and waited until she had left and shut the door behind her before continuing their conversation.  
  
"As you may know, Master Harry's eleventh birthday is soon arriving." Mr. Roberts said.  
  
"Good God, is he going to be eleven this year? I could've sworn he was much younger." Mr. Nickolei exclaimed and opened his folder and read through the pages until he found the one he was looking for. "Indeed he is. He will attend school this year, is he not?" He asked Roberts who knew much more about Hogwarts than he did.  
  
"Indeed Sir. He will accept his acceptance letter to Hogwarts any day now. And that's why I'm here Sir. I know you have said that he couldn't return to the Manor until he is ready to take charge, but he is about to enter the Wizarding World once more and he will learn more about who he is, we believe Sir, that it's time for Master Harry to visit the Manor." Mr. Roberts said in a hurry, it was obvious that he had practiced his speech before appearing before the Estate's solicitor.  
  
"And I would agree with you Roberts." He said, but quickly continued before Roberts started to make plans about receiving their master at the Manor. "But, it isn't I who will make that decision. It's up to Professor Dumbledore and he has only given me orders to make sure that the key to the vault for Young Potter's school money was sent to him."  
  
"I see. Do you think there is a chance that Dumbledore will bring Master Harry to the Manor anytime soon?" Roberts asked hopefully.  
  
"I cannot say. But according to his latest decisions concerning Young Potter, it doesn't seem likely." Mr. Nickolei look at the Manor's butler with sympathy. He knew that everybody at the Manor wanted to see Young Potter soon, but James Potter had left the guardianship to Professor Dumbledore, and when it came to the decisions pertaining that young man, Dumbledore had the last say. He just hoped that Dumbledore knew what he was doing.  
  
"Very well. I won't take much more of your time then." Roberts sighed rather sadly.  
  
"Any time Roberts, you know you must come and see if the Manor needs anything." Mr. Nickolei shook Mr. Roberts' hand and watched him leave.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Mrs. Nichols, the Manor's housekeeper waited patiently in her tiny, clean parlor by the kitchen. She was hoping that this time her brother would bring a different answer than the one he had brought for the last years.  
  
She heard footsteps nearing her parlor. They were strong and determined, she knew it was not one of the servants, and less likely one of the house elves.  
  
There was a knock on her door.  
  
"Come in." She called and watched as the door opened to allow her brother to enter.  
  
In the past ten years, both had grown older. She knew that if Master James and Mistress Lily would return now they wouldn't recognize the two retainers that had worked for so long for the Potter family. Mr. Roberts had been in his mid forties when Master Aliaster had been killed and Master James took his place as master of Gryffindor Manor. He had been in perfect health, robust body and a thick crop of brown hair over his round face. He was now nearing sixty. His brown hair was starting to turn gray and his robust body had become lean. But he could still stand straight and present a stern and forbidding façade to visitors and servants alike. His commanding air had not diminished one bit.  
  
Mrs. Nichols on the other hand had grown a little fatter when her brother had lost weight. She was only a few years younger than her brother but she still retained her dark crop of hair, only a few gray hairs could be seen at her temples. She had always been matronly, but she had certainly gained few pounds since the last time she served the Potters. But her face still retained the friendly and sympathetic look that made servants and tenants alike to bring their problems to her in hope of a shoulder to cry on.  
  
"What did he say?" She asked as soon as Roberts had closed the door behind him.  
  
Roberts sighed as he sat in a chair near his sister. "The same as always, it is Dumbledore's call if he brings Master Harry to the Manor or not. The only thing he could tell me was that Professor Dumbledore has requested the key for Master Harry's vault."  
  
"Oh, dear. How is he going to get all his supplies for school, those people won't know what is what?" Mrs. Nichols exclaimed.  
  
"Dumbledore will take care of it." Roberts said.  
  
"I'm sure he will, but I don't understand why we can't do so." Cried Mrs. Nichols.  
  
"Now, my dear, there is no reason to get excited. We have known that Dumbledore wants to keep Master Harry away from all of this, it's the only way to keep him safe." Roberts had slipped in the seat next to his sister's and tried to console her as he patted her hand.  
  
"How long will it be, Nigel? He is going to be eleven soon and he might not even know about us or the estate." Mrs. Nichols sobbed.  
  
"The time will come, Alice. It won't be long when Master Harry will learn all that he needs to know." Said Roberts.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
It took Hagrid a few weeks to get his things in order, Dumbledore had said that he would have to stay some time out of Hogwarts to make sure that Harry got his letter.  
  
"This is the key for Harry's vault at Gringotts. Don't lose it." Dumbledore said one evening as he presented the small key to Hagrid.  
  
They were in Hagrid's hut. The night was warm and the stars were shining brightly in the moonless sky.  
  
"Nothin' to worry about. Make sure 'e gets it alright I will." Hagrid said with a smile. He was really excited to have this mission and he was looking forward to it. He took the key from Dumbledore and put it in one of his pockets.  
  
"I trust you will Hagrid. Make sure you don't lose the letter for Gringotts either, that package is very important." Dumbledore warned.  
  
Hagrid nodded gravely. "Know that Professor Dumbledore, Sir, will be careful with it."  
  
"Do you have the letter? Professor McGonagall told me she had given it to you." Dumbledore asked.  
  
"Have it Sir." Hagrid replied.  
  
"Good, she has sent the first letter, he should receive it tomorrow morning. Stay with Arabella and keep an eye on the situation, I know the Dursleys won't allow Harry to read that letter." Dumbledore ordered.  
  
"Very well, Sir." Hagrid responded.  
  
"Remember to be careful, make sure nobody sees you." Dumbledore continued. Hagrid nodded and listened attentively. "But once you get your hands on Harry and take him to Diagon Alley, make sure that he has fun."  
  
"Oh, yes Sir, he will. Look what I made for 'im." Hagrid said excitedly. He took a box from the table. "Made it this afternoon." He opened the box and inside was a chocolate cake with letters made of green icing.  
  
Dumbledore smiled. "I'm sure he will be pleased."  
  
"I'm on my way to the owlry." Hagrid said. "I need to take one with me."  
  
"Of course. Have a good trip Hagrid. I'll see you the first of August." Dumbledore smiled before turning toward the door.  
  
"Yer won't forget to feed Fang, will yer?" Hagrid asked.  
  
"I won't." Dumbledore responded and walked through the open door.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
The next morning was sunny and warm. Hagrid apparated in Arabella Figg's kitchen early that morning.  
  
"Have been waiting for you, what took you so long." Mrs. Figg exclaimed as she walked into the kitchen after hearing the familiar pop.  
  
"Not used to this, had to have help." Hagrid exclaimed.  
  
"Of course, I'm sorry. Being a squib I don't know how easy or hard it is." Mrs. Figg explained.  
  
Hagrid nodded and placed his umbrella inside his coat's pocket.  
  
"Well, now that you are here you can eat something." Mrs. Figg said as she hurried over to the oven a pulled out some trays. "Had them in here to keep them warm." She explained.  
  
Hagrid nodded and pulled his coat off his shoulders before sitting at the table. He wouldn't say no to a meal, he had left Hogwarts after dinner and hadn't had anything to eat since then.  
  
"He received the letter today." Mrs. Figg reported as soon as Hagrid started to eat. "They took it away before he even got the chance to read it."  
  
Hagrid grunted his displeasure.  
  
"You're not going to barge in there and give him the letter are you? 'Cause I'm telling you, it won't do any good if you do." Mrs. Figg warned.  
  
"But he needs his letter. Dumbledore said to do whatever necessary to get it to 'im." Hagrid exclaimed.  
  
"You barging in on them won't do him any good. Those people are all about appearances. That would only create trouble for him once you are gone. No, let's continue sending the letters. We'll try again tomorrow." Mrs. Figg said.  
  
Hagrid watched her. He wasn't sure if he wanted to do that, it would save them a lot of trouble if he just went to the Dursleys and presented the letter himself to Harry. But he supposed Mrs. Figg knew what she was talking about, maybe she was right and it was better to continue sending the letters until Harry grabbed a hold on one.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
The next morning they were discussing the same thing over a cup of tea.  
  
"Can't think what they think to do to stop him from getting that letter. Never thought that they would move him to the second bedroom." Mrs. Figg said. "Mr. Tibbles reported that Dursley moved him the minute he returned home from work."  
  
"Hunph! About time they did. What were they thinkin' of puttin' 'im in the cupboard?" Hagrid asked with anger.  
  
Mrs. Figg shrugged. "They're a strange lot."  
  
"I'll send another tomorrow." Said Hagrid.  
  
"Send more than one this time, send three. Let's see what happens." Mrs. Figg said.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
During the next couple of days Mrs. Figg and Hagrid kept constant surveillance on 4 Privet Drive.  
  
Mrs. Figg chuckled with laughter as Vernon Dursley boarded up the mail slot. She laughed merrily as she watched him board up every crack he could think of.  
  
Hagrid watched amused at the antics of the Dursleys and both were eager to see what he would do next. They were both running out of ideas of how to sneak the letters into the house.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Sunday morning, after sending an owl overnight to Hogwarts to ask for more owls, Hagrid released a flock of owls into the sky and watched them circle the houses in Privet Drive before soaring down to one and released their packages.  
  
He rubbed his hands in glee. There would be so many letters flying around that house, that Harry was bound to be able to grab at least one. He didn't count in the Dursleys' adamant hope to keep Harry from learning what was written on those letters.  
  
They were rather surprised to see the Dursley car pull out with luggage and every member of the family inside. The car sped out as if the Devil was behind them.  
  
Hagrid groaned, he never imagined they would run away.  
  
"You're going to have to follow them." Mrs. Figg said as she dragged Hagrid's coat to him. "I suppose." Hagrid sighed.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Hagrid was glad that he had taken one of the school brooms. The only problem was that because of his weight the broom was slower than it usually was and couldn't fly very high. Hiding among the clouds was out of the question, he had to rely on back roads and alleys to hide from the muggles. Once they got out of the city it was easier to follow without need to hide very often.  
  
The first night he followed them to a shabby hotel at the outskirts of a big city. He flew to a clearing some miles away and made a tent of his coat and waited for the lights to go off in the city and the hotel.  
  
By the next morning's light Hagrid had sneaked in a mail bag full of letters addressed to  
  
Mr. H. Potter  
  
Room 17  
  
Railview Hotel  
  
Cokeworth  
  
He waited patiently to see what the Dursleys would do and wasn't surprised when he saw the car pull from the garage and leave in the opposite direction it had come from last night.  
  
He had packed his things into his pockets and climbed over the broom ready to follow once more.  
  
He was rather confused to see what Vernon Dursley was doing. He glanced behind a tree when they stopped in the middle of a forest. He hid behind some sacks of grain when they stopped in the middle of a plowed field and he was flying below a suspended bridge when they stopped once more.  
  
Hagrid started to worry that Dursley was losing his mind.  
  
Finally they stopped near the coast and Dursley left the family locked in the car while he went off looking around the place.  
  
Hagrid waited to see what they would do know and was happy to find that they would be staying. By the motions Vernon Dursley did and the place he was pointing to, Hagrid was sure that they would be staying in the decrepit old shack on the rock in the middle of the sea. He looked at the sky and saw the signs for a big storm. He decided to wait until it was dark enough and then he would fly over to the rock.  
  
He saw Harry and the Dursleys pile into a small boat and watched them make their way to the rock.  
  
Hagrid looked around and saw a small store a mile away. He might as well get some sausages and tea bags for his meal, he was sure that Dursley wouldn't have enough food either and Harry might enjoy a late meal as well.  
  
He entered the small store, an old woman stood behind the counter and by the way she tried to peer behind her eyes, it looked like her sight was not as good as it once had been.  
  
"Hello young man." She smiled.  
  
"Afternoon, wanted some sausages and tea bags." Hagrid said.  
  
"Of course, have some right here." Said the woman as she stumbled behind the counter to where a large cooler stood full of meats and dairy products. She grasped around the cooler until she finally felt a bag of sausages. She pulled it and turned back to the counter. "How many do you want?" She asked.  
  
"Umm, give me ten." He said and watched as the lady took a small knife from a drawer and proceeded to cut the string that held the sausages together.  
  
Hagrid looked around the small store. It was no bigger than his cottage, in fact it seemed a little smaller. The walls were full of merchandise, but it seemed like the items were not placed in any order. Thread was mixed with kitchen towels and shovels stood next to umbrellas.  
  
"Here you go." The woman said and put the sausages into a small bag before returning the remaining sausages to the cooler.  
  
"Thankee. Tea bags?" He asked.  
  
"Of course." The woman smiled and pulled a box full of tea bags. "What flavor?"  
  
"Any will do." Hagrid said. He could hear the wind picking up and the sound of the waves hitting the rocks on the coast with great force.  
  
The woman took a small package from the box and passed it to Hagrid. Hagrid paid, looking closely at the muggle money he carried to make sure he paid correctly, not that she would've noticed if he had paid her with wizard money. But it wouldn't be fair if he did that.  
  
He stepped out of the store and looked toward the shack standing over the rock. The wind was getting stronger and he could see the waves crashing violently against the rock. He shivered in the cold air and he could see the dark clouds covering the sky and was sure that at any time now the rain would begin to fall.  
  
He looked around the coast. There didn't seem to be anybody around. The dark clouds had made the day dark and he thought it would probably be best if he prepared to fly over the violent sea to the rock.  
  
His weight made the broom more stable in the fierce wind. But the coming storm made crossing the wild seashore a little difficult.  
  
It took a few hours to cross the sparse piece of sea from the shore to the rock. Night had fallen and Hagrid was sure that midnight was near. The wind was now more vicious than ever and the rain was falling heavily over the land.  
  
Hagrid stepped off the broom, but a gale of wind pulled it from his grasp and he watched as the broom was lost in he storm.  
  
"Figures." He mumbled.  
  
Hagrid looked at the shack standing at the top of the rock. There was no smoke coming from the chimney it seems that Dursley wasn't smart enough to get logs for a warm fire.  
  
"Humph!" He snorted.  
  
He sat at the base of the rock to rest. The rock sheltered him from the storm and he decided to wait a little. He pulled a small pack of biscuits he carried in one of his pockets and ate as he watched the large waves crashing against the rocks nearby.  
  
He lost track of time. The storm was as violent as it had been a few hours ago. "Will yeh look at that?" He exclaimed as he peered at his watch. "Almost midnight."  
  
He started to climb the rock. Lightning and thunder muffled his groans as he made his way to the shack. Finally, he stood in front of the door and knocked.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Remus was sitting morosely at a small table in a corner of the Leaky Cauldron. There were a few empty tankards in front of him. It was almost July 31st and he was saddened by the turn of events that had brought him to that place.  
  
Remus had been traveling for quite some time, he felt better when he did so, it made him think of other things instead of remembering his friends and family. His parents had died a few years ago, two of his sisters had immigrated with their families to America during Voldemort's active time, and it didn't seem that they wanted to return anytime soon. One of his sisters was killed in an accident soon after their parents' death. And the remaining sister had immigrated to Japan to work with her husband in a new company. The money that his parents had left him, which had been substantial at the time, was running down. His travels and treatment were taking their toll and soon there would be no more money for him to continue on his search for a cure for what ails him. But it wasn't the thought of it that made Remus sad. It was the memory of the young boy who would soon be celebrating his eleventh birthday.  
  
"He'll be going to Hogwarts this year." He whispered. "Lily would've loved that."  
  
And she would've, he thought. She would have enjoyed taking him to Diagon Alley, to all the shops and James would've looked complacently on and perhaps taking him on his own to look at the brooms and animals and allow him to have whatever Harry had desired.  
  
Remus chuckled and shook his head. He could really picture them so in his mind. If things hadn't happened as they had, he was sure that Harry would've been one of the most spoiled kids in wizardkind. Or perhaps not, he might have had brothers or sisters, and Lily and James were loving parents, but also authoritarian. They had ruled Hogwarts, and later their home according to the values and rules they had been thought to follow, they would've never allowed their son, and heir, to grow up any different than they had, their parents had taught them better than that.  
  
Remus looked around, the room had started to blur but he could still see enough.  
  
"Perhaps you should go to your room, Sir." Said the young girl that was cleaning the tables around him.  
  
"Hmmm.Perhaps you're right." Remus groaned and stood.  
  
The young girl watched the odd man stumble through the room and kept an apprehensive eye on him while he climbed the stairs. It wouldn't do, she thought, if he lost his balance and tumbled down the stairs.  
  
But Remus reached the landing without any accidents and started down the corridor looking for the room he had rented the night before. He had just arrived in England after a few years away, he could've gone to the house his parents had left him, but it had been shut off for so long that he was sure it needed a lot of work to make it habitable once more. Or he could've gone to Griffindor Manor, he knew Mrs. Nichols and Roberts would've welcomed him with open arms, but the thought of watching the tenants and servants of the Manor celebrating Harry's Birthday was not something that would make him happy at the moment. So, he had remained in London and taken rooms at the Leaky Cauldron. Nobody knew he had returned, and most likely, they wouldn't notice for some time.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
The bright, summer sunlight flooded the room. Remus groaned and turned in his bed trying to keep the bright light from his eyes. He succeeded, but it was too late, he was awake and he knew he could never return to sleep.  
  
He stretched and yawned before leaving the bed. He looked out the window. There was nothing he could see from there that was different from any view in the building, but he could clearly hear the noise of shoppers passing by in both Diagon Alley and the muggle street in front of the pub.  
  
The bathroom was small but adequate for Remus' needs. He showered, and readied himself for the rest of the day. He planned to leave the Leaky Cauldron that afternoon. He was returning home, but first he would go to Diagon Alley and buy various ingredients for what he needed to restore his home.  
  
He was sitting in the table in the corner where he had sat the night before. Remus had returned from doing some early shopping and had returned to the Leaky Cauldron for his meal.  
  
He preferred to sit in the corner, where he could be hidden by shadow and nobody could notice he was there. He liked to look around and watch the other shoppers.  
  
The pub wasn't very busy on this day. Most of the people coming through the Leaky Cauldron didn't stay for long, instead they went through to Diagon Alley as soon as they had arrived to the pub that connected the magical world with the muggle one.  
  
Remus watched as a pair of witches chattered in a corner, they were drinking tiny glasses of cherry as one smoke from a long pipe. A little man sat at the bar talking to Tom, the bartender, as he drank from a large mug in front of him. A pale young man was sitting in a table by the back door looking nervously around, he seemed to be waiting for something. There were a few others, some sitting by themselves others in groups chatting as they ate or drank.  
  
The door suddenly opened and a large man entered the room. Remus looked around and smiled as he saw Hagrid. He lifted his hand ready to wave to him when he noticed a small boy stepping in behind Hagrid's large body. Remus' arm stilled.  
  
"James?" Remus whispered.  
  
"The usual, Hagrid?" Called the bartender as the others in the room smiled and waved to the newcomer. Only Remus stayed in his corner and made no motion to get the attention from others.  
  
"Can't, Tom." Said Hagrid. "I'm on Hogwarts business." He said proudly as he clapped on the boy's shoulder.  
  
"Good Lord!" The bartender exclaimed. "Is this - can this be - ?"  
  
Remus watched as Tom left his bar and rushed to the boy. Remus wasn't paying attention to what he was saying, he only watch the boy look surprised and confused by the attention he was getting.  
  
"Welcome back, Mr. Potter, welcome back." Tom was saying.  
  
"Harry." Whispered Remus.  
  
The whole pub erupted as people scrambled from their seats and surrounded Harry. Only Remus stayed in his seat, not that anybody would've noticed as everybody was focused on Harry.  
  
Remus watched sadly as Harry shook hands and spoke to all who welcomed him to the Leaky Cauldron. People seemed thrilled to meet him and to have shaken his hand. Remus understood why. He himself would've loved to be part of the upheaval. But memories kept intruding and by the time he could take control of them, Hagrid was leading Harry out to Diagon Alley.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
A/N: There you go, I hope you enjoyed it. As you may have recognized, some things were taken directly from The Sorcerer's Stone. As I stated at the beginning, this is the last chapter for this part of the story, the next part is Harry's Sixth Year at Hogwarts, so that means a lot of new material, and some new experiences for Harry. My readers at HP.com have enjoyed what I have written so far, and I hope you will like it as well. I have the first chapter done, so as soon I have it ready, I'll post it for you. Thank you all for reading, and don't forget to review. 


	49. Sixth Year Chapter 1

A/N: As I told you in my previous note, Part IV is done and Part V has begun. This is a whole new and perhaps different aspect for this story, but I hope you enjoy it as much as you have enjoyed the rest. We begin with Harry now, I hope you like his upcoming adventures.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Disclaimer: HP and relevant characters, places and words belong to JK Rowling, not to me.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
~ Legacy of Two Generations ~ ~Year Six: Harry Potter and the Lady of the Isle ~  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Chapter 1 ~ Master Harry  
  
Summer was starting, and it looked to be as warm as the previous year. The fans were on and the windows open in every home of Privet Drive. Children were playing in the street, taking care not to get anywhere near Dudley Dursley's path.  
  
Harry lay on his bed. The window open and Hedwig in her cage eating some owl treats that Harry had brought with him from Hogwarts.  
  
It was the week after his return from school and he hadn't been allowed to go out.  
  
"You'll stay in your room." Uncle Vernon had said after they returned from the station. "I'll not have you running around when those monsters can find you."  
  
Harry was surprised that his uncle cared what happened to him.  
  
"I'll not have you bringing danger to this family." Uncle Vernon continued.  
  
Of course, Harry thought, it's his family he cares about.  
  
"If the only place that it's safe for you it's inside this house, you will stay inside this house." Uncle Vernon roared. "You will not leave your room, except for meals."  
  
"Fine." Harry had exclaimed before taking his trunk and Hedwig's cage to his room. He hadn't really cared.  
  
Nothing really mattered now, Harry thought as he lay on his bed on this warm night. The sky looked darker than usual and his thoughts were just as dark.  
  
He couldn't sleep. His nightmares had become harder to deal then last year's. Last summer he only had to worry about Voldemort, but he had Sirius on his side. This year, he didn't even have his godfather with him anymore.  
  
He groaned and rolled on his side. He didn't want to remember what had happened at the end of the school year. He didn't want to see his godfather's death all over again. It was a memory that returned to him every night.  
  
For once, he was glad to be at the Dursleys than with his friends. There was nobody here to pity him or commiserate with him. He hated it when Ron and Hermione tried to make him feel better, somehow, they only made him feel worse and he lost his temper. At least, the Dursleys didn't bother to say anything to him.  
  
Although, life with the Dursleys was somewhat different this year.  
  
The night news had become a daily ritual. Uncle Vernon would call him to sit with them during the show and every time a report about something strange appeared he would turn to Harry and ask "Well?" Until now, Harry had shook his head, it had nothing to do with Voldemort.  
  
Strangely enough, Harry felt a sort of camaraderie with the Dursleys. Last year, he waited alone to hear about Voldemort. That feeling of agitation had been his alone. Now, there were others waiting with him. He wasn't alone waiting to hear from Voldemort.  
  
It didn't matter that the Durlseys never asked about things by name, they were only vague, but he understood. For the first time in his memory, they cared about what was happening in the Magical World.  
  
Harry sighed in the darkness of his room. Somehow, the night looked darker. He just hoped it was his imagination and not a sign that Voldemort had made his move. Eventually, he fell asleep.  
  
Images started flashing before him. Cedric falling beside him. Wormtail cutting his hand over a cauldron. Voldemort, rising from before him. And worst of all, Sirius falling through the veil.  
  
"NO! SIRIUS!" His own voice woke him up. He was shaking and sweating. The sheets were tangled at his feet and Hedwig was hooting madly in her cage. "Sorry." He said.  
  
He groaned and fell back on his bed.  
  
Great, he thought, this is just great. At least the Dursleys were not pounding on the wall to silence he.  
  
"That's something." Sighed Harry and looked out the window. It was open, as he usually kept it during the summer, that way Hedwig could come and go as she pleased and the air cooled his room after a hot day.  
  
He looked out the window, he knew it would be a while before he fell asleep once more and he was sure that even then his dreams would not be happy ones.  
  
He sensed, rather than saw, Hedwig fly out of her cage and soar through the open window. Harry said nothing.  
  
Ron and Hermione had not written. And he hoped it would continue to be so. For the first time since he turned eleven, he honestly wished that nobody thought of him. He didn't want to read through sympathetic mail that tried to make him feel better when the only thing that came out of it was sadness and memories that he wished would go away.  
  
He sighed once more and turned letting his eyes close for a little while.  
  
Perhaps he should try to sleep once more, it did no good to think of things that he couldn't change. If he could, he would've done so long ago.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
The rays of the shining sun hit Harry's eyes. Harry groaned and covered his eyes with his arm, but it was too late to go back to sleep. He was awake now.  
  
He put down his arm and looked around. The repaired clock showed that it was near noon. He groaned. Aunt Petunia was sure to be angry that he hadn't been awake to cook breakfast for Uncle Vernon and Dudley.  
  
He frowned. Why hadn't they knocked on his door? Usually, he was awoken by the pounding on his door when Aunt Petunia wanted him up to cook breakfast. Even though Uncle Vernon had said he was to remain inside the house at all times and he had stayed within his room most of the time, he was still waken up early by Aunt Petunia. But this time it was different, and he wondered what made it so.  
  
He left the bed and dressed. He looked stranger than ever wearing Dudley's old clothes. They were no longer short, but baggy. He hadn't noticed that he had grown a few inches during the year, then again, there were other things in his mind than how many inches he had grown. But the fact remained that even though he and Dudley now seemed to be of the same height, Dudley still retained more fat than Harry would ever accumulate for the rest of his life.  
  
If he could use his wand, he would shrink it a bit. But after the hearing last year, he didn't dare do anything that would take him back to the Ministry once more.  
  
He tied the belt as tight as he could and open the door. He peered into the corridor, but nobody was nearby. He slipped out the door and shut it behind him and started walking to the stairs as quietly as he could.  
  
He house seemed eerily quiet. He couldn't hear the voices of Aunt Petunia or Dudley, he knew that Uncle Vernon would be at work and wasn't expected for lunch today. He couldn't even hear the TV.  
  
He climbed down the stairs and walked toward the kitchen. Nobody was inside. The table was cleared and the sink was clean.  
  
He frowned, where could they have gone.  
  
"They went shopping." A voice said behind him.  
  
Harry turned quickly, his wand clasped tightly in his hand.  
  
"Put that away! You might hurt somebody." Moody said as he pulled the invisibility cloak from himself.  
  
"You shouldn't sneak up on people like that." Said Harry, slipping his wand back into his pocket where he had slipped it from a few moments ago.  
  
Moody grunted but said nothing.  
  
"How do you know Aunt Petunia and Dudley went shopping anyways?" Asked Harry as he turned to the refrigerator in search for something to eat.  
  
"Heard them myself. Was standing by the door when the woman said they were going to buy things for the house and that they would eat out as a treat." Moody said as he watched Harry pull some meat and salad from the cooler.  
  
Harry nodded and walked to the stove to prepare his meal.  
  
"I thought that you would stop watching me." Harry said and turned to look at Moody, who was now sitting on a chair, the invisibility cloak was folded on the table.  
  
"Voldemort still out there, isn't he? And after what happened a few weeks ago, he will be more angry." Moody said, his normal eye was looking around the kitchen but his magical eye remained on Harry.  
  
"He hasn't done anything yet, has he?" Harry asked cautiously. He hadn't heard of any suspicious attacks but that didn't mean Voldemort hadn't done anything.  
  
"Not yet. He must be waiting to recoup. After the capture of many of his Death Eaters, he will need to think carefully before continuing." Moody said.  
  
Harry looked at Moody with surprise, he hadn't really expected that Moody would answer him, after all they had all been reticent about their activities last year. He thought that maybe now things had changed after what had happened a couple of weeks ago.  
  
"I see. And what will happen to them?" Harry asked, hoping that Moody would continue answering his questions.  
  
"Don't know. Ministry's in quite a mess right now." Moody said.  
  
"Why?" Harry asked with surprise. He had stopped receiving the Daily Prophet this summer. He hadn't really expected to find much among its pages after all the lies it published during the past year.  
  
"Ministry's under investigation." Spat Moody. "After the mess of the past month, people want to know why it happened."  
  
"Why what happened?" Harry asked in confusion. Maybe he should reinstate his subscription to the Daily Prophet.  
  
"Well, several of the Death Eaters captured had escaped from Azkaban and then there were quite a few that were regular members of the Ministry or friends of the Minister himself. Not to mention the fact that Voldemort himself was inside the Ministry, only somebody close to the Minister could have led such and attack. They think." Moody said as he watched Harry place the hot food on a plate and walk to the table.  
  
"Malfoy?" Harry asked. He knew that Mr. Malfoy had been a constant visitor to the Ministry, he himself had seen him in company of the Minister.  
  
"He's one." Moody said.  
  
"What are they going to do now?" Harry asked.  
  
"Those old ladies of the Ministry haven't decided yet, and people are not happy." Moody replied.  
  
Harry nodded. He could understand that, he wasn't happy about it all either.  
  
"How long do you think they will take in fixing everything?" Harry asked.  
  
"Months, maybe a year. Wouldn't be surprised if Dumbledore had to step in and make things right." Moody sneered.  
  
Harry thought he might be right. Dumbledore seemed like the perfect solution to take care of the problems that the Ministry now faced.  
  
"Do you think he will leave Hogwarts to go the Ministry?" Harry wanted to know.  
  
"Don't think so. Dumbledore doesn't care much for the Ministry." Moody scoffed. "Loves Hogwarts too much."  
  
"Good." Harry exclaimed and finished his meal.  
  
The clock marked one.  
  
"Have to go. Someone should come and take my place in a moment." Moody said.  
  
Harry saw Moody disappear underneath the invisibility cloak.  
  
"Don't go anywhere." Moody's disembodied voice said.  
  
"Ok." Said Harry and waited for the pop that he was sure to hear at the moment Mood disapparated. A second pop was heard a minute later.  
  
"Who is it this time?" Harry asked as he washed the dishes.  
  
"Me." Remus said with a smile.  
  
Harry turned and smiled in return, he liked Professor Lupin more than Moody, he was a lot friendlier than the taciturn old man.  
  
"How are you doing?" Remus asked as he peered closely at Harry.  
  
Harry sighed silently. He knew Remus was worried about him, they all were, he reckoned. But even though he understood, it didn't mean he had to like it.  
  
"I'm fine." He answered.  
  
Harry dried the dishes and put them in their place.  
  
Remus settled in his chair and conjured a cup of tea.  
  
The Order had decided that Harry was in more danger than ever. Voldemort was surely to be very angry that Harry, and not to mention Dumbledore, had been able to thwart him one more time from his objective. They had continued keeping an eye on Harry, but this time it seemed a waste of time to keep hidden from him, as he already knew what they were doing. And perhaps this way, there would not be a repeat of what had happened last year. The only reason they bothered with the invisibility cloak was to hide from the muggles, but as Harry didn't seem to leave the house much since his return from Hogwarts, that didn't seem to be a problem.  
  
"Moody was telling me there is some trouble in the Ministry." Harry said.  
  
Remus looked surprised as he looked at Harry. After a moment, he nodded.  
  
"Things are not good for the Minister right now." He responded.  
  
Harry nodded. "I'm glad." He said and looked around the kitchen. He might as well do something, if he started thinking about what had happened weeks before he would only get depressed.  
  
"You don't mean that." Exclaimed Remus. "It's true that he has not been wise in the last couple of years, but that doesn't mean that he is not a good man."  
  
Harry shrugged. "He is a fool."  
  
Remus chuckled. "Nobody will argue with that."  
  
"He could have done a lot to prevent what happened." Harry said angrily. "But he was an idiot and ignored everything I and Dumbledore told him. If he is having trouble now, good. He deserves it."  
  
Remus sighed silently. "I know what you're feeling Harry. He was my friend too and I miss him. But nothing we do can bring him back. We can only work and do what we can to keep others from going through the same thing we are."  
  
Harry didn't want to hear what Remus was saying. He didn't want to let go of his anger, it was the only thing that kept him from shedding tears at the thought of Sirius' death.  
  
"Sirius knew what could happen when we first joined Dumbledore. So did your father years ago. If we became bitter every time we lose one of our own, then we couldn't perform our duty and we would be no better than Voldemort and his Death Eaters. Don't let grief do that to you Harry. Sirius wouldn't like it, neither would your parents." Remus said.  
  
"I will never be able to know that now, will I? If Fudge hadn't been such an idiot and had listened to us, Sirius would still be here." Harry exclaimed.  
  
"He was scared to believe, Harry. Many people were. That's why it was so easy to discredit Dumbledore and make you seem some sort of liar. Those of us who joined the order this time always believed that the night of your parents' death was not the end of Voldemort. We all knew that all he needed was a little help and he could return to his old self. But many people didn't want to believe that it could've been possible. They preferred to think that Voldemort was gone and he wasn't coming back. You must have noticed when your interview appeared in The Quibbler. Ron and Hermione have mentioned how discouraging it was to find that some people didn't want to accept the truth. It wasn't that they didn't want to accept it, they just didn't want to believe that it was possible for it to be the truth. Unfortunately, the Minister was one of those people, and you're right, he lost a lot of time trying to discredit Dumbledore and you that he left the field wide open for Voldemort. But now he knows the truth, along with everybody else. That's the one right thing to have come out of the attack on the Ministry. And we must not forget it, there are a lot of people out there that depend on us." Remus said kindly.  
  
Harry turned away from him. He knew Remus was right. But he couldn't help thinking that thanks to Voldemort and his Death Eaters he would never know what his parents or Sirius expected from him.  
  
He slammed his hand against the counter and walked out of the kitchen. He heard Remus call after him and the sound of the chair scraping on the floor as if Remus had stood abruptly. But Harry didn't turn back. He ran up the stairs and snapped shut the door behind him as he entered into his room.  
  
He slumped on the bed.  
  
He didn't hear Remus anymore, perhaps he had gone, he thought. It didn't matter to Harry, and tears started to slide down his face.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
He didn't leave his room for the rest of the day. He heard his aunt return a couple of hours after his talk with Remus, but he didn't bother to move from his bed. He was sure he wouldn't be missed. He could hear his aunt and cousin talking in the kitchen. The deep rumbles of his cousin's voice intermingled with the sharp tone of his aunt. Harry listened to the droning voices and eventually fell asleep.  
  
He didn't stay so for long. He was awoken abruptly by his cousin, who was knocking smartly on his bedroom door.  
  
"Mom wants you!" Dudley was yelling on the other side of the door.  
  
Harry groaned and stood up.  
  
He heard Dudley continuing on to his own bedroom. Since their return from school, Dudley had tried to avoid Harry at all costs. Harry didn't mind, he just wished that it was possible for them both to avoid meeting at all. But they would never dare miss any of the meals with Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon. Even then, Dudley tried to ignore Harry.  
  
Harry only shrugged it off. Dudley ignoring him was much better than Dudley bothering him.  
  
Harry left his bedroom and climbed down the stairs. He could hear Aunt Petunia gathering pots and pans to prepare their afternoon meal.  
  
Aunt Petunia turned sharply around when she heard Harry enter the kitchen. She frowned. "Have you been sleeping the whole morning?" She snapped as she turned back to her pots.  
  
"No." Harry said. He went to the grocery bags in the middle of the table and started to pull the shopping from them.  
  
"Humph!" Snorted Aunt Petunia, it was clear that she didn't believe him and thought he had been sleeping.  
  
Harry didn't say anything to contradict her.  
  
"Leave the vegetables and the meat out, you can put the rest away." Ordered Aunt Petunia.  
  
"All right." Said Harry and started to put things away, leaving the vegetables and meat on top of the table.  
  
"Put the vegetables in the sink, and wash them while I prepare the meat." Harry heard Aunt Petunia say as he put the shopping bags away.  
  
Harry nodded and took the vegetables to the sink. He could hear Aunt Petunia pulling spices from the pantry to prepare the meat.  
  
Harry looked out to the garden. It was a sunny day. July had barely started and kids were trying to enjoy their summer as much as possible. Harry sighed and looked down on the vegetables. He wished he could be like a normal boy his age, things would be a lot easier if he was.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
The days continued to get hotter as July was nearing its end. Harry's birthday was only a couple of weeks away and he hadn't received many letters from his friends.  
  
A few notes had made their way to him, but Harry had ignored them and left him upon his desk. On this warm afternoon he decided to open them.  
  
Hedwig was out flying around the neighborhood. He could hear Dudley playing music very loudly in his bedroom and knew that Aunt Petunia was happily watching her soaps in the kitchen TV.  
  
The first note he opened was from Ron.  
  
As he expected, it didn't contained much news that he didn't know already. "Dad says that the Ministry is under so much pressure that there are rumors that a committee will be formed to investigate all of those working directly under Mr. Fudge." Ron wrote. "Mum was upset to find out that Percy was one of those people under investigation. Dad doesn't talk about it, of course, but we know he is sad about it too."  
  
Harry was sorry that Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were saddened and worried about what was happening to Percy, but in his point of view, Percy deserved it. He should've known better than to take a stand against his family. Know it seemed that his career in the Ministry was on the line and might very well lose it. But the worst thing, Harry thought, was that Percy was going to deal with it on his own, he didn't even had the safe knowledge that no matter what happened during the investigation his family was behind him. He had lost his family and now he stood alone.  
  
Unlike Ron's letter, which contained news about the latest in the Ministry investigation, Hermione's made it clear that she worried about him. "We haven't heard from you in days!" Harry read. "I'm sure that Ron is as worried about you as I am. Please don't be angry Harry. You know that we will always be with you if you need us."  
  
There were a few notes from Hagrid. They were full of news about some preparations going on at Hogwarts and about the continual health of his giant brother. The notes seemed to be cheerful and optimistic. And made Harry smile with Hagrid's accounts of his continuing efforts to help his brother.  
  
No news were relayed about the Order's activities, but Harry didn't expect any. It had been very clear in the past year that Dumbledore and others were rather worried of allowing him to know much about what they did. It was easier for Harry to accept their silence than he had last summer. Now he knew how dangerous his bond with Voldemort was and Harry wasn't too keen in giving him any more weapons to hurt him with.  
  
His scar had continued to twinge since his return from Hogwarts and there were times when he slept that he was aware of being somewhere he shouldn't be. But most of the images didn't make any sense to him, but he tried to keep the memories of such images fresh in his mind. The same thing had happened to him last year and he was sure that the memories of the images that had invaded his mind then, had saved them from serious harm when they found themselves in the Department of Mysteries a few weeks ago.  
  
He put away the notes and lay back on his bed. He knew his friends worried, but he couldn't help but feel what he did. It was worse this summer than the last, he thought, this time he had lost somebody who very close to his heart.  
  
He turned and twisted on his bed as he tried to keep the images of Sirius' death from his mind, those were images that he didn't wish to remember.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
He stayed in his room for several days. The Dursleys didn't seem to notice him missing, and were clearly happy that he kept himself apart from them. The only time Harry left his room was to go to the bathroom and to eat his meals with the rest of the family. Even Dudley was keeping close to home.  
  
Unlike the last summer, this summer he seemed to have decided to spend all his time in his bedroom, playing with his computer, watching TV, or listening to his stereo system at full volume. Harry was sure that Dudley still remembered the last time he found himself alone late at night, and he was sure that it was for that reason that he tried to be home early. Harry himself still remembered that night, it was something that had brought several revelations about life at Privet Drive. Because of the Dementors' attack last summer, Harry found out about Mrs. Figg and the Order of the Phoenix much sooner than he would've had. Of course it lead to a series of events that he wished at the time he wouldn't had to.  
  
He also started to notice that Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia were rather nervous, he didn't know the reason why, but he was sure it had something to do with him.  
  
During his self-imposed retirement Harry didn't see any member of the Order in the house again. He knew they still kept an eye on the house, but he wished they would apparate in his room to keep him company. But he thought it was likely that Professor Lupin had told them to keep away from him for a while. But now, Harry wanted news and wanted to know what was happening in the various investigations the Ministry had begun as result of the Death Eater attack on the Ministry last June. He hadn't continued with his subscription with the Daily Prophet and he still didn't want to take it up again, he wasn't sure if it was safe to trust it, not after the false news it imparted for the last year.  
  
It was about a week after his talk with Professor Lupin that Harry found himself leaving his room for no reason at all.  
  
The house was silent. He knew Uncle Vernon had gone to work early and Aunt Petunia had gone with him to shop in London for a dinner they planned to throw for some important people in the neighborhood. They thought it was time for them to show off to the neighbors the new furniture that Aunt Petunia had bought a few weeks ago, before Harry and Dudley had returned from school. Dudley, Harry knew, wasn't at home either. He had heard Dudley leave the house an hour after his parents' departure.  
  
Harry left his room and climbed down the stairs. He looked into the parlor before he entered the kitchen, making sure that the house was indeed empty.  
  
In the kitchen, he grabbed some fruit from the bowl Aunt Petunia had bought for the purpose a few days ago. Harry knew that her reason for buying the bowl and the fruit was for decoration not for them to eat. The bowl was made of expensive crystal, the golden rim glinted in the light streaming through the window. Harry looked around, there was really nothing for him to do. He knew that his Aunt Petunia would've had thought of something, but to him, the house looked perfectly clean and he didn't feel like doing chores he knew would not be appreciated.  
  
He shrugged and turned on the TV, there was nobody that could deny him the pleasure of watching whatever he wanted. He pulled out a chair and sat by the table watching the screen as he switched channels looking for something to watch.  
  
"Turn it to channel 2, they show a soap I've been wanting to see for so long." Somebody said behind him.  
  
Harry turned to find Tonks smiling brightly.  
  
"Do you mind if I sit and stay with you a while? It's boring keeping watch on the house." She said as she pulled out a chair.  
  
"Of course." Said Harry, he was only too happy to have somebody friendly to speak to.  
  
"Thanks." Murmured Tonks as she reached for an apple from the fruit bowl.  
  
"How are things at the Ministry?" Harry asked. He had been very curious about what was happening in the investigation of Mr. Fudge.  
  
"Bad. I don't think Fudge will stay as Minister for long." Tonks said.  
  
"Really? Why?" Harry asked. He didn't like Mr. Fudge, in his opinion he deserved whatever he got, but he didn't know what could happen to Mr. Fudge, he always thought that as Minister of Magic, there was nobody in a higher position than him.  
  
"People want him out. A petition has been started asking for Fudge's resignation and the investigation started on his people is not making him look good to the public. In fact, the press seemed to have a field trip with him. Not that the press is high on the public's esteem to begin with. Especially the Daily Prophet. People have started to pull their subscriptions from the Prophet and sign up with other less known publications. In fact, The Quibbler has doubled their subscriptions in the last two weeks." Tonks reported with a smile.  
  
"It has? Why are people not happy with the Prophet?" Harry asked curiously.  
  
"There are many people that are angry that the truth about You-Know-Who's return was kept from them and that it was reported only after the attack on the Ministry. They think that the press should be kept out of politics and be impartial in their reporting, the fact that the Ministry used the Prophet to feed false reports to the public and used it to discredit those who knew the truth - you and Dumbledore of course - it all makes the public weary of believing a publication that is clearly run by the Ministry and not by impartial members of the press." Tonks said.  
  
"What is the Prophet doing about it?" Harry asked.  
  
"Well, for starters, the Head Editors and reporters have been replaced. Most of the new staff are new members of the press under the direction of known reporters hired from other well-known publications. Even the Witch Weekly has suffered. It is owned by the same people who owned the Prophet you know." Tonks said eagerly, Harry shook his head, he didn't know anything about how the Prophet or the magazine were ran, but it would explain how Rita Skeeter had been able to publish her writing in both publications so easily. "It has all been big news in the last days."  
  
Harry nodded his understanding, hadn't he stopped his subscription to the Prophet as well? But he had never thought to take his subscription elsewhere, not that he knew of any other newspaper in the Magical World.  
  
"So who is reporting truthfully about what is happening at the Ministry?" Harry asked. Maybe he could get a subscription from one of those other publications.  
  
"Well, they all are really." Said Tonks thoughtfully. "Even the Prophet, they are all trying to keep the public happy with their reports and are staying within the true reports coming out of the Ministry."  
  
"Is the investigation over yet?" Harry asked.  
  
"Oh no, it's barely starting!" Tonks exclaimed. "The later reports say that all members of the staff have been asked to appear before the Wizengamont. Well, at least in front of the remaining members of the Wizengamont." Harry looked confused, so Tonks explained. "There were some members who were asked to step down from their seats because of their close ties to the Minister and their acceptance to all the radical changes that the Minister has done in the past year."  
  
"Oh." Exclaimed Harry. He could understand why they would be asked to leave the Wizengamont.  
  
"They have been asked to appear before the court as well. They are being questioned about the Minister and the orders they have received from him lately. They have been asked to take Veritaserum during questioning." Tonks said with glee. "No way they can lie about what the Minister planned and ordered in the last months."  
  
Harry was surprised at the tactics the Ministry was willing to take to reach a conclusion to their investigation. He never thought that he would live at a time when trust was a valuable trait.  
  
"There are a lot of things that the public is aware of that had been kept from them a year ago." Tonks said.  
  
"Like what?" Harry asked.  
  
"Well, like that dementor attack on you last summer." Whispered Tonks.  
  
"What? Why?" Harry was surprised. He knew that the attack had been hushed, and had not been reported. Harry had thought at the time that it had been the Minister who had kept the press from reporting it, but now he knew it had been Professor Umbridge who had ordered the attack and had kept it from everybody else.  
  
"Dolores Umbridge, the Senior Undersecretary to the Minister, was one of the first persons to appear before the court. She confessed to have been the one to order the attack." Tonks whispered. "Can't tell you the uproar that created. She was even sentenced to spend six months at Azkaban. But it was late for the Ministry to keep that from the press, there were many reporters present at the time and they all rushed to print the story. Dumbledore was terribly angry that it had been she who had ordered that attack."  
  
Harry could well imagine what everybody had thought about that report.  
  
"And they're are not done with her yet. After the press reported about the attack, many Hogwarts students came forward complaining about cruel punishments and restrictions she used during her time at the school. There are a lot of angry parents out there." Tonks continued.  
  
Harry nodded his understanding, he himself had suffered through Professor Umbridge's detentions and restrictions and was happy to know that the Ministry was taking the reports against her seriously.  
  
"That didn't help Fudge any. Even though it was clear from the interrogation that he didn't know about her orders for the attack it was clear that he was only too eager to punish you without cause, that only made him seem like some sort of collaborator. She even mentioned that she almost used one of the Unforgivable Curses on one of the students." Tonks whispered, she was clearly scandalized that a member of the Ministry had tried to so such a thing.  
  
Harry remembered that very clearly, it had happed the night of the attack when he and the others had been caught using the Floo Network from Professor Umbridge's office. She was trying to make him tell her his reasons for breaking into her office and he wasn't talking, if Hermione hadn't stopped her, she would've used the Cruciatus Curse on him.  
  
"It was me." Harry said. "She was going to use the Cruciatus Curse, but Hermione stopped her."  
  
"Really? I bet the Ministry is going to ask you to appear before the court to testify then." Tonks said.  
  
Harry nodded. He wouldn't mind appearing in front of the court this time. He would gladly tell the Ministry everything Professor Umbridge had done at the school.  
  
"Was that reported too?" He asked.  
  
"Not that you had been the student she threatened. But they did report that she had confessed to almost using it." Tonks said. "There are a lot of people who were angered at the thought that the Minister had appointed her to Hogwarts. You should've seen the members of the Wizengamont who were presiding at the time. Amelia Bones almost lost control of the whole things. So many people yelling in anger."  
  
"What about the other members of Fudge's staff? Have they said anything against him?" Harry asked.  
  
"Not really, they have only proved that he is a fool." Tonks exclaimed. "But they are asking a lot of questions about his behavior. I think they are afraid that the Minister had been acting under the Imperius Curse. But of course everything is pointing out that he was acting on his own, and that is making it even worse for him. I think people would've been more understanding if it was proven that he had been under the curse, he would've been innocent of any wrong doing, but now that everybody is sure he was acting on his own accord, nobody wants him to keep his job."  
  
"What does he say?" Harry was curious, he hadn't liked when the press were telling lies about him and he imagined the Minister didn't like the bad reports, especially since he seemed to enjoy the power his job allowed him.  
  
"Nothing. He hasn't appeared before the press to defend himself, but people who have seen him say that he has lost some weight and that he looks old and tired with worry." Tonks reported. "I don't think he's going to last long."  
  
There was some noise outside and both Harry and Tonks jumped from their seats. They heard voices and they both listened carefully.  
  
"My parents are not home." Somebody was saying. "We can watch TV if we want."  
  
"It's Dudley and his friends." Harry whispered.  
  
Tonks nodded and quickly pulled the invisibility cloak over her while Harry turned off the TV and threw away the apple cores they had left on the table.  
  
Moments later, Dudley led his friends into the house.  
  
"Stay here, I'll get some sodas." Dudley ordered to his friends. "What are you doing here?" He asked the moment he saw Harry in the kitchen.  
  
"Eating." Said Harry as he tied the top of the full bag of trash and pulled it from the bin.  
  
Dudley snorted but didn't say anymore. He opened the fridge and took out several cans of soda before returning to the sitting room.  
  
Harry put an empty bag into the trash bin and opened the back door to take out the trash.  
  
"Thanks." He heard Tonks whisper into his ear before hearing a loud pop that signified her disapparating from the vicinity.  
  
Harry returned to the house and made his way silently to his room, he didn't want to run into Dudley's gang.  
  
He lay on his bed, thinking about everything that Tonks had told him. It seemed that the Ministry would have a long summer this year. But he couldn't help but think that all of it only make it easier for Voldemort to act undetected by the rest of the world.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Other members of the Order made their appearance before him to keep him company whenever the Durseys weren't around. It was a week before his birthday and he was sure that he was up to date with the latest news from the Ministry.  
  
Mundungus had told him about Percy's appearance before the court and how he was questioned not only about his work with the Minister but also about his year working with Mr. Crouch. It was very clear by the end of the interrogation that Percy had lost his standing in the Ministry and he was most likely to become only a junior clerk in one of the obscure offices of the Ministry.  
  
Harry was saddened for Mrs. Weasley's sake; in his opinion, Percy deserved what he got. Because of his ambitions, he had aligned himself with people who did foolish things to keep their jobs and in the process ruined them.  
  
He received many more letters from Hermione and Ron, telling him all about the latest news appearing in the Daily Prophet, Hermione even included cuttings from the reports of the interrogations. It was very clear that things were not going any better for the Minister. And several readers had written declaiming against the Minister's actions. As one reader had written on an editorial page that Hermione had sent him, ".the foolish actions of our present Minister have made more than obvious that he is not the right person to hold such distinguished position. We need somebody with the courage and open mind to be able to stand against the evil that is blackening our world. The old-fashioned mind of Mr. Fudge is not what we need. There is only one thing that I need to say to our Minister: Step down Mr. Fudge, step down!"  
  
Harry read every clipping with eager curiosity. He could now understand how it must have been during the time his parents were alive and Voldemort had been at the height of his terrorizing days.  
  
It was after reading the latest clippings from Hermione that Harry found himself in the kitchen helping Aunt Petunia to prepare their midday meal. Uncle Vernon was expected to return home early from work and planned to stay at home the rest of the day to help Aunt Petunia prepare for the dinner party, which was planned to take place in two days time.  
  
"Wash the potatoes and place them in the pan. The oven should be hot enough now to start putting them in." Aunt Petunia said a little distracted, she was busily watching over the window at their next door neighbor's house.  
  
Harry did as he was bid. He had just finished placing the potatoes into the oven when they heard the sound of an engine driving down the street.  
  
"Vernon is here." Aunt Petunia said as she hurried to finish with the salad she had been working on.  
  
Harry turned to clear the table, it would soon be time for the meal to be served and he was sure that Dudley would soon return from his perambulations around the neighborhood with his friends.  
  
He was right. No sooner had he put away the things from the table that he heard Uncle Vernon's voice call to Dudley. "Well met son, been with your friends?"  
  
"Yes. They're helping me train so I can be on shape when I return to school." Harry heard Dudley say. He snorted with disbelief. How could his aunt and uncle be so blind to the kind of person Dudley was becoming, he asked himself.  
  
Uncle Vernon and Dudley were soon in the kitchen. The potatoes were baking in the oven, the salad was waiting in the fridge and Aunt Petunia was cutting the smoked ham she had prepared.  
  
"Afternoon, my dear." Uncle Vernon greeted his wife jovially.  
  
Aunt Petunia turned her cheek to receive her husband's kiss. "How was you day?" She asked.  
  
"Great. Mentioned our little party to Mr. Deacon, you remember him? He is the one with that big construction company in London. He has one house in town, one in Wales and one in the continent. A very important client. Said that he might pop up this weekend at the party, if we play our cards correctly, a lot of new clients will come our way and that extra set of rooms you want will be ours." Uncle Vernon said gleefully rubbing his hands together.  
  
"Can I have a bigger room then?" Asked Dudley looking at his parents.  
  
"Of course you can Duddy dear." Aunt Petunia said happily. She didn't notice Dudley wince at his mother's pet name for him, but Harry did and smiled. He knew his cousin didn't like those names, but he was never going to say that to his mother.  
  
Fifteen minutes later, they were all sitting around the table, the smoked ham in place of pride in the middle of the table, the salad and potatoes around it.  
  
Harry ate silently as Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia started to discuss the dinner party. Dudley was too busy eating to pay any attention to what was happening around him. It was during a lull in the conversation that a sound surprised them all.  
  
Harry was finishing his meal while Aunt Petunia drank her tea and Dudley and Uncle Vernon were dividing the last of the ham, when a loud pop was heard in the next room.  
  
Aunt Petunia gasped in fright, Uncle Vernon looked aghast at Harry and Dudley for once forgot about his food.  
  
Harry had come to his feet in an instant and had taken his wand from his socks. Since his return to Privet Drive he had hidden it there every morning.  
  
"What was that? What is happening?" Asked a frightened Uncle Vernon.  
  
"Someone apparated in the other room." Harry whispered.  
  
"What? What is that?" Dudley whimpered.  
  
"It's the sound when somebody appears magically." Harry explained.  
  
"Wh-wh-what?" Aunt Petunia was clearly scared.  
  
"Shhh! I don't hear any movement, but that doesn't mean there is nobody there." Said Harry. "Call Mrs. Figg and tell her what we just heard."  
  
"Mrs. Figg? What does she have to do with this?" Uncle Vernon asked in confusion.  
  
"The Order will come if they hear about the call." Was all Harry said.  
  
The Dudleys didn't understand anything about the Order and its connection to Mrs. Figg. But they figured that help would be needed and they did as Harry asked.  
  
Harry walked slowly to the door. He opened it silently and looked out to the next room. He couldn't see anybody and was beginning to relax when he noticed a shadow move from one of the corners.  
  
"Ok." He murmured. "Here I go." He lifted his wand higher and clasped it tightly. The Dursleys followed a few feet behind.  
  
"If I take them by surprise, it will give me an advantage." He said softly and jumped through the open doorway with a "Ahh!"  
  
He didn't see anything but heard a high pitched squeak. He frowned, he recognized that sound, but before he continued with the thought something had wrapped itself around his legs.  
  
He looked down in horror thinking to find a serpent trying to immobilize him, to his consternation he saw instead a small figure with its arms wrapped tightly around him.  
  
"Master Harry, Master Harry, Minnie thought she would never see you, Master Harry." The small creature cried and looked up at Harry.  
  
Harry recognized the bat-like eared creature as a house-elf, but he didn't recognized this particular house-elf.  
  
"What? Who are you?" Harry asked in surprise.  
  
To his horror, the elf started to cry.  
  
"Master Harry knows not his Minnie! Minnie has looked and looked and Master Harry knows not his Minnie!" It sobbed.  
  
Harry was confused. He couldn't understand why a house elf would cry because he didn't know who it was. There had only been one elf who had come to Privet Drive looking to find him, and that had been Dobby who was trying to warn him about trouble at Hogwarts. But why would another elf be looking for him?  
  
Several pops sounded in the kitchen. Aunt Petunia screamed and started running up the stairs, Dudley and Uncle Vernon followed soon and followed her. Minutes later, Harry heard the sound of a door snapping shut in the upper floor.  
  
The elf was still clasping his legs tightly and he was afraid to move in case he lost his balance and fell upon one of the tables nearby full with expensive decorative knick-knacks he knew his Aunt would never forgive him for breaking.  
  
He heard hurried steps from the kitchen as the elf sobbed wildly against his legs. He looked to the doorway and saw Lupin, Moody and Tonks appear with worried expressions.  
  
Professor Lupin stopped abruptly and looked aghast at the elf.  
  
"Minnie? What are you doing here?" He asked quickly.  
  
The elf loosened its grasp from Harry and looked at Lupin with happy surprise.  
  
"Master Remus!" She yelled happily. "Minnie found Master Harry, Minnie found him."  
  
"I can see that." Lupin said with surprise.  
  
"What is this then? What is that house-elf doing here?" Moody exclaimed rather abruptly.  
  
The elf looked frightened at the sight of him and hid behind Harry's legs.  
  
Harry could see Tonks trying to look from behind Moody's shoulder with curiosity down at the elf.  
  
Lupin motioned them to keep quiet and walked further into the room. He kneeled on the floor and looked around Harry's legs to talk to the elf.  
  
"Minnie, you shouldn't be here. Dumbledore will not be happy." Lupin said.  
  
The elf's ears drooped around her face. "But Master Harry needed his Minnie." She said.  
  
Lupin looked down at the elf with understanding. Harry couldn't understand what was happening, why was the elf calling herself his Minnie?  
  
"Minnie, how did you get here, you are not supposed to be able to leave the Manor, Dumbledore made sure of that years ago." Lupin said.  
  
"Minnie cried and cried, Master Harry was here without his Minnie and she couldn't leave the Manor, but then Minnie found that she could leave the house and with practice she could apparate out of the village. Minnie has been working for years, Master Remus, Master Harry needed his Minnie." The elf replied.  
  
Harry sighed with exasperation, this was making no sense to him. "Professor?" He asked down at Lupin.  
  
Lupin looked up at Harry.  
  
"What is going on?" Asked Harry.  
  
Lupin sighed in resignation. He looked down at the elf and looked up to Harry. He sighed again. It was clear to Harry that he didn't want to tell him about the elf, that it might be information he wasn't supposed to know, and he was trying to think things through whether to tell him or not.  
  
Finally, Lupin stood up. "Come Minnie, come in front of me." He urged to the elf.  
  
The elf looked hopefully at him and at Harry before stepping in front of Lupin.  
  
"Harry." Lupin said looking kindly at the elf. "This is Minnie, your personal elf."  
  
"My what?" Asked Harry aghast.  
  
"Your personal elf. Minnie here is one of three personal elves belonging to the House of Potter. She served your father when he was your age and he served you when you were born. Minnie here was your nursery maid during the first year of your life." Lupin said.  
  
Harry looked down at the elf with surprise. This was the first time he ever heard about his family having elves. "Hermione is not going to like this." Was all he could think of saying.  
  
Lupin smiled. "No she won't, but tell her not to give her any clothes. It would only serve to alienate Minnie and the other elves."  
  
"Other elves?" Harry asked with apprehension.  
  
Lupin had turned to look at Moody and Tonks. "Dumbledore has to know about this. With Minnie breaking through his spell, it will not be longer before the other elves start apparating here to join her."  
  
Moody nodded. "Right. I'll go. You stay here and help if any more appear." He said abruptly to Tonks before disapparating.  
  
"Professor? What do you mean the other elves, how many are there?" Harry asked rather worriedly. He looked down at the elf who was happily cleaning his shoes with one side of her toga, which he noticed was very similar to the ones the Hogwarts elves had, white towels draped as a toga with a crest on a corner. But the crest on Minnie's towel was that of a rampant stag, with a red background.  
  
"Well, I don't remember the correct number, but the house-elves won't come, only the personal elves. There are three of them, Minnie, Lotty and Otty." Remus said looking up to the ceiling as if trying to remember.  
  
"Personal elves? I always thought there was only one kind of elves." Asked Tonks as she looked at Minnie with curiosity.  
  
"There are two kinds. The house-elves are the most common and they generally come with the house, large houses mostly, and they served the master of the house, that means that even if a house changes hands, the house-elves will serve whoever lives as the current master. Personal elves are a little different. Personal elves are magically connected to their masters and they pass down from father to son, mother to daughter, the family can lose all its money, even the house and the house-elves, but the Personal elf will continue serving his master until death." Remus said.  
  
"And my family had three?" Asked Harry.  
  
Remus nodded. "Otty is the cook, he is in charge of all the meals eaten by the master and his family, Lotty is the Senior Elf, he serves the master, and in some cases his wife. Minnie here is the Junior Elf, she serves the master's son, if there is no son then the master's mother, or any other person her master decrees. She served James until Old Mr. Potter died, James then inherited Lotty as his personal elf and Minnie here served other members of the family, including Lily before they married. After they married, Lotty served both of them and Minnie served other members of the family until you were born."  
  
"But why is she here now, why didn't she appear before?" Asked Tonks.  
  
"When they went into hiding, Dumbledore placed a charm on the personal elves severing their connection to the family. They worried that if anybody got a look of the elves at Godric Hollow their hiding place would be in danger. The spell was supposed to work as long as the family was in danger from Voldemort." Remus said.  
  
"How is it that she is here then?" Tonks exclaimed.  
  
Remus shook his head. "Don't know. Elves have their own special brand of magic, and personal elves' magic is more evolved than those of a regular house elf. I don't know how she got around Dumbledore's spell, but you might be sure that the others are soon going to sense that the spell has been broken and they can now join their master."  
  
"What is going to happen now?" Harry asked.  
  
"I don't know. Dumbledore will know what is best." Remus said.  
  
Minnie was still sitting on the floor, she had finished with Harry's shoes and was now hugging one of his legs tightly. She was obviously happy to stay as she was.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
A/N: What do you think Dumbledore will do now that Minnie has found Harry? I hope you enjoyed this chapter. The title for the Sixth Year is tentative still, so don't think of it by that title, I'm just thinking of it by the Sixth Year, I might change the title of it later, Harry Potter and something-something-something. Don't forget to review. 


	50. Sixth Year Chapter 2

A/N: Thank you all for your reviews, specially to those of you who are new readers to this story, I'm glad that you have enjoyed it. I'm happy to say that I seem to be able to write faster now than before. Maybe because I have been looking forward to this part of the story for so long and I've had a clear picture of what I wanted to do that it's easier for me to write what I want Harry's story to be like. I hope you like it. There's a lot that he has to learn about.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Disclaimer: Don't own anything that has to do with HP and related characters and places.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Chapter 2 ~ Number Ninety-Three Diagon Alley  
  
Moody was gone no more than forty-five minutes before he returned to Privet Drive. The Dursleys were still locked in one of the rooms upstairs while Harry, Remus and Tonks waited patiently in the sitting room. Minnie was oblivious to everything else as she hugged Harry's leg with complete happiness.  
  
They heard the pop of Moody apparating and turned to the doorway to wait for his news.  
  
"Right." Moody said as he limped into the room. "He said he will make arrangements. For now, he will stay here with the elf, but she can use no magic. There should be plan by tomorrow morning, but it's obvious that he can't stay here."  
  
Harry's heart flipped in his chest. This was the first time in his life that he didn't have to stay in Privet Drive for most of the summer, and he liked the idea of not being here for his birthday. "Where am I going?" He asked eagerly.  
  
"Don't know." Moody shrugged.  
  
"We'll leave you then. Call Annabella if you need help." Remus said. He looked down sternly at Minnie. "You can stay Minnie, but you can't use any magic, it would only serve to get Harry in trouble." The elf nodded her head energetically. "But don't drive him crazy." Smiled Remus. "I'll see you Harry." He said to Harry.  
  
Moody nodded brusquely to Harry and Tonks waved goodbye and with a pop, all three disapparated from the room.  
  
Harry looked down at Minnie. What could he possibly do with an elf? He asked himself.  
  
Minnie was totally unaware of Harry's consternation. She sat on the floor and looked adoringly up to Harry.  
  
Harry sighed. And he had thought that Dobby was bad.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
The Dursleys left the room only after they heard Harry making his way to his room and shutting the door behind him. Minnie had walked briskly at his feet and looked blissfully around the room the moment they entered.  
  
She squealed happily and applied herself to tidying up the room.  
  
Harry sat on the bed and watched her. He was too confused to say anything to her.  
  
"Oh Master Harry, Minnie is happy to have found you, Minnie tried and tried for years to get to Master Harry." The elf was saying as she tenderly folded the clothes and robes she found in the messy trunk.  
  
"You have?" Harry asked with curiosity, he never imagined having a personal elf on his own.  
  
"Oh, yes! Lotty and Otty will be happy too. Master Harry will like Lotty and Otty." Minnie exclaimed happily.  
  
"Will I?"  
  
"Oh yes." Minnie squealed as she continued pulling things from the trunk and putting them in order.  
  
"Have you been with the family for long?" Asked Harry, finally occurring to him that he had somebody here who could probably tell him a lot about his parents.  
  
"Since Minnie was born." Piped Minnie. "Mistress Abigail chose Minnie especially for Master Alliaster." Said Minnie.  
  
Harry frowned in confusion. "Who are they?" He asked.  
  
Minnie looked at Harry why surprise. "Does Master Harry know not of his father's father and his grandmother?" She asked somewhat shocked.  
  
Harry shook his head sadly, but at least now he knew who they were. "What were they like?" He asked wistfully, for the first time in his life he was getting names to match to relatives.  
  
Minnie's face brightened, she obviously loved every member of the family and Harry couldn't help but compare her against the other elves he had met. Dobby had been the house-elf for the Malfoys when he first met him, he had been treated badly by them and Dobby had wanted his freedom more than anything. Then he had met Winky and Harry couldn't help but feel pity for her. Unlike Dobby, Winky had not wanted her freedom at all, her life seemed to be totally dedicated to the Crouches and had been devastated when she had been presented with clothes, the only way an elf could be granted its freedom by its master. And then, there was Kreacher. Harry wasn't sorry for him at all. Kreacher had been insane with fervor for serving the Black family, but only those who had been acceptable to Sirius' mother. Because Sirius had not been acceptable for the family, Kreacher had not served him as he served the other members of the Black clan. Harry couldn't help but blame him, in part, for Sirius' death. He couldn't forget that Kreacher had lied to him about Sirius' whereabouts, if he hadn't done so, Harry would've never gone to the Department of Mysteries hoping to save Sirius' from Voldemort.  
  
Minnie was speaking and Harry started to listen it was the first time he heard about his family and he didn't want to miss anything.  
  
"Master Aliaster was a great master." Minnie was saying. She had finished tidying up the trunk and had turned to pick up all the books and parchments that were strewn around the floor. "He loved Hogwarts. Minnie was with him when Master Aliaster started attending. He studied in the Ministry after that until he married Mistress Susan. A great friend of the Minister and worked with him in the Ministry." Minnie said proudly.  
  
"My grandfather worked with Mr. Fudge?" Asked Harry with surprise.  
  
Minnie screwed her face with disgust. "Minnie doesn't like Mr. Fudge. Master Aliaster was no friend of Mr. Fudge. Mr. Fudge wasn't Minister then."  
  
"Oh. You mean he worked with the Minister of that time." Exclaimed Harry. He was relieved to hear that his grandfather hadn't been friendly with Mr. Fudge. Mr. Fudge didn't seem like a man who could've been a great friend of his family.  
  
Minnie nodded. "Master James did too, after leaving Hogwarts." Minnie said.  
  
Harry looked at her with surprised, he had never heard that before. "My father worked in the Ministry?"  
  
Minnie nodded as she arranged the piles of books and parchment on top of the desk. "Master James was advisor for the Minister, just like Master Aliaster."  
  
"What about my mother?" Harry asked.  
  
"Mistress Lily worked for Hogwarts before she came to the Potters." Minnie replied.  
  
"She did?" Asked Harry eagerly. "Was she a teacher?"  
  
"Minnie knows not." Minnie said.  
  
Harry sighed, he had hoped that Minnie could tell him more of what his family was like.  
  
"Were they happy?" Harry asked. His fear that his mother had not loved his father as he had first thought had not left him. The memory of what he had seen in the Pensive in Snape's office had not left him, and he could remember well the antagonism he had seem between his father and mother then.  
  
"Oh, yes. Master James loved Mistress Lily and Mistress Lily did too." Minnie exclaimed, she seemed to be a little surprised at the idea that her previous masters had not loved each other.  
  
Seeing that reaction made Harry's fear recede and he smiled. Here was somebody who wouldn't lie to him about his parents' relationship.  
  
He was about to ask another question, but his aunt's call interrupted him.  
  
"Come down to dinner." He heard Aunt Petunia call.  
  
"Stay here, Minnie. I will bring you something to eat." Harry ordered.  
  
Minnie nodded with a happy grin on her lips and Harry couldn't help but smile at her.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
That night, Harry slept calmly for the first time since Voldemort's return last summer. He had pulled a drawer from the desk and had piled some of Dudley's hand-me-downs that were too old for him to wear in it, and had told Minnie to use it as her bed. Minnie had smiled happily at him and hugged his leg before climbing into the nest of clothes and had fallen asleep.  
  
Harry smiled and the last thought in his mind before falling sleep was the fact that Hermione would not be happy with him when he told her about Minnie.  
  
The next morning was bright and warm. Harry opened his eyes carefully, surprise to feel rested as if he had slept for hours. He turned to look at the time in the fixed clock by his bed and was surprised to find that it was still early. In fact, he knew that the Dursleys had not woken up yet as he could clearly hear his uncle's snores from the bedroom nearby.  
  
Harry stretched his arms and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He sat up and looked around. Hedwig's cage stood empty on top of the dresser, he noticed that it had been cleaned and no droppings or mice tails remained in it. That reminded him of Minnie and turned quickly to look at the drawer at the foot of the bed.  
  
It was empty.  
  
"Uh-oh!" He exclaimed. He had hoped that he could keep her in his room so the Dursleys didn't have to see her. He dressed quickly and open the door.  
  
The smell of bacon, eggs and sweet bread blended in the air.  
  
Harry walked as quickly as he could without making any noise. He didn't want to wake the Dursleys up. A few minutes later, he found himself in the kitchen watching Minnie preparing a large meal.  
  
"Good Morning, Master Harry!" Minnie piped from the chair she stood on to stir the eggs in the pan above the stove.  
  
"Morning. Minnie, what are you doing?" He asked as he looked at the large stack of hotcakes cooling in the counter.  
  
"Preparing breakfast for Master Harry." Minnie said as a dozen strips of bacon sizzled in a pan.  
  
"Isn't it a little too much?" Harry asked. He had never eaten that much food in his life, at least not in Privet Drive. At Hogwarts he had eaten as much as anybody could eat.  
  
"Does Master Harry not like the food his Minnie prepared?" Minnie asked as her ears dropped around her face.  
  
"I didn't say that!" Exclaimed Harry. "I just think that this is more than enough for me." Said Harry.  
  
Minnie looked worriedly at Harry.  
  
"This is great Minnie, thank you." Harry said with a smile to Minnie.  
  
Minnie smiled once more and jumped down from the chair. She walked up to Harry and grasped his hand.  
  
"Sit Master Harry, Minnie will serve you." Said Minnie as she pulled him toward one of the chairs around the table.  
  
"That's not necessary, Minnie." Harry said hurriedly. "I can serve myself." Minnie's ears dropped once more. "But you can if you want." He said quickly.  
  
Minnie smiled and hurried around the kitchen as Harry sat on his customary chair. Soon, Minnie put a full plate before him and added a glass of milk and another of orange juice. Harry smiled. This certainly was a change for him. Nobody had ever served him breakfast this way, especially in Privet Drive.  
  
He had barely started eating when he heard somebody coming down the stairs. He groaned, he had forgotten that he had planned to take Minnie to his room before the Dursleys woke up.  
  
He was about to order Minnie to hide when his aunt appeared in the door.  
  
"What's this?" She exclaimed. "What are you doing?"  
  
"Eating." Said Harry.  
  
Minnie was on top of the chair by the stove taking the bacon from the pan. She stopped to look at Aunt Petunia.  
  
Aunt Petunia saw her and screamed. "What is that? What is it doing to my stove?"  
  
"She is an elf, and she is cooking breakfast for me." Said Harry.  
  
"A what?" Aunt Petunia asked in confusion.  
  
"An elf. A personal elf, really. She belonged to my father and has come to serve me." Harry said.  
  
Aunt Petunia was speechless. She clearly didn't know what to say.  
  
"It smells great Petunia, how did you prepare it so fast." Harry heard Uncle Vernon said from the stairs.  
  
Aunt Petunia turned with consternation to her husband. "Vernon! Vernon!" She called.  
  
"What is it? What-?" He stopped mid sentence at the sight of Minnie on the chair. "What is that? What is it doing in my house?" He thundered.  
  
Minnie squeaked and jumped from the chair to hide underneath Harry's chair.  
  
Harry sighed and put down his fork.  
  
"She is an elf." Said Harry again. "She is here because she belonged to my father's family and she came to serve me."  
  
"What's this? What's this? There are no such things as elves." Uncle Vernon yelled.  
  
"Vernon! Shh! The neighbors." Aunt Petunia said.  
  
"Oh, sorry my dear. You boy, take that thing from my house." He hissed at Harry.  
  
"I can't. This kind of elves stay with their master at all times. There had been a spell that kept her away from me but it was broken and now she is here." Harry explained.  
  
"I'll not have it, I tell you. I'll not have such freaks of nature in my house." Uncle Vernon exclaimed.  
  
"It won't be for long. I was told that Professor Dumbledore would have a plan by this morning and he would make arrangements, but for now she has to stay with me. I'll keep her in my room. It's just that she was here before I woke up and she had just finished prepared breakfast and I forgot to take her back to my room." Harry explained.  
  
Minnie was peering from behind Harry's legs. Her large tennis-balled eyes looked apprehensively at the Dursleys.  
  
The mentioned of breakfast made Uncle Vernon look around the kitchen. The large platters of bacon, hotcakes, eggs, and toast beckoned. He swallowed his anger but looked hungrily at the food.  
  
"Yes, well. If it has prepared breakfast, it's all right then." He said.  
  
Aunt Petunia looked at her husband with surprise. "Vernon?"  
  
"Well, think of it my dear. That thing obviously is a good cook, you didn't even need to tire your delicate hands this morning." Uncle Vernon said.  
  
Aunt Petunia looked around her kitchen and saw that it had been cleaned as well. "Well, if it's making itself useful." She said grudgingly.  
  
Harry snorted silently. The thought of free service obviously countered his aunt and uncle's fear of anything magical  
  
Both Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia walked to the platters of food cooling on the counter. Harry bent down to look at Minnie. "Go to my room, Minnie. Don't leave it." He ordered. Minnie nodded and disapparated with a tiny pop.  
  
"At least it makes a good meal." Harry heard Uncle Vernon grunt.  
  
Harry shook his head in relief. It could've been much worse, he thought before taking his fork back to his mouth. He did agree with his Uncle Vernon on one thing. Minnie did make a good meal.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Harry went to his room as soon as he finished his breakfast. He hoped that Dumbledore would let him know soon what was going to happen, he didn't know how long it would take for the Dursleys to keep tolerating Minnie.  
  
He found Minnie cleaning his room. He looked around the bedroom, it had never been that clean since he had moved into it before his eleventh year.  
  
Hedwig was back. She had been gone when he first woke up, but now she was sitting on top of her cage watching closely every move Minnie did.  
  
"Does Master Harry wish something from Minnie?" The elf asked eagerly as soon as she sensed his return to the bedroom.  
  
"No, I'm all right. Thanks." He said. Now what? He thought. What was he supposed to do with an elf?  
  
Thankfully, he didn't have to think too long on that question.  
  
He heard Aunt Petunia's scream and Uncle Vernon swearing.  
  
"Stay here." Harry ordered Minnie and ran out of the room.  
  
"Will you shut up, woman?" A harsh voice said.  
  
Harry climbed down the stairs cautiously.  
  
"Don't you speak to my wife in that manner!" Uncle Vernon exclaimed.  
  
"Moody, just calm down, it is perfectly understandable for Mrs. Dursley to be surprised to see us." A gentler voice said.  
  
"Professor Lupin?" Harry asked as he neared the kitchen.  
  
"Hello Harry. We have come for you." Lupin said turning to the doorway where Harry stood.  
  
"Where am I going?" Harry asked.  
  
"To the Burrow for now, then we'll move again." Lupin said.  
  
"Wait just one minute. You cannot just appear in the middle of my kitchen and take the boy without our consent. We are his guardians." Uncle Vernon was indignant that these strangers would even dare to appear in his house and do as they wished.  
  
"Harry cannot stay here as long as the elf stays with him. I'm sure you would not like to have it around the house where neighbors and visitors could see it." Moody grunted.  
  
"Well, no." Conceded Uncle Vernon. "Why can't you just take it and leave the boy?"  
  
"The elf will stay with Harry. The elf magic bonds them for the rest of their life, unless the bond is severed magically, the elf will follow its master wherever he goes. There are only few wizards with the power to sever those bonds and unfortunately there are none available at the moment." Lupin explained.  
  
"Very well, the boy can leave." Said Uncle Vernon with the air of a man who was granting a huge favor.  
  
"Thank you." Lupin bowed his head, hiding the sarcastic smile that appeared upon his lips. "Pack your things Harry. The others will arrive in fifteen minutes to take you to The Burrow." Lupin said turning to look at Harry.  
  
Harry nodded and run up the stairs to his room.  
  
"Hurry Minnie, we have to pack all my things." Harry said as he entered the room.  
  
"Yes Master Harry, Minnie will pack Master's belongings." Squealed Minnie and hurried around the room gathering Harry's things.  
  
Harry urged Hedwig into her cage before turning to see if there was much to be gathered. Minnie had everything in hand. His trunk was packed in less than five minutes.  
  
"Come Minnie. We'll wait downstairs." Harry said.  
  
Harry pulled his trunk while Minnie took Hedwig's cage. Hedwig sat silently in her cage watching Minnie warily as if making sure that she wouldn't be hurt.  
  
Harry dragged his trunk down the stairs and into the sitting room. Lupin and Moody were waiting there for him, both arguing in whispers. They stopped talking the minute they heard Harry coming down the stairs.  
  
"Ready, I see." Smiled Lupin.  
  
Harry looked questioningly at Lupin and Moody. What had they been arguing about when he was upstairs? It was obvious that it was something of importance, and most likely about him.  
  
"The others will be here any moment now." Growled Moody.  
  
Harry noticed that both men had changed into muggle clothing.  
  
"How are we getting there?" Harry asked. He turned to look at the fireplace. He remembered Mr. Weasley using it a couple of years ago. But the fireplace had been blocked once more, and the electric screen had been repaired by Mr. Weasley soon after they used it.  
  
"A car will be sent to us." Lupin said with a grin.  
  
"What kind of car?" Asked Harry with curiosity. He remembered the Weasleys' old flying car, which was now running wild at Hogwarts' Forest. And then there was the Ministry car that had been sent for their use when Sirius had escaped from Azkaban.  
  
"A private car. Don't worry, the muggles won't have anything to say against it." Lupin smiled.  
  
At that moment there was what sounded like a car parking in front of the house.  
  
"They're here." Said Moody putting a bowler hat on his head at a slanted angle covering his magic eye.  
  
The Dursleys were standing by the kitchen door, waiting to see Harry out.  
  
Lupin opened the door and waved to whoever waited inside the car. "Come Harry, they're waiting for us." He motioned Harry to follow him.  
  
"See you." Said Harry in a cheerful voice to the Dursleys before stepping out of the house dragging the trunk. He turned to see Minnie, but she was no longer there. "What happened to Minnie?" He asked Moody, who was following out.  
  
"Disapparated, she will appear once you get to the Burrow." Moody said.  
  
Harry turned to look at the car, and blinked with surprise. He had never imagined that such a car would be waiting for him. It was a large car, black with shiny wheels. And it looked very expensive limousine, but rather small compared to those he had seen on his aunt's magazines or in the TV. He knew the Dursleys would be envious to see him ride off in it. He turned to the house and saw his aunt and uncle look as surprised as he was.  
  
He stepped lively into the car, and in the process, he caught sight of some of the neighbors, watching curiously from their windows. Harry smiled wickedly and wondered what the Dursleys would say to explain his departure, he was sure that would be a subject of conversation during their party on the next day.  
  
He looked around the car and was surprised once more at the size of it. From outside, it had looked small but once inside, it was really roomy. There was a back seat that could seat up to four people, on each side of the vehicle were two other seats, one could carry five people while the other only three, and then there as a seat behind the driver. A small cooler sat underneath one of the side seats, the other had a small cabinet with pillows and blankets.  
  
Harry sat on one of the side seats, Lupin sat beside him, while Moody sat in the back seat after closing the door behind him. Waiting inside was Tonks and Mr. Weasley.  
  
"Hello Harry, how have you been?" A kind smile appeared on Mr. Weasley's face. But Harry could see in his eyes the worry that he clearly felt for him.  
  
"I'm fine." Said Harry rather abruptly. He was getting rather tired of being asked the same thing by everybody. "How long will it take us to get there?" He asked in a calmer tone, he was rather sorry now that he had been abrupt with Mr. Weasley.  
  
"Two hours, three at the most. This car is rather faster than muggle ones." Said Lupin.  
  
Harry nodded. He knew now that this car belonged to a wizard, who that wizard could be, he didn't know, but it was rather clear that it was somebody wealthy.  
  
"Do you want something to drink? I'm sure that there something in the cooler, there always was something there whenever I used this car." Lupin mumbled as he looked below the seat to open the compartment.  
  
"You used this car before?" Harry asked in surprised. He had never heard Professor Lupin talk about his past. The only thing he knew for sure was about his friendship with his father and that it was because of his monthly indisposition that his father, Sirius and Peter had become animagi.  
  
"Uh-huh" Harry hear Lupin say, "when I was rather young."  
  
"Who owns it?" Harry asked with curiosity. The only wealthy families he knew about were Death Eaters, unless it had belonged to one of them and had been confiscated because of the family's close ties to Voldemort.  
  
"To a very important family." Said Moody before Lupin could respond.  
  
"Right you are." Said Lupin sitting up and a couple of cans grasped in his hands. He offered one to Harry, who took it gratefully.  
  
"How come we're going to the Burrow instead of Grimmauld Place?" Harry asked.  
  
"Can't use it now that Black is gone." Said Moody.  
  
Harry looked questioningly at Lupin.  
  
"The charm only works with the knowledge of the owner. Sirius is not longer there to give us permission to use." Lupin explained.  
  
"Where are you going to meet now?" Harry asked with curiosity, he didn't want to talk about Sirius anymore, and if he was truthful with himself, he was glad that he wasn't going to Grimmauld Place. It would only serve to remind him that Sirius wasn't there anymore.  
  
"Hogwarts for now, but it's such an obvious place, we're going to need to look for a new one very soon." Said Tonks.  
  
"So, am I staying at the Burrow the whole summer?" Harry asked. He didn't mind staying at the Burrow for the whole summer. The house had always something fun for him to do.  
  
"Don't know yet." Said Moody. "Dumbledore said he would see you in two days."  
  
"Why?" Asked Harry in surprise.  
  
"Don't know, said he had things to tell you." Said Moody.  
  
"About time he did too." Mumbled Lupin.  
  
Harry looked at the others with surprise. Was there something that he didn't know? Harry asked himself. Yes there is, he thought. I don't know anything about my parents' life, their family, other than the Dursleys that is, and so many other things that he couldn't think about.  
  
Harry looked out the window and watched the city pass as they drove deeper into the countryside. The day looked calm and sunny, but he couldn't help but thinking that out there was somebody who could only wish him harm.  
  
It didn't take long for the car to make its way into the lane leading to the Burrow. Harry smiled at the sight of the familiar grounds.  
  
"We're here." Said Mr. Weasley with relief. He had been obviously preoccupied during their ride.  
  
Harry looked eagerly out the windows and grinned as he watched Mrs. Weasley, Ron and the twins stepping out the house waiting for their arrival.  
  
Harry heard Ron's "whoop!" as the car drove into the yard.  
  
Everybody inside the car scrambled around the seats trying to find all their personal belongings so not to leave them behind.  
  
The driver stepped out of his seat and ran to open the door.  
  
Moody stepped out first, then Mr. Weasley. Tonks followed him out and stepped out of the way for Lupin. Harry was the last to leave the car, and smiled as he watched Mrs. Weasley run to them. She hugged her husband tightly while she smiled at Moody and Tonks.  
  
"Say Thank you to Martin, Harry." Lupin said to Harry. "He was eager to be our driver today."  
  
Harry turned to look at the tall man holding open the door. "Thank you." He said with a smile. The man smiled back and bowed to him. Harry could've sworn that the man had tears in his eyes as he looked him over. But Harry wasn't sure as in that instant Mrs. Weasley was hugging him.  
  
"Oh Harry dear!" She exclaimed. "I'm so happy to have you with us."  
  
"Thank you, Mrs. Weasley." Harry managed to say.  
  
"Now, Molly. Leave Harry breathe." Teased Mr. Weasley as he led the group into the house.  
  
Harry turned to look back at the car. His trunks and Hegwig's cage had been unloaded and were ready to be taken to Ron's room, but the car was already pulling out of the yard.  
  
"Ron, help Harry with his things." Mrs. Weasley ordered her son.  
  
"Come Harry." Ron said to Harry as the others went into the house.  
  
They carried the trunk and cage directly to Ron's room. To Harry, it looked exactly as it had been the last time he had been in it.  
  
The walls were still covered with posters of Ron's favorite Quidditch team, the Chudley Cannons. The frog still croaked in the fish tank and Pig still twittered wildly around in his cage. And hanging on the wall, in place of honor, was Ron's new broom.  
  
A cot had been brought into the room and placed directly near the window. Ron dragged the trunk into the room and dumped it near the cot. Harry walked around the trunk and cot to place Hedwig's cage beside Pig's.  
  
"D' you want to eat?" Asked Ron. "Mum prepared a large meal."  
  
"Yeah. I suppose we should join the others." Harry said. "So, what has been happening around here?"  
  
"Nothing much. Mum and dad have been spending a lot of time out of the house, not that she has been too happy about it." Ron said.  
  
"Yeah, they mentioned they were meeting at Hogwarts for now." Harry said.  
  
Ron nodded. "Mum, didn't want to leave us alone, even though Fred and George were staying behind to keep an eye on us."  
  
"Didn't they join the Order? Last year they were eager to do so." Harry exclaimed.  
  
"They wanted to, but mum wouldn't let them, even after dad argued that they were over age and had left school." Ron whispered.  
  
"What did they do?" Harry asked. He couldn't imagine Fred and George staying behind when they clearly didn't want to.  
  
"There was a lot of arguments. Thought they would pull the same thing Percy did, but eventually mum got around them. Said they should be putting more attention to their store instead of the Order, that she wanted to be sure they would be there to take care of Ginny and me if something happened to her and dad." Ron replied.  
  
"And they agreed with that?" Harry sounded surprised.  
  
"Well, they accepted it. Especially since mum has stopped complaining that they left school without taking the N.E.W.T.s. But they're doing so good, and I think mum and dad are proud of them, even though they haven't said so." Ron smiled.  
  
Harry smiled in return. He was happy to know that his investment was paying off and Fred and George were doing so well.  
  
"Business has boomed these last two weeks. Lots of Hogwarts students stopped by to see their stock and they have continued with the mail orders as well. They are still trying to get merchandise out to those that were in the waiting list they compiled at Hogwarts, especially since they used most of their new creations on Umbridge." Ron continued.  
  
"Have you seen their store?" Harry was curious about the twins' premises at Diagon Alley and hoped to be able to visit it soon enough.  
  
Ron nodded with enthusiasm. "Have been helping them around the store lately. Ginny too. They have this large room in the back, they divided it into two. One they use for storage and the other one they call it their lab. They have put all these spells, shield and silencing charms, they use it for production they say. I think they use it to create their new products."  
  
"What do you do when you're there?" Harry asked.  
  
"Help in the store. Ginny takes care of the counter and I take care of the displays and stocking." Ron said excitedly. "They're paying me 25 Galleons a week, so I don't mind being there. And I think mum feels we are safer there and is happy to let us help with the store."  
  
"Do you think they would mind if I go with you the next time they open the store?" Harry wanted to see the premises, and he would help without pay, he didn't care for the money anyways, he just wanted to see the stores. It had been the first time he used his money to help somebody in such large scale and he was eager to see what they had done.  
  
"I'm sure they would want to show it to you, you gave them the money for it anyways." Ron said.  
  
Harry smiled as they walked into the kitchen. Everybody was there waiting for him.  
  
"All settled dear?" Mrs. Weasley asked as she placed platters filled with food into the table.  
  
Harry nodded as he looked around the room. How the Weasleys expected to get everybody in there, Harry couldn't understand. Only a couple of years ago, when they had as many people as they had in the room right now, they had taken their meal outside, but now, it seemed they had decided to stay inside.  
  
Fred and George were sitting beside Lupin, showing him prototypes of their latest products. Bill was sitting beside Lupin talking animatedly to Tonks and Ginny. Mr Weasley was sitting beside Moody who sat beside the twins. Moody was cleaning his magical eye in a glass of water placed before him. Three seats were empty, Ron and Harry sat, leaving the one next to Mr. Weasley empty for his wife.  
  
"Eat up dear, I'm sure you are famished." Mrs. Weasley said as she placed a barrel of butterbeer in the middle of the table.  
  
Everybody was serving themselves as they chatted.  
  
"Isn't Hermione coming to stay?" Harry asked as he noticed that she was not present.  
  
"In a couple of days. Mother wanted to take her to see some aunt." Ron said.  
  
"She didn't tell me that when she wrote last." Harry exclaimed. Hermione had tried to keep him updated to all the latest news during the last three weeks, since their return from Hogwarts. It seemed that she was trying not to commit the same mistake they had done the previous year.  
  
"Last minute thing. Told her you were coming and she said she would come, but then she said that her mum wanted her to go to visit this aunt." Ron said.  
  
Harry nodded his understanding and turned his attention to his food.  
  
"Stupid fool. Don't know what he thinks he's doing with such a thing." Harry heard Moody say to the Weasleys. "That's not going to placate the public, it's rather late for him to send a convoy to look for the giants. Hagrid said it was late to try to get the giants to join us."  
  
"Fudge is just trying to keep his job. Wants it to look as if he is doing something." Mr. Weasley said.  
  
"Won't do him any good. Even his close advisors have left him. Everybody knows his time is over." Moody said.  
  
Mrs. Weasley shook her head sadly. "Never thought to see the day when the Minister of Magic would be under investigation for close ties to You-Know- Who."  
  
"His own fault. The fool should've been careful of whom he chose as his friends." Moody grunted.  
  
"Umbridge's interview was the last straw." Mr. Weasley said. "People didn't like the idea of having her at Hogwarts and allowed to do as she wished with support from the Ministry himself."  
  
"Azkaban is to good for her." Mrs. Weasley exclaimed. She couldn't help but think of all the things the Minister's Senior Undersecretary had confessed to. Especially the confession to ordering the Dementor attack on Harry last summer.  
  
"Isn't Azkaban different now? I mean, with the Dementors joining Voldemort," Harry ignored the others' gasps, "Azkaban is not as well protected as it was before. Wouldn't it be easier for the prisoners to escape?"  
  
"A charm has been placed around the place. It affects people the same way the Dementor do, except for the darkness and coldness that inhabit the places where Dementors can be found. There's also an anti-apparation charm around it. There are no guards inside though, only boats circling the island." Mr. Weasley explained.  
  
"And that will keep the Death Eaters inside?" Harry asked.  
  
"We hope it will." Moody said.  
  
"At least they all know who the Death Eaters were." Ron said. "Malfoy and the others will not be able to walk around the Ministry in peace."  
  
"Or go to their own houses either." Said Mr. Weasley.  
  
Harry looked confused. "Why? Did the Ministry confiscate their houses?"  
  
"In a manner of speaking. Their vaults in Gringotts have been sealed and everybody living in them have been placed under house arrest. Anti- apparition charms have been placed around the houses and the Floo Network Office has been keeping an eye on their chimneys. Even their owls have been monitored." Moody said.  
  
"And charms have been placed around the grounds to make sure they can't leave the houses on foot or broom." Mr. Weasley added.  
  
"Bet old Draco isn't too happy." Ron sneered.  
  
"Now Ron, it's not his fault that his family is going through such hard times." Said Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"Not for his lack of trying, he was only to happy to lead that squad of Umbridge's. If he was older, you may be sure that he would've joined his father." Ron exclaimed.  
  
Harry nodded vigorously as he ate. He agreed with Ron, Draco Malfoy was sure to follow in his father's footsteps.  
  
"Well, that's something you don't have to worry about any longer." Said Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"What do you mean?" Asked Harry.  
  
"All of the Educational Decrees passed under the Hogwarts High Inquisitor have been repealed. How many where they in total?" Asked Mr. Weasley.  
  
"Seven in all." Answered Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"Does that mean that I can play Quidditch again?" Harry asked excitedly, surely they wouldn't keep him out of the team as it had been Professor Umbridge who had banned him from playing.  
  
"Don't see why not, but that is a decision for Minerva. She must review the punishment and see whether it will stand or not." Mrs. Weasley said.  
  
"Don't worry Harry, old McGonagall won't keep you from playing, she put you in it in the first place." Said Ron.  
  
Harry nodded apprehensively, Ron was right, he thought, there was nothing for him to worry about, Professor McGonagall wanted to keep the cup in her office and he was the one with the most experience in the team now that the others had left Hogwarts. That left only those who had replaced him and the twins when they were banned from playing Quidditch and Ron, who had taken the position that Wood had left two years ago.  
  
The meal ended soon after, Moody, Lupin and Tonks prepared to leave.  
  
Lupin took Harry aside while the others where saying their goodbyes. "Take care Harry, don't leave the house on your own. We'll return soon with Dumbledore. Don't unpack, I have the feeling you won't be staying here for long."  
  
"Will Dumbledore take me Hogwarts?" Asked Harry rather surprised. He didn't know how he felt about the idea of staying at Hogwarts on his own during the summer. He loved the school, but to spend the whole summer there on his own was not something that had crossed his mind.  
  
"I doubt it, just stay out of trouble, ok?" Lupin looked closely at Harry as if he was trying to read his mind.  
  
"All right. I'll stay here and not go anywhere on my own. But if Fred and George want to take me to their store, can I go?" Harry didn't want to think that he could be kept from going to Diagon Alley with the others.  
  
"Diagon Alley will be safe enough. You can go with them if the Weasleys say it's ok." Smiled Lupin.  
  
Harry sighed with relief.  
  
"I'll see you soon." Lupin said clapping Harry's back.  
  
"All right." Harry replied as he watched him walk back to the others. There had been no need for Lupin to tell him to stay as close to the house. He didn't want to meet Death Eaters, or Dementors while he was on his own. He didn't want to be in trouble again, especially after what had happened last summer. Even though it hadn't been his fault and he was only trying to protect himself and his cousin.  
  
Moody, Lupin and Tonks disapparated after saying their goodbyes.  
  
"Off to bed please, we all need to be up early tomorrow morning." Mrs. Weasley ordered.  
  
"Oh, mum. Only a few minutes more." Ginny asked. "I haven't even greeted Harry."  
  
"Well, do it now, but I want you all in your beds in fifteen minutes." Mrs. Weasley said as she started clearing the table.  
  
"Come Harry." Said Ginny as she pulled his sleeve and led him out of the kitchen. Harry looked back questioningly at Ron, who shrugged with confusion and followed them out.  
  
"What d'you want?" Harry asked as they reached the stairs.  
  
"I don't want anything, I just wanted to ask you something." Ginny said in an exasperated tone.  
  
"Well? Spit it out. You heard mum, she wants us in bed in fifteen minutes, and in case you have forgotten, we're supposed to go to Fred and George's tomorrow morning." Hissed Ron.  
  
"I have not forgotten, you lump. And I was not speaking to you." Ginny spat.  
  
"What did you want to ask Ginny?" Asked Harry in an effort to keep Ginny and Ron from fighting.  
  
"Have you heard from Neville?" Ginny asked.  
  
Harry's eyebrows flew upward in surprise. That was not a question he would've expected from her.  
  
"No, Neville and I have never exchanged letters in the summer. Why do you ask?"  
  
Ron was looking as his sister with surprise as well.  
  
Ginny shrugged. "Just asking, he was really affected by what happened at the end of term, that's all." She said.  
  
"We all were, Ginny." Ron exclaimed.  
  
"Well, yes, but we are all used to it. I mean, Harry seems to get into some sort of adventure every year and you and Hermione are always involved in some way. I was there in the Chambers and Luna, well, she really doesn't count, I don't think anything affects her. But Neville is different. He isn't exactly the sort to get into such kind of adventure, now is he? And fighting the people who harmed his parents so many years ago must have done something for him." Ginny said very quickly.  
  
"What do you want us to do? Do you want us to invite him along?" Ron asked.  
  
"No." Ginny glared at Ron. "I'm just saying that we should write to him. See how he is doing."  
  
"If it makes you feel any better, we'll write to him." Said Harry before Ron could say anything more.  
  
"Ok, that's all I'm asking." Ginny said and happily climbed up the stairs to her room.  
  
"What's with her? Why ask us to write to Neville, why couldn't she do it?" Ron grumbled as he and Harry made their way to Ron's room.  
  
Harry didn't answer, but he couldn't help thinking that Ginny was right. Neville had been the raw recruit in their little rescue team. Most of them had faced some sort of danger before except for Neville, and Luna (that he knew of). And he couldn't help but remember the last conversation he had with Dumbledore. Neville could've well been the Boy Who Lived, instead of him, but it was Voldemort who made the choice and Harry now carried the burden.  
  
They opened the door to find Minnie putting Harry's things away. The cot had been made, even Ron's bed, and their pajamas had been placed on top of their pillows. The room had been cleaned and organized. The books that had been lying on the floor when Harry first came in some hours later had been stacked on the shelves. The fish tank seemed cleaner, and even Pig's cage was gleaming.  
  
"Who is this?" Ron exclaimed.  
  
"Oh, this is Minnie. Minnie, this is my friend Ron." Harry said.  
  
Minnie stopped cleaning as she bowed to Ron. "Minnie is glad to meet Master Harry's friends." She squeaked.  
  
"Master Harry?" Ron asked Harry.  
  
"Well, yeah. She is my personal elf." Harry explained.  
  
"You know what Hermione will say about this, don't you." Ron laughed.  
  
"I know, she will throw that spew stuff on me." Mumbled Harry.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Harry woke early the next morning. The sun was shining brightly through the window and he could hear Fred and George getting ready in a room nearby.  
  
"Will you move, there are so many things we have to do!" Harry heard one of the twins say.  
  
"I know that you lout, but I can't find the plans for the optioculars." The other twin exclaimed.  
  
"What? If you lost it, I'll kill you."  
  
"Just stop snapping at me and help me look."  
  
Harry looked over at Ron and saw him rub the sleep off his eyes. "What are opticulars?"  
  
Ron shrugged. "Don't know, they just said it was a new product. We should get ready if we're going with them."  
  
Harry left his cot with alacrity. He dressed and hurried as Ron did the same in the other side of the room. Minutes later they were making their way to the kitchen. They could still hear the twins stumbling in their room as they continued their search.  
  
"Good morning boys." Mrs. Weasley greeted them.  
  
"Morning."  
  
"Good morning." They answered.  
  
Ginny was already sitting at the table. Toast, jam, eggs and bacon were placed around the table by Minnie who looked happy as she prepared the meal and levitated the plates to the table.  
  
"Harry, this elf says that she's yours." Mrs. Weasley said as she sat at the table watching Minnie serve them.  
  
"She is, she's his personal elf." Ron said as he sat at the table and started piling food on the plate placed before him.  
  
"Hermione is not going to like this." Ginny said as she chewed on some bacon.  
  
"I know, you don't have to tell me that. But it can't be helped. She belonged to my family and she seems happy, I don't want to throw her out, I don't want another Winky on my hands." Harry snapped.  
  
"Oh lord, you really don't. But Hermione will try to free her, you know that. Look at what she did with the ones at hogwarts. I'm surprised nobody mentioned that, not that they would've said anything with Umbridge there making a mess out of everything." Ron said.  
  
"Well, don't tell her but Dobby said that Gryffindor Tower wasn't being cleaned by the other elves, they were offended by her offerings and Dobby was doing all the cleaning in the tower and taking all the hats and socks she knitted." Harry confessed, he hadn't said anything about that conversation to Hermione, and didn't want her to know. He didn't think she would be happy to find out what had happened to her offerings.  
  
Ron laughed and almost chocked at hearing what had happened to Hermione's knitting. "I can understand why they were insulted, I would be too if I was presented with such misshapen pieces." He laughed. "We really must do something about her, Harry. She can't continue fighting for the freedom of beings who don't want their freedom in the first place. She will end up alienating Minnie here." Ron coughed.  
  
"I know. Lupin said the same thing. He said that Minnie would be offended as well as the others." Harry said.  
  
"The others?" Asked Ginny.  
  
Harry nodded as he swallowed. "Lupin said that my father's family has three personal elves that have served the Potters for generations, there are house elves as well, but because the personal elves are the ones that go with their master, those are the ones that are going to join me. Why do you think they brought me here? They wanted to be sure I was here in case the other elves apparated." Harry said.  
  
"See mum, you always wished to have an elf to help with the house." Ginny exclaimed.  
  
"Yes, but this is not our elf, it's Harry's, it will serve only him." Mrs. Weasley explained, but she was happy that Harry brought an elf, she enjoyed being served breakfast for a change.  
  
Minnie was happily humming as pots and plates hovered around her.  
  
Footsteps were heard in the stairs, clearly the twins were done looking for what they had lost.  
  
"You know what this means?" One of the twins asked as they entered the kitchen.  
  
"I know, we have to start from the beginning." Fred sighed. "But I thought I had left it by my bed."  
  
"Obviously, you didn't." George snapped.  
  
"Is something wrong boys?" Asked Mrs. Weasley, glaring at the twins.  
  
"Sorry mum, but this dunce lost the plans for one of our projects." George said.  
  
"Said I was sorry." Fred said.  
  
"Much good will that do us!" Exclaimed George.  
  
"If you two would clean up your rooms, you would not lose anything." Mrs. Weasleys said. "I'm sure that if you clean your room, you will find whatever you're looking for.  
  
Fred and George looked at each other with commiserating looks, it was clear to Harry that this was a discussion that happened all the time.  
  
"Where's dad?" Asked Ron.  
  
"Gone, he got a call to appear early to work." Mrs. Weasley said.  
  
The twins were looking askance at Minnie who promptly placed a loaded plate before them.  
  
"It's Harry's. We'll explain later." Whispered Ginny as she passed the basket of bread to them.  
  
The twins for once listened to reason and stayed quiet while their mother explained for their father's reason to working early.  
  
".The owl said that he was needed for a special investigation." Mrs. Weasley was saying.  
  
Harry listed attentively to Mrs. Weasley as he ate. Minnie kept his plate full as well as Ron's and the twins', Ginny was clearly done as she waited with a cup of tea in her hands. Mrs. Weasley was also done, with a cup of coffee before her.  
  
"Are we flooing to Diagon Alley?" Harry asked once everybody was done eating and started to get ready to leave for the day.  
  
"Yep. You lot can't apparate yet." Fred said.  
  
Harry silently groaned. Perhaps he shouldn't had eaten as much as he did. Floo Powder was not his favorite way to travel and he was afraid that he would lose his breakfast in the process.  
  
"Hurry up, we have to open the store on time." George urged them.  
  
Ron and Ginny were already waiting by the fireplace, Mrs. Weasley had lit the fire and was waiting with the pot of Floo Powder.  
  
"Now, remember to be careful." Mrs. Wesley was saying as they stood before the fire.  
  
"Don't worry mum, Diagon Alley is one of the most protected places these days." Fred said.  
  
"I know, but just promise you will be careful." Mrs. Weasley pleaded.  
  
"We will, we won't leave the Alley." Said Ron, placating his mother.  
  
Mrs. Weasley nodded, her eyes wet with unshed tears.  
  
"Minnie will stay here to help you with the cleaning Mrs. Weasley." Said Harry, trying to make her forget about her worries, he could still remember watching last year as she tried to get rid of the boggart that had been hiding in the parlor desk in Graumald Place.  
  
Mrs. Weasley nodded again and smiled. "Off you go then." She offered them the pot and watched as each took a pinch of Floo Powder and disappeared after calling "Diagon Alley" as each entered the fireplace.  
  
The last sight Harry saw as he started to spin in the grate, was Minnie carrying a cup of tea to Mrs. Weasley. He remembered Ron once saying that his mother always made tea when somebody was upset. He was glad that now there was somebody there to make tea for her.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
The store in which they entered was full of color and creative displays. Harry could see a poster of dragon fireworks and spinning wheels in a window. As was common in the Wizarding World, the subjects of the poster moved, underneath it were boxes in assorted sizes of Weasley's Wildfire Whiz-Bangs. In the walls he could see a large collection of candies, some he recognized as Skiving Snackboxes, Ton-Tongue Toffees, Canary Creams and others he had seen Fred and George try out during their last two years at Hogwarts. There were buckets full of fake wands. Boxes of Portable Swamp Kits piled in the middle of the room, surrounded by a swamp that covered half of the store. It was smaller than the one they created as their last trick on Umbridge before they left. Small boats were tied to small poles at each side of the swamp. There were two bridges across it, touching each wall where bags of powder of different colors were hanged.  
  
"Wow." Harry whispered as he looked around.  
  
"What do you think? Neat, eh?" Said George as he looked around proudly.  
  
"Couldn't've done it without you, though, mate." Said Fred as he clapped him on his shoulder.  
  
"It looks great. The swamp was a nice touch." Harry smiled.  
  
"Yes, kinda like a promotion idea. People just come in to look at it and end up buying something, it's working out fine so far. It's one of our best-sellers." George said proudly.  
  
"Was, Lee's idea, so the credit goes to him." Smiled Fred.  
  
"So, Lee comes and visit often?" Harry asked as he followed them to a small office behind the counter.  
  
There was a large desk at one end of the office, behind it were three file cabinets clearly labeled, "Accounting, Product Information, and Sales Projections," there were two chairs in front of the desk, and shelves full of papers and books surrounded two of the walls. A coat hanger stood in one corner and another door was found in the wall adjacent to the door they had come through.  
  
"Lee comes in every day. He works for us now. He's our Promotion agent. Great ideas for promotions, he has. We've been doing really well." Said George as he put his jacket on the coat hanger.  
  
Fred saw Harry notice the other door. "It leads to the other two rooms in the premises, the storage room and our lab." He explained.  
  
Harry nodded, and smiled. "You're quite the entrepreneurs then."  
  
"And it's all thanks to you. Here, you should wear this." George said as he presented a sports jacket to Harry. It was red with "Harry" embroidered in golden thread. In the back were the words "Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes" flashing in different colors that changed constantly. He noticed that Ginny and Ron were wearing one too.  
  
"It's our uniform." Ron said.  
  
"Don't see why you couldn't choose another color, I look awful in red." Ginny complained.  
  
"What do you want me to do?" Asked Harry as he put on his jacket.  
  
"You can help Ron. The Canary Creams and Skiving Snackboxes need to be stocked up and if people want to cross the swamp by the boats instead of the bridges, you two need to row them across." George said as he put on a red lab coat.  
  
Fred was doing the same after taking some papers from the shelves. "We're going to be in the lab, so unless there's an emergency, you lot are in charge." He said.  
  
"The door is open to the public in an hour, so don't open it before then unless it's Lee. You can stock until then. It's easier when there are no people around and about." George said.  
  
"Have fun." Said Fred as he pulled his twin through the door leading to the inner rooms.  
  
"I'll prepare the register and clean the counter." Ginny said as she took some small boxes from behind the door and stepped behind the counter.  
  
"Come, let's bring out the boxes we'll need." Ron said and led him through the door the twins had crossed some minutes before.  
  
There was a narrow corridor, two doors across them. Ron pushed open the door at the right. It was full of boxes. Boxes of all sizes were stacked around the room. There was an empty space through the middle and through the end was another door. This door was wide and Harry could see through the small windows at the top that led into the store.  
  
"Here, we have to use these carts because we can't use magic yet." Ron said with disgust as he pushed a large cart to Harry. "Can't wait until we can. We'll just have to do it the hard way for now."  
  
Harry didn't say anything, he was just happy to be of help.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
It was a busy day for Harry. Number ninety-three in Diagon Alley seemed to be one of the most popular stops for shoppers, especially for young wizards and witches, some of whom had seen these products being used to great effect in Hogwarts.  
  
Several of his classmates visited that day, and Harry didn't mind rowing people across the swamp, which was clearly the store's main attraction. However, as the day passed, he started to notice that he had become an attraction of sorts, as people peered around the entrance and windows to take a look at him, while those who were in the store kept trying to get his attention. He actually heard some people say: "Imagine that, Harry Potter helping us with our shopping, a tale for our grandchildren, that is." "I can't believe it, Harry Potter rowed our boat!" He didn't mind it at first, he was used to that kind of attention, but after a while, it began to pale.  
  
"I'll ask Fred and George to cover for us while we take a lunch break." Said Ron after Harry rowed his fifth consecutive group across the swamp.  
  
"Yeah, I need a break." Harry sighed.  
  
Ron nodded and whispered in Ginny's ear before disappearing through the door behind the counter. He returned a few moments later with Lee, Fred and George, all three wearing the red jackets similar to Harry's.  
  
"Harry, give me your jacket." Said Ginny as she took Ron's and her own. She put them down in a box behind the counter and stepped out.  
  
"Have a nice lunch." The others said and the young trio walked out of the store while dozens of eyes followed them out.  
  
"Phew! I hate it when they do that." Harry said as Ginny and Ron led him through the Alley to a small restaurant nearby.  
  
"I know you do." Ginny said with a teasing smile "But look at it this way, today seems to be the best selling day, this summer."  
  
Harry grinned. That certainly seemed to be true. He could've sworn he talked to more than fifty people, and the day had barely begun.  
  
They had a relatively peaceful meal, even though some people seemed to have followed Harry from the store and whispered behind their hands and peered around the windows to have a look at him.  
  
"Do they have to do that?" Ron exclaimed as he noticed a young witch peer from one of the potted plants.  
  
"You're the one that always tells me not to let them bother me." Laughed Harry.  
  
"I know, but that's when I'm not with you." Ron snapped and called one of the waiters. "Do you have a more private table? I don't know about you, but I don't like people getting their noses where they shouldn't."  
  
The waiter flushed in embarrassment as at that precise moment a girl from the kitchen could be heard screaming "I saw him! I saw him! He is truly here!"  
  
"Yes, Sir. I'll see what I can do." The waiter said and walked purposely to the kitchen door.  
  
Ginny giggled while Harry and Ron exchanged long, suffering looks.  
  
The waiter returned a few moments later, followed with two other waiters. "If you follow me sirs, ma'am, we have prepared something for you." The lead waiter said.  
  
Harry, Ron and Ginny promptly stood up and followed him to a shadowed corner, curtains had been placed around it and several candles lit to make it into a cozy private table. The two other waiters followed with trays carrying the plates that had been served.  
  
"Here you go, I hope you enjoy the rest of your meal." The waiter said after the trio had sat and their plates had been placed before them. "Please call if you want anything more." He bowed and led the other two waiters back to the kitchen."  
  
"Rather stuffy, wasn't he?" Ron said as the curtains closed around them.  
  
Ginny giggled again. "I've never had my own private table before."  
  
"They did go into a lot of trouble to accommodate us, didn't they?" Replied Harry as he looked around.  
  
"Next time, let's go to the Leaky Cauldron." Grumbled Ron.  
  
"Oh, don't be so fussy about it Ron. The poor man was feeling so bad." Ginny chocked as she tried to keep from giggling.  
  
"I suppose." Ron said as he continued with his interrupted meal.  
  
"You don't see Harry complaining, why do you?" Ginny asked.  
  
"Harry is too good, somebody had to do it. I was afraid one of that lot would come and ask for his autograph, I know I saw some with Harry's interview in the Quibbler in their hands." Ron responded.  
  
Harry groaned. "I'm glad to had us change tables then. I don't think I want people coming to me for autographs."  
  
"Let's just finish our meal, and return to the store." Ginny said.  
  
The meal ended soon after. The restaurant manager saw them before they left and treated them to the meal and added some ices as a bonus.  
  
"Never had a free meal before." Ron said in awe.  
  
"Bet he was feeling embarrassed by what happened." Ginny said a little thoughtful.  
  
"Maybe." Harry sighed as they walked back to the twins' store.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
The rest of the afternoon was as busy as it had been before they left for lunch. By the time the store was closed for the day, the section for the sweets had been cleared, half of the displayed Weasley's Wildfire Whiz- Bangs and the Portable Swamps were gone. And two buckets of fake wands were empty.  
  
"A good day." Exclaimed Lee as he counted the day's profit with Ginny.  
  
"I should say." Fred said proudly as he pulled the window curtains. There were still people out trying to look around the displays to Harry.  
  
"Should've asked Harry to come and help before." George laughed.  
  
"Maybe we should make a product in your honor Harry. As a thank you for your investment." Fred said.  
  
"That's not necessary." Harry blushed.  
  
"Well, maybe not that, but we do owe you our thanks." George said.  
  
"I'm sure you'll think of something." Harry murmured.  
  
"I'm so tired, I can't believe how many boxes we had to stock today." Ron complained as he moved his arms around trying to stretch his back.  
  
"Don't worry little Ronnyckins, we'll be home soon." Fred called as he locked the other rooms.  
  
"Don't call me that." Ron shouted.  
  
"Will you two stop it?" Called Lee. "The bag is ready to be deposited."  
  
"All right. Let's go then." George said.  
  
Everybody walked out of the store and waited a minute while Fred locked it. Harry looked questioningly at Ron.  
  
"We deposit the day's profit into Gringotts before we floo back home." Ron whispered as the group started walking down the alley to the large white building looming over them.  
  
Ron, Ginny and Harry waited in the lobby as Fred, George and Lee followed one of the goblins into the inner caves to their vault.  
  
The lobby seemed relatively empty. There seemed to be only managers and owners of the different stores in Diagon Alley who were present at this time.  
  
It was about fifteen minutes later when Fred, George and Lee were back.  
  
"Come on, you lot. Mum is going to kill us if we take much longer." George said.  
  
They walked down to the Leaky Cauldron, where they waved goodbye to Tom, the barkeep, before stepping into the lit fire and floo to the Burrow. Only Lee stayed behind to have a drink before flooing home.  
  
"We're home mum." Called Ron as soon as they stepped into the kitchen.  
  
It was empty. Except for Minnie who was happily standing on a chair before the stove.  
  
"Hello Minnie, where's Mrs. Weasley." Harry asked as the others went around the main rooms looking for their mother.  
  
"Minnie doesn't know, Master Harry. Mrs. Weasley didn't tell Minnie where she was going." The elf piped as platters loaded with food levitated gently to the table.  
  
"Must be at Hogwarts." Fred said as they sat around the table.  
  
There were popping sounds as soon as he said it.  
  
"Fred, George, Harry, Ginny!" They heard people call in the sitting room.  
  
"Kitchen!" Ginny called back.  
  
Mrs. Weasley quickly walked into the kitchen. "I'm sorry I wasn't here dears, so many things to do." She panted as she started going around the kitchen pulling pots and pans.  
  
"Mum. Mum!" Ron called.  
  
"Yes dear?" Mrs. Weasley stopped with a pan in her hand looking confusedly at Ron.  
  
"Minnie already made dinner, mum. Just come and sit, she prepared your favorite tea." Ron said gently.  
  
"Oh!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed in confusion as she noticed the loaded platters in the middle of the table and the steaming pot in front of her usual place. "Thank you. I think." She sighed.  
  
Lupin and Tonks had followed Mrs. Weasley into the kitchen.  
  
"How was your day, Harry?" Asked Lupin as he sat beside Harry.  
  
"Fine. We went to Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes." Harry replied as he passed him a platter of potatoes.  
  
"Did you like it?" Asked Lupin.  
  
Harry nodded as he chewed on.  
  
"Best day we had. Thanks to Harry." George said.  
  
"Indeed. What did you do to make it so successful?" Lupin asked smiling down at Harry.  
  
Harry rolled his eyes while Ginny tried to stifle her giggles.  
  
"Lots of people went in just to look at Harry, of course they ended up buying something or other while they tried to have a good look at him." Ron said.  
  
"Don't worry dear, it will pass." Mrs. Weasley said.  
  
Harry looked doubtful, after all, he thought, it has been almost fifteen years since his name went down in history and people are still curious.  
  
"One would've thought that after all this time, they would've forgotten." Harry mumbled.  
  
"The thing is that your name has been in the papers so often in the last two years, people have made you into some sort of celebrity." Tonks said.  
  
The rest of the dinner passed in silence, everybody seemed to be tired after a long day. Mr. Weasley finally made an appearance when the youngsters were getting ready to get to bed.  
  
After saying good night, Harry and Ron fell asleep, exhausted after a good day at work. The last thing Harry saw was Minnie moving quietly around the room putting their clothes away.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
The sun shone brightly through the window when Harry awoke the next morning. He yawned and rubbed the sleep from his eyes before he noticed Ron's empty bed. Minnie wasn't in the room either, he was sure that she was busy preparing breakfast for him.  
  
Harry dressed hurriedly and made his way down to the kitchen, expecting to see Ron and the others breaking their fast before leaving for the store.  
  
He was surprised to find only Mrs. Weasley and Minnie waiting for him.  
  
"Where are Ron and the others?" He asked as he sat at the table and waited while Minnie placed a plate before him.  
  
"They left a few moments ago." Mrs. Weasley. "I told them to let you sleep, Dumbledore will be coming to speak with you today."  
  
Harry had forgotten that Dumbledore was visiting that day and looked down at Minnie, whose ears had dropped forlornly beside her face and looked worried about the thought of Dumbledore's visit.  
  
"I had forgotten." Harry murmured.  
  
"Don't worry dear. I don't know when he will come, but you can do whatever you want as long as you don't leave the house." Mrs. Weasley said.  
  
Harry nodded and turned his attention to his food, there was no point in trying to guess what Dumbledore had to tell him, as he was bound to far off from the real purpose.  
  
Mrs. Weasley worked around the house, helped by Minnie, while Harry spent the day in Ron's room. There was nothing really that he could do. He couldn't fly on his Firebolt, as that meant leaving the house and he wasn't allowed to do that. He didn't want to take out his school notes from the previous year, Hermione was the only one he knew of that did that during the summer. And he certainly didn't want to do any cleaning around the house.  
  
He lay on his bed and watched the Quidditch players in Ron's posters fly around from poster to poster and play a one sided game of Quidditch.  
  
He had lost track of time when somebody knocked on the door.  
  
"Come in." Harry called without looking. He expected Mrs. Weasley had sent Minnie to call him for their midday meal.  
  
"Mrs. Weasley said you were here." He heard a familiar voice say.  
  
Harry turned to the door and smiled at the bushy haired girl standing by the door. "Hello Hermione."  
  
"What is this I hear that you have a house elf. Honestly Harry, you're a member of S.P.E.W. you should know better than be part of the slavery of fellow magical creatures." Hermione began.  
  
Harry groaned with exasperation. He wished that Ron had woken him and had gone to Diagon Alley with them. "Don't start Hermione, and don't you dare knit any clothes for her, she will become another Winky and I don't want that to happen."  
  
Hermione's "Humph!" was full of anger as she crossed the room and sat down in Ron's bed. "I would've thought that after helping Dobby to freedom, you would be more open-minded about the injustice of elf slavery." She exclaimed.  
  
"I've come to believe that Dobbie is one of a kind. Face it Hermione, you cannot set free a race of magical creatures that don't want to be set free. I freed Dobby because that's what he wanted, not because it was something that I wanted. You should've learned that from the way the other elves we've met so far act." Harry replied.  
  
"But it's wrong. Slavery takes the right of away from these magical creatures who could be doing quite well on their own if wizardkind would only allow it." Hermione cried.  
  
"Hermione, what do you think they would do on their own?" Harry asked with exasperation. "The only thing they're happy doing is serving humans. Even Dobby wants only to do that, it didn't matter that he was free to do other things, that's what he wanted to do and that's what he does. Look at Winky, don't try to downplay Winky's depression, because that's what it is. Dobby says that she is still as bad as the last time we saw her and the other elves are disgusted and keep away from her. Really Hermione, the ones you should be helping are those who are treated savagely by their masters, maybe that way you can keep a house elf from becoming another Kreacher."  
  
Hermione had her arms crossed, it was obvious to Harry that she didn't want to accept what he had said about the nature of elves. But it was also obvious that she couldn't ignore it.  
  
"All right, fine. I'll leave your elves alone. I, at least, am trying to do something about the oppressive relationship between wizardkind and elves." She exclaimed and stormed out of the room.  
  
Harry sighed in exasperation. He was expecting a different reception from Hermione, be he supposed he should've expected her to see only Minnie's presence and nothing else.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
It was late in the afternoon when he saw Hermione again. Ron and Ginny returned early from Diagon Alley and had greeted Hermione excitedly until Minnie's presence was discussed and Hermione and Ron fell into one of their usual S.P.E.W. arguments.  
  
Harry and Ron, as kindred spirits, kept to themselves in Ron's room until it was time for dinner.  
  
"Honestly, she is worse than ever." Ron exclaimed the moment he had entered his room after his argument with Hermione.  
  
"Did she argued about that spew stuff with you too?" Harry asked guessing the reason for his friend's bad humor.  
  
Ron nodded abruptly. "Can you believe her? The way she talks people will think that you're beating your elf."  
  
"As long as it doesn't appear on the Prophet." Harry murmured.  
  
"Why doesn't she see that elves want to serve their masters? It's not like we go hunting for them and take them violently from their homeland. They are born in the houses they serve, I may not know everything there is to know about elf history, I'm sure that she could find it in some book or another, but I do know that elves have been part of magical history for ages. I'm sure that even the Hogwarts founders had elves in their homes." Ron argued.  
  
"I'm sure you're right, mate. But she won't listen to anything we say on the matter. She is entrenched in her views and doesn't want to see anything else." Harry said.  
  
Ron groaned and mumbled to himself. Harry knew that he was still angry at Hermione and for the moment it was safer to stay in the room than going downstairs and meet with the others. Especially with Hermione.  
  
"So how was the day at the store?" Harry asked in an effort to take their mind from their latest argument with Hermione.  
  
"Same as yesterday, but it started to slow down by noon. I think it was clear that you weren't there and only those with real need of buying something returned from the store. All in all, it was a good day." Ron said with a shrug.  
  
"How come you and Ginny came home early?" Harry asked looked curiously at his friend as Ron paced around the room.  
  
"Mum said we should come early today." Ron said. "Did Dumbledore come while we were away?"  
  
"Nope. Perhaps he is waiting until dinner." Harry shrugged.  
  
"Maybe. What do you reckon he wants to talk to you about?" Ron asked with curiosity.  
  
"Dunno." Harry replied.  
  
Ron was about to ask something else when they heard Mrs. Weasley's voice calling for them. "Harry! Ron! Come down please."  
  
"Come, we might as well see what she wants." Ron said.  
  
Ron and Harry made their way down to the kitchen. They could hear Hermione and Ginny talking as well as others.  
  
Ron and Harry walked into the kitchen to find Tonks, Lupin, Moody and Professor Dumbledore waiting for them with the others.  
  
"Hello Harry, please sit down." Dumbledore urged him motioning to the nearest chair.  
  
Harry sat in the chair Dumbledore had pointed to and noticed Mrs. Weasley ushering the others out of the kitchen. The only one remaining, besides Harry and Dumbledore, was Minnie, who stood nervously behind Harry's chair.  
  
Dumbledore smiled at the sight of the small elf. "Don't worry Minnie, I'm not here to take you away from Harry."  
  
Minnie brightened considerably at this news.  
  
Dumbledore then turned to look at Harry. His eyes seemed to dim with sadness. "I'm sorry Harry, it seems that I must spend my time explaining myself to you." Dumbledore began. "You must understand that what I have to tell you was kept from you for your own good. I know that I keep telling you this, and in my old age I have made mistakes, keeping things from you. But unlike my previous secret, this involved others, and it wasn't just you whom I tried to keep safe but other's whose life depend on your safety. Now, don't speak." Dumbledore said when Harry was about to ask something. "Just let me continue. I'll answer your questions after I'm done." He waited until Harry nodded his consent.  
  
"You have always been curious about your family, especially your father's, and so far there has been so little disclosed to you." Dumbledore continued. "That's because your story begins with his. Your father's family has always been among the wealthiest families in the wizarding world. Your father and grandfather were well known in our world, although not in the same way you are. Both your grandfather and father worked endlessly to keep the Ministry from falling under Voldemort's terror, and both lost their lives under his hand. The Potters have always been known for their courage and sense of righteousness and unity. The family motto "Uniti venciamo, uniti moriamo" "Together we conquer, together we die" is one of the most known in our world and all of them have served the Ministry under one capacity or another. It is for this that all the Potters have been in Gryffindor House since the first Potter attended Hogwarts when it was first opened. They have all been intelligent men and women, and they have chosen their mates wisely, and in the process their fortunes have increased exponentially. By the time your father took after your grandfather, the Potters were owners of several pieces of land as well as material wealth. Many people have depended on them for centuries, Harry. After your parents' death, I knew that I had to keep you safe. You know my reasons for choosing your aunt's house. It was only for that one reason that you went to them and not to your father's house. You were never destitute, Harry, awaiting for you is more wealth that you could ever imagine. Gryffindor Manor has been in your family for centuries, is your family seat, and the house in which your ancestors have lived since it was first erected. In fact, you were born in the Manor, and it was in the Manor grounds that your parents made their wedding vows. I chose not to disclose the existence of the Manor before, because I thought it was for the best, you were too young to understand the meaning of having such wealth, you were too young to shoulder the responsibilities that come with it. Even your father didn't understand what it meant to step into his father's shoes, and he had been trained for it since his birth, but he was only two years older than you are now. And I thought that perhaps it would be best to wait for your majority to learn of your inheritance." Dumbledore said.  
  
Harry didn't know what to feel. He was angry that so many things had been kept from him all his life. First by his aunt and uncle, who had kept the truth about himself and his parents' death from him. If it hadn't been for Hagrid's mission to give him his letter, he would have been kept in the dark. But Dumbledore had been in charge of him since the beginning and had kept so many things from him. He couldn't help but think that if Dumbledore hadn't kept the truth about the prophecy, Sirius would still be alive. But there was one thing that hurt most of all. And that was the knowledge of his inheritance. He was kept from knowing his family history, but most important, he was kept from being part of his father's world.  
  
Dumbledore looked worriedly at Harry. But Harry kept still, trying to keep from exploding in anger as he wished to do. It wouldn't do any good anyways, an inner voice said, what is done is done and what is important now is know what must be done now.  
  
"How is it that the other elves have not appeared?" Harry asked softly. "Professor Lupin said that there were more personal elves, and the others would join Minnie when they sensed that she had found me."  
  
Dumbledore sighed softly, Harry didn't know if it was with relief or in thought.  
  
"I told them to stay at the Manor, that you would be joining them soon." Dumbledore said.  
  
Harry looked abruptly at Dumbledore. He had kept his sight on his lap that whole time Dumbledore had spoken. Now he looked directly into the old Headmaster's face. "Am I going to the Manor?" He asked breathlessly.  
  
"I see no reason to keep you away from it. Perhaps it was best that Minnie broke through the spell. It is time for you to know about your legacy." Dumbledore said.  
  
"When will I go?" Harry asked excitedly. He forgot about his anger toward Dumbledore, it didn't matter anymore, he was going to see the place where his father's family had lived for centuries, that was the most important thing to him.  
  
"I will make the arrangements needed for your stay." Dumbledore said. "Tomorrow at noon, a car will be waiting for you. The Weasleys and Miss Granger will be going with you of course, I would prefer if you stay under their care. Gryffindor Manor has undergone several safety spells and charms to keep its people safe but that doesn't mean that it is completely safe. We had thought the same fifteen years ago, and we were proven wrong."  
  
"Does this mean I don't have to return to the Dursleys?" Harry asked with happiness.  
  
"You'll need to return to Privet Drive only at the beginning of the summer, while preparations for your safety are made. But the rest of your holidays you may stay in the Manor." Dumbledore smiled.  
  
Harry smiled back. For the first time in his life, there was a place for him to call home.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
A/N: There you are, a nice long chapter ready for you. I hope all of you have enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Next chapter, Gryffindor Manor, will soon be ready, I hope. Thank you all for reviewing, those of you who had been constant readers from the beginning as well as those of you who had recently discovered this story. I hope you have all enjoyed it so far and that you continue to do so in the future. Don't forget to review. 


	51. Sixth Year Chapter 3

A/N: Thank you all for reviewing I'm glad that so many of you have enjoyed the story so far. I'll address your questions at the end of the chapter. Here is Chapter 3 and I hope you've enjoyed it as much as my other readers have.  
  
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Disclaimer: I own nothing from the world of HP, it all belongs to the fabulous JK Rowling.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Chapter 3 ~ Gryffindor Manor  
  
Harry went to bed early, full of excitement. He couldn't wait to leave the Burrow the next day and see for the first time the home that had once been his parents'.  
  
Dumbledore had stayed in the kitchen to explain how things stood to the others. He looked forward to spending his birthday, which was three days away, at the Manor.  
  
He fell asleep with visions of a welcoming house. He didn't care if was big or small, the only thing he cared about was the fact that it was his.  
  
Harry awoke earlier than anybody else. The sun's rays were beginning to peek in the horizon, only Minnie seemed to be the only other being stirring at that hour.  
  
"Minnie." Hissed Harry as he notice the small elf cleaning the water in the fish tank where a large frog sat atop a big rock.  
  
"Yes, Master Harry?" Minnie hopped eagerly toward Harry.  
  
"Are all my things, packed? I forgot to do it last night." Harry whispered, he didn't want to wake Ron up.  
  
"Minnie did it, Master Harry." The elf piped happily.  
  
"Good. Thank you Minnie. How long do we have to wait, do you think?" Harry looked out the open window, it was clear that they wouldn't be leaving any time soon.  
  
"Minnie heard Professor Dumbledore say the car arrives at noon, Master Harry." Minnie replied as she started to straighten the sheets on Harry's bed.  
  
Harry was standing by the window looking down at the backyard, where he could see Crookshanks run after the gnomes. He knew that he should return to bed, there was no reason for him to stay up, but he was too excited he knew that he wasn't going to be able to fall asleep once more. He wished he could go outside and run a lap in the backyard, it would serve as a way to get rid of his anxiety. But he had orders to stay inside and not to leave the house on his own. He was sure that the fact that everybody was sleeping inside wouldn't serve as an excuse if he stepped out and he didn't want to get into trouble, especially on this day when he was leaving for his new home.  
  
He heard Ron stirring in his bed.  
  
"What time is it?" Ron mumbled as he tried to keep a yawn from escaping.  
  
"Is still early." Harry said.  
  
Ron groaned and lay back down on the bed. "Why you up?"  
  
"Couldn't sleep any longer." Replied Harry.  
  
"Hmmm."  
  
"Go back to sleep, there still a few hours of sleep to go." Harry said.  
  
"Uh-huh." Yawned Ron.  
  
Harry turned back to look out the window, he was sure that Ron was fast asleep. He stood by the window watching the sun getting higher and higher on the horizon.  
  
He didn't know how long he stayed in front of the window, but at some time he heard somebody climbing down the stairs down to the kitchen. The sun was shining brightly upon the land and the golden rays streamed through the open window lighting up the room.  
  
Harry finally moved from the window, his bed had been straightened and his trunk was set by the door waiting to be moved later. Minnie was no longer in the room. He was sure that she was already in the kitchen preparing breakfast for them.  
  
He walked up to the trunk and opened it to search for some clothes. Minnie had put everything in order and Harry was sure that she had also cleaned all his things. He dressed hurriedly and stuffed his pajamas in his trunk.  
  
Ron was stirring again. "What's happening?" He mumbled as he opened his eyes slowly and looked around the room in sleepy confusion.  
  
"I'm going down to breakfast." Said Harry.  
  
"Right." Ron groaned as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.  
  
Harry hurried down the stairs, he could hear voices in the kitchen, and the smells of food drifted up to him.  
  
"Good morning." He exclaimed as he entered the kitchen.  
  
"Good morning."  
  
"Good morning Harry!" Mr. Weasley and Mrs. Weasley greeted him.  
  
"Slept well?" Asked Mr. Weasley smiling down at the eager expression that graced Harry's countenance.  
  
"Yes, thank you." Harry replied and sat down at the table.  
  
Minnie promptly served him a plate and hopped back to the stove to prepare more food.  
  
"Excited about today?" Asked Mr. Weasley.  
  
"Yes, very." Harry smiled looking up at him.  
  
"I'm sure you'll like the Manor, I've heard that it is one of the most productive estates in England." Said Mr. Weasley.  
  
Harry looked at Mr. Weasley with surprise. "How do you know?"  
  
"Somebody mentioned it." Mr. Weasley said thoughtfully. "Can't remember now who was it, but I believe you can find information about it in the Ministry's library."  
  
"Is it very big?" Harry asked curiously. Now that he knew that it belonged to him, he was curious about it.  
  
"I'm not sure, I've heard that it is. Can't tell you if it's true. You should ask Remus, he is bound to know more about it than I do." Mr. Weasley exclaimed.  
  
Harry nodded excitedly, how had he forgotten about Professor Lupin? He had been one of his father's best friends, he must have been in the Manor at some time. Mr. Weasley was right, Professor Lupin was the only one he knew who could tell him about Gryffindor Manor. He wondered if he should send Hedwig to Professor Lupin, asking for him to come this morning. Harry wasn't sure if he would be among those who would accompany him to the Manor and he didn't want to wait to know more about his father's home.  
  
No sooner had he decided to send Hedwig that a pop was heard in the sitting room and Lupin's voice had drifted back to them. "Hello!"  
  
"In here Remus." Mrs. Weasley called back.  
  
Remus Lupin walked into the Weasley's kitchen, with a bright smile on his face. "Good morning. It seems that it's going to be a good day."  
  
He was clearly in a good mood that morning, Harry thought.  
  
"Good morning." The Weasleys answered.  
  
"Good morning, Professor. I wonder if I could speak to you for a moment." Harry said.  
  
"Of course, if you wish." Lupin said a little surprised. He sat beside Harry and Minnie was soon at his side with a plate in her hands. "Thank you Minnie. How can I help you, Harry?"  
  
Harry looked nervously at his former professor. Now that he was at his side, he didn't know how to begin. "Hmmm"  
  
Lupin looked questioningly at him. "Something on your mind, Harry?"  
  
"Well. I wondered Professor, if.if you could tell me about he Manor." Harry finally said.  
  
Lupin smiled at Harry and turned to look out the window, with a dreamy look in his eyes. "It is a wonderful place Harry, I'm sure you'll love it. Your father did. He loved the land, he loved the people, he loved everything about it." He said after a moment in thought.  
  
"Is it big?" Harry asked eagerly.  
  
"The house itself is very large, Harry. A large central area holds all the public rooms, there are two wings at each end, one holds the family quarters while the other one holds the guest rooms. There are fifty bedrooms total, twenty of which are in the private wing. The central block holds the entrance hall, which leads to the book room at one side and the sitting room and dining room at the other, a large staircase leads up to the second floor. A dome is centered above the hall. There is a gallery around the dome, looking down at the hall. At the landing above the stairs are two large doors, they open into the ballroom." Lupin said, thinking dreamily about his friend's house.  
  
Harry listened attentively, trying to picture the house as Lupin described it.  
  
"That is a new thing." Lupin said abruptly. "It was the last change James approved before you had to go into hiding. There was nothing there before, only two corridors at each end of the gallery leading to the wings. The ballroom used to be beside the dinning room, two large doors used to lead into it. The kitchens were behind the stairs, there was not entrance into them of course, only a small corridor between the ballroom and the kitchens led to the dinning room, I think there was also a narrow door into the entrance hall."  
  
"Why did he change the ballroom above the staircase?" Harry asked with curiosity.  
  
Lupin looked thoughtful at this question, whether considering what to say. Finally, with a sigh, he answered. "There was a fire that began in the nursery early in the summer of that year. The family rooms suffered greatly and the ballroom ceiling was scorched. Your father then decided to move the ballroom into its present position. The move made the ballroom and the dinning room larger than they were before. A small conservatory was built into the remaining space that had been the ballroom." Lupin explained.  
  
Harry was silent, Lupin had not said what had caused the fire, but he had a feeling that Voldemort was behind it. Especially since the fire had begun in the nursery, there was only one person who would occupy the nursery, Harry.  
  
Lupin sighed sadly before continuing. "The grounds are extensive. There are kitchen gardens and green houses behind the house, on the west side of the estate is a lake. Not as big as Hogwarts, but it is large enough, there is a small island in the middle, your grandfather built a folly in it, in the greek, classical style. Columns all around holding up a dome. There are benches and sofas inside. Between the public rooms and the lake are several gardens, even a couple of mazes. On the east side is a topiary, it leads into a some enclosed gardens, but the doors connecting them are always open. Farther east is a vast orchard. You'll like what it's in the middle of it." Lupin smiled and looked mischievously at Harry.  
  
"What is it?" Asked Harry, he liked what he heard so far, he couldn't wait to see it all.  
  
"You'll see, I think I'll leave it for you to find." Laughed Lupin.  
  
"What about the neighbors?" Harry asked.  
  
"Hmmm.Not many bordering the estate, that's what makes it a little isolated, but there is the village a few miles away." Lupin said.  
  
"Was it there that my parents married? Professor Dumbledore said that it was at the Manor that they said their vows." Harry said.  
  
"Not in the village. There's a small chapel in the estate about a mile from the Manor near the surrounding woods. The Dower House is about a mile from it." Lupin said.  
  
"The Dower House?" Harry asked in confusion.  
  
"It's a small house in the grounds, a little farther from the Manor, to make it more private. Your grandmothers lived there after Lily and James married. It's the custom if the mother survives the father of the heir of the house." Lupin explained.  
  
"When did they die?" softly, Harry asked. He assumed that they were dead, as he couldn't imagine Dumbledore leaving him with Aunt Petunia if any of his grandparents had been alive at the time.  
  
Lupin looked sadly down at Harry. "They died in the fire." He said softly.  
  
Harry looked down at his plate. It was empty, he had eaten without notice as he listened to Lupin describe the Manor.  
  
"Wow, that's smells great!" Ron's voice cut through the silence.  
  
"Sit down Ron!" Mrs. Weasley said as they heard other footsteps coming down the stairs.  
  
Lupin fell silent as the rest of the Weasleys appeared in the kitchen ready to begin their day. Fred and George had decided to close the store for the day, as it had been decided that they would accompany Harry to his new home. Dumbledore had made Mr. and Mrs. Weasley along with Remus Lupin, temporary guardians to Harry and as such, they would live with him as long as he stayed in the Manor.  
  
"When are we leaving?" Asked Ginny as she chewed her toast carefully.  
  
"The cars should be here at noon. I hope you're all packed." Mrs. Weasley said, looking sternly down at her children.  
  
"All done." Said the twins. "I hope there is a room we can use for our experiments Harry." They said looking hopefully at Harry.  
  
"I'm sure we can find one for you to use." Said Harry looking questioningly at Lupin.  
  
"I'm sure there's one." Smiled Lupin.  
  
Fred and George looked satisfied at this and turned their attention to their food.  
  
"I hope the elves are treated fairly." Said Hermione in a stern tone. Harry and Ron looked at each other with suffering looks, while Ginny groaned and Fred and George rolled their eyes. Even Minnie looked at Hermione with a worried expression.  
  
Lupin smiled at Hermione. "There is nothing to worry about Hermione, the elves belonging to the Potter estate have more freedom than any other. They receive wages, even though they had never touched them and are just accumulating in a Gringotts vault. When they get sick, the estate pays for their care. They even have days off, I think it's once a week, if they care to take it. The only thing they don't have is clothes, but that's because they don't wish for it." Lupin explained.  
  
Everybody turned to look at him with surprise.  
  
"Well! I'm glad one wizard family knows how to care for their servants." Said Hermione happily. "I'm sorry Harry," she said turning to look at Harry, "for thinking that your family didn't care for their elves. I should've known that your family would know the difference between slavery and service." She smiled brightly at Harry.  
  
"They are different from other wizards, indeed. I have never heard of a family caring so for their elves." Exclaimed Mr. Weasley.  
  
"The Potters were very aware of their place in the Wizarding World. But they also have a strong sense of justice, and do what they must to do what is right." Lupin replied.  
  
"They have their own vault?" Exclaimed Ron, who was obviously stricken by the idea of elves having gold accumulating in Gringotts.  
  
"Yes, it was first opened a few hundred years ago, each elf has a key to it. But as far as I know, they have never touched it and it has been allowed to accumulate all this long." Lupin said.  
  
Fred and George whistled in awe.  
  
"Can you imagine how much gold there is in that vault if they haven't touched it for hundreds of years." Asked Fred looking at his twin in surprise.  
  
"There would be enough to open a Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes store in every country in the world." Said George.  
  
"Now, boys." Exclaimed Mrs. Weasley, even though Harry was sure that she was also thinking of all that gold lying unused in a dark vault.  
  
"Well, they deserve it." Exclaimed Hermione. "They have worked hard for centuries, they deserved to be paid for their labor, if they don't wish to touch it, that's their concern."  
  
"We're not begrudging the money, Hermione." Said Ron. "But aren't you a little curious about how much there might be after a few hundred years? Just imagine how much gold it's in there."  
  
"Well, I suppose I am a little curious." Hermione said grudgingly.  
  
"How many elves are there?" Asked Ginny.  
  
Lupin seemed to think about it before answering. "There are the three personal elves, Lotty, Otty and Minnie. Then there are about eight house elves, I don't know the exact number. Some were lost in a fire fifteen years ago." He said.  
  
"That's more than enough for a large house." Said Mr. Weasley.  
  
"Well, they only work in the kitchen and light the fires and clean the private rooms only. The public rooms and guest rooms are cleaned by the human servants." Lupin explained.  
  
"There are human servants too!" Exclaimed Harry, who had listened in silence as the others had made their questions.  
  
"There are three chamber maids that take care of the guest rooms. Two parlor maids that clean the public areas along with the footmen, there are two of them, then there is Mrs. Nichols, she's the housekeeper, and Mr. Roberts, the butler." Lupin said as he pushed aside his plate and leaned back on his chair. He seemed happy to answer all their questions. For fifteen years he had kept quiet about it, now he seemed to have a need to talk about the Manor.  
  
"Wow, mum. You won't have to do any more cleaning for a while." Ron exclaimed.  
  
"Oh, dear, I don't know if I can cope." Mrs. Weasley exclaimed.  
  
"Don't worry about it." Said Lupin. "Lily wasn't used to it either and she did good. You'll like Mrs. Nichols, great woman. She'll report to you and you'll chose the menus and the rooms that need cleaning."  
  
"Are they the only servants?" Asked Hermione with curiosity, it was clear that this was a subject that she hadn't learned from a book.  
  
"They are the ones that you'll encounter inside the house. There are the gardeners and the tenants." Lupin said.  
  
"How many total?" Asked Mr. Weasley with curiosity. Dumbledore had assured him that he wouldn't be in charge of the estate business, he knew that he would never make the wise decisions that came with the position, and hearing Lupin describe it all, he was glad that he wasn't expected to care for it.  
  
"Let me see." Lupin seemed thoughtful. "There are ten tenant families living in the grounds, they care for five acres of land each. Then there are the hands that work the remaining hundred acres, twenty-five of them. There is the caretaker and his three assistants to care for the woods separating the land around the house from the agricultural land. The gardeners, five of them. There are the kennels, Steward took charge of it after his father died ten years ago, he has two assistants. The stables and the garage. Not a lot of cattle, only a few, two grooms to care for them, and the driver for the cars. And the servants in the house. About a hundred, if not more."  
  
Harry sat in silence. A hundred people, living on his land; and all of them depending on him for their living. He finally understood what Dumbledore meant the night before. He was indeed too young for such responsibility. For the first time since the news that he had a home, he was afraid of what it all meant for him. He was afraid that he would make a mistake and a hundred people would suffer for it.  
  
Lupin seemed to understand how he felt. "You have nothing to worry about, Harry." He said. "There's also Mr. Stuart and he's the estate manager, he has been in charge of all the responsibilities in the estate for the past thirty-five years and he will teach you what you need to learn to care for your land. James learned more from him than he did from his own father and he did great, and he was no older than you when he started learning about the estate with Mr. Stuart."  
  
Harry smiled with relief. It was good to know, he thought, that his father had the same troubles he was about to encounter. Although, Harry thought, his father had an advantage for having grown up in the Manor, Harry had only just learned of it.  
  
"I'm glad I'm not you Harry." Ron said. "I don't think I can take that much responsibility."  
  
"Humph!" Hermione glared at Ron. "You can't take any kind of responsibility."  
  
"Hey! I'm a prefect, in case you have forgotten." Ron exclaimed.  
  
"Much good that is, you were no help whatsoever." Hermioned yelled back.  
  
Harry sighed with exasperation. He knew they were going to continue arguing for a while yet.  
  
Everybody seemed to have lost their curiosity about the Manor as they all started to talk about the things they were taking and what was being left behind. Harry looked around for the first time since he had entered the kitchen and noticed several crates piled against the walls. Some had been sealed and waited to be moved while others stood open waiting to be filled. He noticed Minnie puling everything from the shelves and pegs in the wall and placing them into some of the waiting boxes and crates.  
  
Harry noticed Mrs. Weasley motioning with her wand at several things around the room and packing them in boxes around the kitchen. Harry turned to look at Mr. Weasley, who was smiling as he watched his wife complete her packing. He might have sensed Harry's eyes on him because he turned to look at him.  
  
"Some things are going to go into storage, only our personal items and family heirlooms are going to move with us." Said he.  
  
Harry nodded his understanding and watched as Mrs. Weasley shrunk the large clock before rolling it in paper and packing it safely into a small box. Harry knew that the clock was very special for Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"Come you lot. Bill is busy in the sitting room finishing with his packing. Are you all done?'' Mr. Weasley asked to his children.  
  
"I'm done. I just need help with the boxes." Said Ginny.  
  
"We're done. We brought all our boxes down last night." Said Fred.  
  
"Minnie did mine, I guess she did them when she did Harry's." Said Ron.  
  
Hermione glared at Ron. "I only have my trunk." She said.  
  
"Very well. We only have a couple of hours left, so if you still need to pack, you must do it now. Make sure you don't forget anything, please. We're not going to be returning any time soon." Mr. Weasley said.  
  
The family broke into groups and for the next couple of hours boxes, crates and trunks were brought down and divided into two sets, those that were being taken to the Manor and those that would stay in storage. Lupin took Minnie and disapparated. "I'll see if things are ready for your arrival." He explained to Harry before he left.  
  
Harry helped Ron and Ginny move the boxes and crates from their rooms, down to the sitting room, where everything was being placed. Hermione was in the yard trying to get Crookshanks to step into his basket and tried to keep Hedwig and Pig's cages out of the way. The Burrow was in chaos until at last everything settled down and the time to depart was near.  
  
A cart had been brought in front of the house and all the crates and boxes for storage were piled into it. Harry stood by the window watching the cart driving away with many shrunken crates and boxes and bouncing down the lane. Bill and Mr. Weasley had gone along with the driver.  
  
"I hope it doesn't take them long." Whispered Ginny as she stood by Harry watching the cart disappear round the bend.  
  
"I'm sure they'll come back presently." Hermione said behind her.  
  
"Why are they going in a cart?" Harry asked Ron. He was surprised to see the muggle vehicle packed with their boxes.  
  
"Mum and dad are using a muggle building to store the furniture. Dad thought it would be safer if they used a muggle cart instead of any magical form of transportation." Ron explained.  
  
The sitting room behind them was almost empty. The furniture had been stored and only the trunks and boxes that would accompany the family to Gryffindor Manor were piled against one of the walls.  
  
"Where's mum?" Asked Ginny as she looked around the room.  
  
Harry shrugged.  
  
"Last time I saw her, she was upstairs checking the rooms." Hermione replied.  
  
They didn't remain alone for long. Fred and George stumbled into the room, bearing in their arms several boxes.  
  
"Phew! I thought we were never going to be done." Sighed Fred.  
  
George nodded and looked at the others. "What are you lot doing?"  
  
"Waiting." Said Ginny.  
  
"I wish the furniture hadn't been sent to storage yet." Exclaimed Ron as he entered the room and looked around the floor, as if searching for something.  
  
"Why?" Asked Hermione as she sat on the floor with her legs crossed.  
  
"Because I don't want to sit on the floor." Ron replied.  
  
"Honestly!" Many voices exclaimed at once.  
  
"What?" Ron exclaimed back. "I just don't want to."  
  
There were several groans in the room that were promptly stifled as the footsteps of Mrs. Weasley were heard in the kitchen.  
  
"Are you all ready?" She asked.  
  
"Yes." They all answered.  
  
"Good. The cars should be here soon."  
  
"What kind of cars are they sending?" Asked Ginny. "I don't think all this can fit in any cars."  
  
"They can be squeezed in Ginny." Fred said in a mocking tone.  
  
"They said they would send a truck for the boxes." Replied Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"What about dad and Bill. They're not back yet?" Said Ron.  
  
"They won't be long." Mrs. Weasley answered. "And we can wait for them if the cars come before they do." Said Mrs. Weasley.  
  
Harry turned to look out the window once more. He didn't care if they had to wait outside, inside or any other place, he just couldn't wait to drive off.  
  
Loud pops snapped him out of his thoughts and turned to see Mr. Weasley and Bill talking softly to Mrs. Weasley.  
  
The sounds of an engine was heard and everybody turned to the window to watch a couple of cars and vans stop before the house.  
  
"Please hurry, everybody grab a box and pile it into a van." Mrs. Weasley called over the chaos that broke instantly as the time for departure arrived.  
  
Harry grabbed his trunk and Hedwig's cage and stepped into the yard. He saw the driver that had driven him and his guard to the Burrow a few days ago.  
  
"Here Master Harry, give those to me." The driver said eagerly and quickly disposed of the trunk and cage.  
  
"Thanks." Murmured Harry as he watched the rest of the Weasleys trudging down the yard with their boxes and trunks in their arms or floating behind them.  
  
"Harry, help me with this, would you?" Exclaimed Ron behind a couple of boxes in his arms. The boxes were big enough to cover his eye from seeing anything before him.  
  
Harry hurried to Ron and took one of the boxes.  
  
"Thanks." Sighed Ron as both walked to the van waiting further down the lane.  
  
Several people appeared around the vehicles. Harry stopped abruptly looking wildly around. For an instant he thought they were being attacked before he noticed Tonks waving excitedly at them.  
  
"Wondered when they would get here." Said Ron smiling at Harry.  
  
"You knew they were coming?" Harry asked with surprise.  
  
"Of course, you didn't think Dumbledore was going to let us go without your guard, did you?" Ron said walking rapidly to the waiting vans.  
  
Harry didn't respond. He should've known that the guard would come with them. He just never thought about it, he was much too excited about the idea of going to the Manor that for a while he had forgotten about Voldemort, the Order and about Sirius.  
  
"You lot go into the cars. We'll help with the packing." Ordered Lupin as he waited Harry and Ron to arrive at the van with their boxes. "How are you doing?" He asked Harry as he took the box in Harry's arms.  
  
"Fine." Harry said. He didn't want to confess that he was very nervous.  
  
Lupin peered closely at him. To Harry's relief he didn't say anything more, he nodded and motioned them to the standing cars. "You go in the first car, Harry. Ron and Hermione can go with you."  
  
"Come on." Said Ron as he pulled Harry to the first car before them.  
  
The driver had finished with Harry's and Hermione's luggage. Hedwig and Pig's cages stood by the open door and Hermione stood waiting with Crookshank's basket in her arms.  
  
"Let's get in." Said Harry and climbed into the waiting car.  
  
The car was the same one he rode on his way to the Burrow. Martin, the driver sat waiting behind the wheel.  
  
"Wow!" Exclaimed Ron as he entered the car and settled by Harry on one of the side seats. "I could get used to this." He smiled at Harry.  
  
Harry smiled back. So could he.  
  
"Honestly, Ron. You sound like you have never ridden in a car before." Hermione said as she placed the basket by Hedwig's cage on the back seat.  
  
"Not in one like this." Ron shot back.  
  
"Well, this one does look to be rather elegant." Hermione said as she looked around.  
  
"Elegant? This is more than elegant, Hermione. This is expensive." Ron replied as he started to open the compartments under the seat. "Look, it even has a cooler."  
  
"The only thing missing is a TV." Laughed Harry.  
  
Ron looked confused for a minute, before Hermione exclaimed with exasperation. "You really should have taken Muggle Studies! A TV is a television, kind of like a box with an antenna, that allows you to receive radio waves and lets you see a picture that it's actually taken somewhere else." She explained.  
  
Harry smiled at Ron's face of utter confusion, it seemed that Hermione's explanation didn't help at all.  
  
"Never mind. It's a muggle thing." Harry said.  
  
There was no time for further discussion as Lupin and Tonks climbed into the car.  
  
"All set?" Tonks asked with a sunny smile.  
  
"Yes. We have all our things." Hermione said.  
  
"Martin, you can start the car." Lupin ordered the driver.  
  
The engine started and a few seconds later the car drove down the lane. Harry and Ron turned back to watch the Burrow disappear round the bend.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
The ride was uneventful. Harry and Ron played several games of chess while Hermione pulled a book and sat in silence. The rest of the Weasleys were riding with Moody in a car behind them and there were two vans full of boxes that followed closely. A few hours into their trip, they stopped in a small inn and had a large meal. They drank, ate and laughed as if they had no concern in the world. They continued their trip as soon as everyone had been refreshed.  
  
It wasn't long after that when Lupin touched Harry's shoulder and motioned to the window. "If you take a close look Harry," he said as he nodded to the lane they had turned into, "you will see Gryffindor Town and soon after that, you will see the gatehouse into Gryffindor Manor."  
  
Harry lost all concentration from their chess game and looked eagerly out of the window. Ron didn't mind as he too turned with eagerness to look out of the window. Hermione closed her book slowly and put it away before she turned to look at the lane leading them to Harry's home.  
  
It didn't take long for the lane to turn into a busy street lined with shops and small cottages. They passed a squared plaza, which Harry assumed showed where the center of the village stood. Several people stepped out of their shops and houses as they watched the caravan pass through the village. But as soon as they passed, cheers filled the air.  
  
Harry smiled brightly as he turned to look at Professor Lupin. He was home.  
  
The street gave way to a narrow lane. The lane was paved and trees lined the avenue. A short distance passes and these trees turned into bushes of roses of all colors. Soon, Harry saw in the distance a golden gate. A large G with a P in the middle was sculpted in the middle of the arch around the gate.  
  
Excitement took hold of Harry's body.  
  
The gate opened and the cars passed through. Harry turned to see if he could catch a glimpse of somebody by the gate. But the gate stood open, and closed by itself as the last van had crossed under the stone arch.  
  
Harry sat on the seat behind the driver's and looked eager through the front window. What he saw made his eyes open with surprise.  
  
He turned to look at Professor Lupin who had followed him and sat next to him. "Who are they?" He asked in awe.  
  
"Those are your tenants Harry, every single one of them. They are here to welcome you into your home." Lupin smiled down at Harry's surprised countenance.  
  
"There are so many." Harry whispered.  
  
"There are." Lupin said softly. "But they all know you, they have been waiting for you for fifteen years. This is as important to them, as it is to you."  
  
Harry turned back to see the lane.  
  
It was lined by people of all sizes and ages. Children stood hand in hand with their parents. All of them were waiving at the cars as they neared. Harry chocked tears down his throat. He knew that nobody would think badly of him if he cried, but his pride couldn't allow him to do so. He wanted to have a clear vision of his home, not one distorted by his tears.  
  
He took a couple of deep breaths. He knew that Professor Lupin was watching him closely, thankfully, he didn't say anything and eventually, Harry got his emotions under control.  
  
The lane eventually turned and Harry got his first glimpse of the Manor. He looked at it with a hunger that overwhelmed him.  
  
The house was large. He could see the ivy-covered façade, allowing the large windows peer through the clinging vines. The large door was open wide a couple stood on the doorway waiting for the cars to make their way to the front drive.  
  
Harry looked at Lupin with curiosity.  
  
"The butler, Roberts, and his sister, Mrs. Nichols, she's the housekeeper." Lupin explained understanding the question in Harry's eyes.  
  
Harry turned back to see the cars drive up through the formal gardens and go around the drive, until they stopped in front of the house steps.  
  
"Come, Harry. There are a lot of people who want to see you." Lupin smiled.  
  
The driver had stepped out of the car. He walked back to open the door.  
  
"You go first Harry." Hermione said, putting a hand on Ron's arm to hold him back as he tried to get out of the car. "This is your home. You should go first."  
  
Ron seemed to have followed Hermione's thought, he nodded and smiled at Harry. "She's right, Harry. You go first."  
  
Harry nodded and climbed out of his seat. He straitened his body and turned to look at the house. There was a sharp intake of breath from the couple on the steps. Harry looked nervously back at the car. Professor Lupin stepped out and put his arm around Harry's shoulders.  
  
"Come," he said, "it's time for you to meet the people who had been serving your family for years. If it hadn't been for them, the house would be in total disarray now. They have been taking care of the house as they had always done. The gardens have been pruned, the rooms cleaned and I'm sure that if we go to the attics, we'll find that every single particle of dust has been obliterated by their skillful hands." As he spoke, Lupin had led Harry up the steps to the door. "Roberts, Mrs. Nichols, I'm glad to find you well." He greeted the couple.  
  
"We're well, Master Remus." The man Lupin had called Roberts said with a bow and turned to look at Harry with an air of high expectancy.  
  
Lupin smiled down at Harry. "Harry, allow me to introduce to you Mr. Roberts. He has served the Potters as butler since your grandfather's time. How long has it been Roberts? Twenty-five years I think, after your father passed away, is it not?"  
  
"Indeed, sir. Welcome home, Master Harry. We have been waiting for you." Roberts said as he bowed proudly before Harry.  
  
Harry didn't know what to say. He had never had any servants, on the contrary, he always felt that he was a servant of the Dursleys. Now, here was a man who had served his family faithfully for many years. What could he say to him? He nodded and murmured "Thanks."  
  
Roberts seemed to be happy with this and turned to the woman at his side. "This is my sister, Mrs. Nichols, she has been housekeeper to the Manor for just as long." He said.  
  
"Oh, Master Harry! I'm so glad that you're back home." She exclaimed and hugged Harry tightly in her arms. Harry looked at Lupin very surprised. What should he do now?  
  
Professor Lupin took pity of him and patted Mrs. Nichols' shoulder. "Now, now, Mrs. Nichols. You're going to take the breath out of Harry." He laughed.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry, sir, Master Harry. But I have been waiting for this moment for so long." She sniffed into a large, white handkerchief, which she had taken out from her sleeve as soon as she had let Harry go from her embrace.  
  
"I know, Mrs. Nichols. We all have been waiting to see Harry back in the Manor. But now he is here. Let's introduce the rest of the household to him. I'm sure there are others that are eager to make his acquaintance." Lupin said.  
  
"Oh, goodness me. Of course there are. Lotty and Otty have been chafing at the bits ever since Minnie made her way to his side." Mrs. Nichols exclaimed. The tears had been sliding down her cheeks since she first saw Harry, were now dry and she turned he back on them as she led them into the house.  
  
Harry now saw that the servants were lined up in the entrance hall, just like the tenants had been in the lane.  
  
Mrs. Nichols stood by the head of the line as Mr. Roberts stayed by the door to greet the others.  
  
Harry watched the line with wary eyes. He could see three elves standing at the head of the line. He thought these might be the personal elves as he glimpsed Minnie among them. There were seven human servants at their side and at the end were five more elves.  
  
Professor Lupin pushed Harry forward, as Harry seemed to have been rooted to the spot, near the door, as if in readiness to run out.  
  
"Come Harry." Lupin whispered as they slowly followed Mrs. Nichols to the line.  
  
Mrs. Nichols smiled brightly at Harry, she seemed unaware of Harry's nervousness. "These are Lotty, Otty, and Minnie. You are acquainted with Minnie of course, but Lotty and Otty have been eager to see you." She said as she pointed at the two elves standing before them.  
  
"Hello." Said Harry eyeing the two elves with care.  
  
"Lotty is gladdened to see Master Harry." The older elf said with an eager bow.  
  
"Otty is too, glad. Master Harry must tell Otty what foods Master Harry wants." The other elf said. Harry noticed that he was a little fatter than the other elves and smiled. It was very clear that he was the cook elf.  
  
"I'll do so." Harry smiled. The elves smiled brightly at him.  
  
Minnie was happily hopping beside them. She was clearly the youngest of the three.  
  
"Hello, Minnie." Harry smiled at her eagerness.  
  
"Master Harry, sir. Minnie has helped Lotty with your room, Master Harry." The tiny elf reported.  
  
"Thank you Minnie, and you too Lotty." Harry said.  
  
Lupin pulled Harry forward as Mrs. Nichols turned to the human servants.  
  
"The two footmen. They help Roberts with the cleaning and care of the public rooms. Edward and George." The housekeeper introduced the two men standing by the elves.  
  
"Welcome home, sir." They both said as they bowed to Harry.  
  
Harry nodded and looked apprehensively to Professor Lupin. He was sure that it would be much easier for him to deal with the elves than with the human servants, at least he had some experience with house elves.  
  
"You're doing all right." Lupin whispered.  
  
Harry nodded and looked back at the line. Mrs. Nichols was now standing by a pair of young women who looked eager to meet him.  
  
"The parlor maids. They're in charge of the cleaning of the public rooms. Mary and Angela." Mrs. Nichols said.  
  
"Welcome home, Master Harry." Both girls curtsied.  
  
"Thank you." Mumbled Harry as his face flushed with consternation. He felt as if he was a celebrity or royalty. He certainly never had anybody curtsy or bow before him before.  
  
Mrs. Nichols proceeded down the line. The next three women proved to be the chamber maids, who were in charge of the guest rooms, Sylvia, Dora, and Melly. Next to the chamber maids were five house-elves. All grinned happily as they bowed to their master.  
  
With the introductions done, Harry sighed with relief as he watched the Weasleys and Hermione make their way down the line as Roberts led them down to where Harry stood.  
  
"Come, Master Harry. Otty has prepared a light dinner for you and your friends. Do you want it to be served in the family dinning room or in the formal dinning room?" Asked Mrs. Nichols.  
  
Harry turned to look at Professor Lupin for advice.  
  
"I'm sure that you'll feel more comfortable in the smaller dinning room. The formal rooms are a little stuffy sometimes." Lupin said.  
  
Harry nodded his agreement.  
  
Mrs. Nichols smiled and led them down a corridor to the right of the large staircase in the middle of the entrance hall.  
  
"The bookroom is through that door." Pointed Lupin as Ron and Hermione hurried to join them. "You'll find many books of interest to you there." He smiled at Hermione.  
  
"I'll see what I can find." Hermione seemed impressed by what she had seen so far.  
  
There was a large corridor. There were large pictures of old people hanging in the walls. All of them looked like muggle paintings, as the subjects remained motionless in their canvases.  
  
"Who are they?" Asked Ron as he looked at the pictures as they passed.  
  
Harry was glad that he asked the question that was at the tip of his tongue.  
  
"Harry's ancestors. You must ask Roberts to tell you their names, Harry. I could never get them straight." Lupin said as they followed Mrs. Nichols down the corridor.  
  
Harry looked at each picture with care. If these were paintings of his ancestors, there was bound to be one of his grandparents and maybe one of his parents.  
  
He didn't see any, but he thought that maybe he had passed by without seeing it. He promised himself to look for it after dinner. He had his whole life to get acquainted with the rest of the house.  
  
The walls gave way to large windows on either side. Each window looked out to gardens. Harry thought about what Professor Lupin had described. The gardens in the inner court must be the kitchen gardens, as he could see only a few flower shrubs among the greener beds. Through the other window, he could see a series of shrubs and walls, and he thought about the mazes and enclosed gardens that Lupin that talked about. The corridor continued down until they were enclosed by walls once more. A couple of doors stood opposite each other, while another stood at the very end.  
  
Mrs. Nichols led them through the door at the left. They found themselves in a cozy dinning room. There were large windows across two of the walls, while one held a wide glass door, leading to the gardens in the inner court, behind the kitchens.  
  
The table was large enough to hold all the Weasleys as well as a dozen more if they wished. Gas lamps burned brightly on the walls as a large fireplace graced the longer wall, beside the door.  
  
"Wow." Exclaimed Ron as he looked around.  
  
Harry was just as impressed as his friend was. He had known that his family had been well-to-do, after all, his parents had had the foresight to open a vault for him at Gringotts. But he had never imagined that his family had possessed this much wealth.  
  
Harry turned to look at the walls, there were many pictures around the walls, and unlike the ones in the corridor, these were magical, as the fruit and animals in the paintings moved around their frames.  
  
"Come Harry, you should see this one." Lupin said as he pulled him to the front of the fireplace.  
  
Harry looked at the wall above the mantel and understood why Lupin wanted him to see it. It was a painting of his parents. His mother was sitting in a chair at an angle, his father stood behind her. His hands were on her shoulders, while hers patted his. They were both smiling at him.  
  
His throat constricted as tears threatened to spill down his face. The voices of Mr. and Mrs. Weasley saved him from such a display of emotion.  
  
"Oh, Harry. I never thought that the Potters owned such a grand house." Mrs. Weasley exclaimed as she led the rest of her family into the room.  
  
"Neither did I." Said Harry. But it seemed that nobody had heard him except for Hermione and Ron who had come to stand by his side while he watched his parents' painting.  
  
"Don't let it disturb you, Harry. You'll get used to it." Whispered Hermione.  
  
"Yeah. And we're here to keep you company. We'll all get used to it along with you." Said Ron.  
  
Harry nodded and walked to the table where everybody had rallied.  
  
"Master Harry." Roberts said as he held the chair at the head of the table ready for him.  
  
Harry looked at the others, they were smiling at him. He nodded and sat. The others sat around the table, following his example.  
  
Roberts nodded at Mrs. Nichols. She stepped out to the corridor for a moment. The footmen made their way into the room with large trays balanced in their arms. Roberts and the footmen went around the table serving Harry and his guests.  
  
Harry was feeling as a fish out of water. He was not accustomed to this sort of service. At the Dursleys, he had been the one to clean, and when Aunt Petunia wanted, to cook. At Hogwarts, there had been house elves to clean and cook for him, but he had never seen them do so, they did their work in silence without letting the students or teachers see them as they did so. This was a whole new experience for him, and he didn't know if he could get used to it.  
  
He looked at the painting above the mantel. His father stood proudly behind his mother. He didn't know much about their past, except for those glimpses of memories others had told him about. But he knew they would be expecting him to do the best he could.  
  
He nodded with determination. This was his father's house, he had been in charge of it for years, just as his ancestors had done. If they could do it, so could he. He would make his family proud. Even if they weren't there to see him do it.  
  
With this thought in mind, he turned his attention back to his food.  
  
The meal was a noisy one. Harry was glad that it was so. It took his attention from everything around him.  
  
He couldn't believe that he was finally in the house of his ancestors. For so long he had been aware of only the Dursleys that he could easily forget that there had been other members of his family. Now, he had come to the house were many of those members had been born and grown. Where his parents spent the last few years of their lives.  
  
The meal soon ended and everybody looked at Harry. He could easily see that they were waiting to see what he wanted to do.  
  
"Er." Harry looked questioningly to Professor Lupin.  
  
Lupin gave him an understanding smile. "Why don't I take you around the ground floor? You can see all the public rooms. Tomorrow I'll take you over the rest of the house." He said.  
  
Harry sighed with relief and nodded in agreement.  
  
The scrape of chairs sliding down the floor was heard. Roberts stood by the door while the footmen went around the table gathering all the dirty plates.  
  
Mrs. Weasley looked at them with guilt. "Oh, maybe I should help." She said.  
  
The footmen looked at her with surprise and consternation in their faces, only Roberts seemed to be unfazed but his eyes clearly expressed his surprise.  
  
"Molly, they wouldn't appreciate it if you do." Said Lupin.  
  
"Oh, but." Continued Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"Molly, dear. You wouldn't want them to lose their job, do you?" Her husband said pulling her away from the table. "Come, let's see the other rooms in this floor."  
  
"If you say so." Mrs. Weasley said before turning back to see both footmen sigh with relief and continue gathering the used plates.  
  
Roberts held the door open for them.  
  
"Are all the lamps lit in the rooms, Roberts?" Asked Lupin as he passed by the unflappable butler.  
  
"They are, sir." Responded the dignified man.  
  
"Thank you, tell Mrs. Nichols that we might need some tea before going up to our rooms." Said Lupin.  
  
"I will, Sir." Roberts bowed.  
  
The others looked at Roberts and Lupin with a countenance full of awe. Harry was happy to notice that he wouldn't be the only one feeling out of place in this enormous household.  
  
Professor Lupin led them to the room opposite from the one they had just occupied. "This is the family parlor." He announced as he opened the door.  
  
It was a cozy room. Comfortable looking chairs and sofas surrounded the room. A large fireplace stood in place of honor, covering one half of a wall. Large French windows covered two walls, on one of these a glass door led to a veranda leading down to the topiary and the enclosed gardens.  
  
"Wow." Exclaimed Ron.  
  
They all seemed to be as surprised as he was, even Hermione looked around the room with awe. But Harry didn't pay any attention to anything other than the fireplace.  
  
He walked slowly to it and looked up the mantel. On the wall was a large painting. A happy couple stood there with pride and a small infant was held lovingly in the woman's arms. Two older women stood at the each end. Both looked tenderly at the couple.  
  
Harry didn't hear what the others were saying, he only looked up the picture. But he knew he was not alone in front of the fireplace. He sensed Lupin's presence near him.  
  
"The two older ladies are your grandmothers. Mrs. Potter is next to James and Mrs. Evans is next to Lily. The painting was done a couple of months after your birth." Lupin said.  
  
Harry nodded and lowered his eyes to see at the pictures on the mantel, below the painting. They were magical pictures. He smiled at the sight of Sirius, Lupin, and his parents in several of the pictures there. But there were also other people he didn't recognized.  
  
"Who are they?" Asked Harry as he pointed to a picture of two young girls waiving happily at him.  
  
Lupin smiled sadly before answering. "They're your cousins." He said.  
  
Harry looked at his former professor with surprise. "My cousins? Where are they now?" He asked eagerly. He always thought that the Dursleys were the only family left to him, but here he saw pictures of so many others, he was sure that some might be still living, he refused to think that he was the only Potter left.  
  
Lupin sighed sadly. "They died in the fire. Your grandmothers and cousins were in the nursery when the fire broke out."  
  
Harry looked back at the picture. The ebullient feeling that had invaded his chest at the thought of other family members was receding, leaving in its wake a hollow feeling that had become rather familiar to him in the last year.  
  
"What about their parents?" He asked quietly.  
  
Lupin looked determined when he started his story. "Your father had one sister. Elizabeth." He said pointing to a picture of a pretty, raven- haired woman. She looked young and happy, and Harry could easily recognized the lake at Hogwarts in the background. "She was older by five years. The summer before her seventh year, old Mr. Potter took the family to Italy. He was going as ambassador from the Ministry to meet with the Italian Minister. Elizabeth met a young man there. He was the Italian Minister's youngest brother, only a few years older than Elizabeth, he had just finished his training and had joined his brother in the Ministry. They fell in love, but decided to wait until Elizabeth had finished her training before making plans. After she returned to Hogwarts, they wrote constantly. James liked to tease her, but she didn't seem to mind. They married a few months after she left Hogwarts. A year later she gave birth to twin girls. Francesca and Cassandra." He said pointing to the picture of the twin girls.  
  
"On our second semester of seventh year, Mr. Potter had to go to Italy to a Ministry convention, Elizabeth and her husband opened their house to him and went to him to the Ministry Ball. There was a Death Eater attack that night. There were not many survivors." Lupin said sadly. "In their will, Elizabeth and her husband had named James as the twins' guardians. James had to leave school for a month to take care of things. He went to Italy and brought the girls to England. After graduation, James stayed close to the Manor. The twins were only three at the time of Elizabeth's death." Lupin said.  
  
Harry looked at the pictures intensely. He had come to dread the mention of an attack. It seemed that his whole family had been decimated by the Death Eaters and Voldemort. "The fire, was it an attack?" He asked. He had a feeling that the fire that had killed his grandmothers and cousins had not been an accident.  
  
Professor Lupin seemed hesitant for a minute before responding. "Yes, it was."  
  
Harry nodded. "What about my mother's father? Was he killed by the Death Eaters too?" He asked.  
  
"No, he had a bad heart." Lupin responded quickly.  
  
Harry sighed with relief, at least not all his family had been killed by the Death Eaters.  
  
He finally became alert of the silence in the room. It seemed the others had kept silent listening to Lupin's story as attentively as he had been.  
  
"Well, let's see the other rooms. Or you can stay here if you prefer." Lupin said turning back to the others.  
  
"I'll remain here. A nice rest after that large dinner will do me good." Said Mrs. Weasley as she took a seat at the sofa in front of one of the windows. "You can on ahead." She said to the others.  
  
"I'll go with Harry, I want to see the other rooms too." Said Ron looking at Harry with a question in his eyes.  
  
Harry nodded, he knew that Ron wanted to see if he didn't mind them tagging along. If he was truthful to himself, he didn't want to be by himself with Lupin. He didn't want to hear anymore about his family. Not for the moment, at least.  
  
"All right. Let's go. If you want anything, Molly, just ring for Roberts. There's a bell pull next to the fireplace." Lupin said as he led the younger crowd out the room. Mr. Weasley, Tonks and Moody remained in the parlor with Mrs. Weasley.  
  
Lupin led them out the room. "You'll like this room." He said to the young people as he walked toward the last door at the end of the corridor. "We used to spend a lot of time here in our younger days." He laughed.  
  
He opened the door to a large room. There was a bar at one end of the room, a pool table, video games and at one corner a large TV with a few chairs and sofas in front of it.  
  
"Ooh." Breathed Ginny. "These are all Muggle."  
  
"Dad will like this." Ron said as he neared the TV with eagerness. "How do you run this?" Hermione quickly went to his side and showed him where the control was and how to use it.  
  
"Isn't there any wizard games?" Asked Fred as he peered into one of the pockets of the pool table.  
  
"Yeah, I thought the Potters were purebloods." George said as he peered around one of the video games.  
  
Lupin smiled pleasantly. "They are, but there are many muggles in the area and the Potters have always been very sociable. The house is kept as in constant anticipation of muggle visitors. That means that you must keep all your magical things in your private rooms, and keep only muggle things in the public ones." The Weasleys looked at him in horror. He chuckled. "Don't worry, that doesn't mean you have to live like a muggle." He turned to one of the walls. It was lined with wooden shelves, full of video tapes and cassettes. A large stereo stood in the middle. "It needs to be modernized. You might want to shop for some new music, Harry." He said before touching a small rose at the top of the upper shelf. The wall wriggled a bit before turning to show a wall full of magical games. A golden set of magical chess stood in place of honor, while a stack of cards shuffled themselves on a small table. There were other things humming and vibrating on shelves on the wall, but Harry only saw the chess set. It seemed to be made of gold and silver pieces. Several stood yawning on their squares, while the king and queen pieces shrieked as they chased each other around the board.  
  
"Oh, wow." Ron Exclaimed at the sight of the chess set.  
  
"This is more like it." Said George as he made to grab at the shuffling cards.  
  
"Just make sure to turn the wall back every time you leave the room. It wouldn't do to have muggle visitors and let them see any of it." Lupin said as he allowed the young people to look around the room.  
  
"Why haven't the tapes and videos been updated?" Asked Hermione to Lupin. "The TV and the stereo seemed to be newly acquired."  
  
"Because the tapes and videos are the family's collection. The TV and the stereo can be easily replaced by the estate's agent, but the collection can only be augmented by the members of the family. After all, it is the music and movies they like that are added to the collection." Lupin explained.  
  
"I see. That makes sense, I suppose." Said Hermione.  
  
They stayed in the room for a few minutes more, before Lupin changed the wall once more and led them out to the corridor.  
  
They walked back through the corridor they had crossed before dinner. Harry looked before him instead of the paintings along the walls. Hermione and Ron walked alongside him.  
  
"Are you all right, Harry?" Hermione asked silently.  
  
Harry nodded.  
  
"You could go to bed, if you want." Said Ron. "I'm sure nobody would mind."  
  
"I'm not tired." Harry said. He sensed his two friends share a glance. He knew they were worried about him. This was going to fast, after all. A week ago, he had been brooding in Privet Drive, waiting for the time when he would leave it. Now, he was in his father's home, a home that belonged to him. "I'm fine." He murmured.  
  
Neither Ron nor Hermione said a thing, but Harry knew that they were still worried.  
  
The group stepped out of the corridor into the entrance hall. It was empty now, and their footsteps echoed in the silence.  
  
"I'm sure you're going to like this, Hermione." Said Lupin as he led them to the double doors at the end of the corridor. He opened the doors wide and allowed the others to enter. It was a large room, larger than the dining room and the parlor room together. The walls were lined from top to bottom with bookshelves. A gallery ran around the room, a sturdy ladder stood at one corner leading up to it, where more shelves lined the walls. A large window covered one wall, heavy curtains were drawn across it. A large desk stood before it, and three chairs stood around it.  
  
"Oh." Exclaimed Hermione as she looked around the room. "This is wonderful."  
  
Ron groaned. "You know she's going to read every book in this room." He whispered to Harry.  
  
Harry smiled. "At least we'll know where to find her."  
  
"Are all these muggle books too?" Asked Ginny as she read some of the titles on the nearest shelf.  
  
"The ones below are. The books on magical subjects are in the gallery." Said Lupin. "You might want to take a look around those books, Harry. The Potters always had one of the best collection on Defense Against the Dark Arts literature."  
  
"Really?" Asked Harry with eagerness. He would like to see those, if nothing else.  
  
"I'll show them to you another time." Lupin said with a smile. "We should move on, you'll have more time to look around later." He said when Hermione seemed ready to argue.  
  
"Yes, well, that's true." She mumbled and moved with the rest as they left the room.  
  
They crossed the entrance hall to the room opposite the book room. It was a parlor, but unlike the family parlor, this parlor room seemed more elegant and formal than the other.  
  
"This is the formal parlor." Said Lupin, "this is where the visitors are received, only close friends and family members are received in the family parlor."  
  
Harry was looking around. He thought the chairs and loveseats seemed so fragile, he was sure that they couldn't possibly held the weight of a grown man. Of course, he thought, most visitors could be women, in that case, the furniture was dainty enough to held their weight.  
  
There were several glass and porcelain figurines around the room. The walls were covered by paintings, Harry was sure, were made by masters. The thick brocade curtains fluttered gently in the evening breeze.  
  
"It looks stuffy." Mumbled Ron, who was beginning to feel a little uncomfortable by all the elegance found in Harry's new home.  
  
Harry heard him and even though he didn't say it, he agreed with Ron. He didn't think it would be easy to get used to this sort of elegance.  
  
Lupin had walked to a second door, on the wall adjacent to the one they had passed through, he threw it open and peered inside as if checking if the room was ready.  
  
He turned to look at the young people, who stood quietly behind him. "I was just checking if the room had been lit." He answered to their unspoken question. "Come, let me show you the formal dinning room." He led them through the door.  
  
The room was long and very luminous. A table that could clearly seat up to thirty people was at the center of the room. Long tables stood along one of the walls, underneath long windows through which the formal gardens could be clearly seen. There was a double door along the wall leading through the entrance hall and another at the other end of the room. The paintings in this room were full of flowers and fruits, which were clearly muggle as no kind of movement could be detected from them.  
  
"There must have been a lot of dinner parties in this house." Exclaimed Hermione as she looked in awe at the large chandelier at the center of the ceiling.  
  
"The Potters were very sociable at one time." Lupin conceded. "The table can be enlarged to seat up to fifty people."  
  
"I don't think we'll be using it for some time yet." Said Harry as he looked around the room with consternation. He hoped he wasn't expected to open the house to guests, other than the Weasleys and Hermione that is. He wasn't up to hosting any sort of parties.  
  
"You will in time. Don't worry, nobody is expecting you to take things up from where your parents left it." Lupin smiled at Harry as if understanding Harry's worries.  
  
The sun had set and the darkness of night enveloped the land. Harry looked out the windows of the dinning room, he could see the shadows of the bushes and trees in the gardens. The day was almost over and he had barely seen part of the house.  
  
"The conservatory is through that door." Lupin said as he pointed at the door across the room. "It's better to see it during the day, the plants and flowers are more colorful then." He said. "I'll show you the ballroom before we go back to the family parlor."  
  
He opened the doors leading to the entrance hall and started to climb up the stairs. At the landing, was a double door. The golden knobs glistened in the candlelight. Lupin grasped one of these knobs and pulled open the door.  
  
They stepped into a large room, two times bigger than the entrance hall, the ceiling was made of glass. Harry was reminded of the ceiling at Hogwarts' Great Hall, even though this ceiling was clearly not magical. Golden scones glistened along the walls, upon each a large candle was lit. French windows surrounded three of the walls. Along the longest wall, two glass doors opened to balcony, looking out to the kitchen gardens and the lake was clearly seen in the distance. There were benches and chairs along the walls, but the center was cleared and the floor shone after its thorough cleaning. Next to the entrance doors was a narrow staircase against the wall, it led to an oval platform where small chairs and stands could be clearly seen.  
  
"That's where the band seats during the dance." Lupin explained as he noticed Harry looking up to the platform.  
  
"It's very big." Mumbled Ginny.  
  
"It was designed to hold up to a thousand people." Lupin said. "Not that there are any expectations for this room to hold that many."  
  
"Only if all students at Hogwarts are invited to come for a party." Said Fred.  
  
"There's not that many students at Hogwarts." Said Hermione. "A few hundred maybe, but not a thousand."  
  
"Well, it feels like that many sometimes." Said George.  
  
Hermione shook her head in exasperation, but she wisely held her tongue.  
  
"We should return to the parlor, I'm sure that tea is ready to be served." Lupin said as he led them back out the door.  
  
Harry seemed thoughtful as they crossed the corridor leading to the family rooms. He didn't even notice the paintings, which had held his curiosity before.  
  
The tea tray was waiting for them.  
  
"How did you like the rooms?" Asked Mrs. Weasley as she poured tea for each of them.  
  
"They're big." Said Ron.  
  
"I expected as much." Said Mr. Weasley. "The house itself looks large enough."  
  
"Harry, something wrong?" Whispered Hermione as she passed him a cup of tea.  
  
Harry looked at his friend, wondering how much could he say about what he was feeling. He sighed. "It's just that I don't know what it's expected of me." He finally said. Ron, who was sitting beside him stopped looking at the twins, who were eagerly telling their mother what they had seen. "I mean," Harry continued, "this house belonged to my father and his family for centuries, but I don't know what to do with it. I was expecting something smaller. Even Godric's Hollow would seem more welcome now."  
  
Hermione and Ron shared a look full of worry. It was clear that they didn't know what to say.  
  
"Maybe you will feel more comfortable with time." Said Ron.  
  
"Ron's right, Harry. This is all new to you, in time you'll know how to care for it." Hermione said.  
  
Harry knew that they were trying to make him feel better, but somehow, it wasn't working. He was overwhelmed by the size of the rooms he had seen, and he knew that there was more he hadn't seen yet.  
  
"It's time for us to retire." Said Lupin as he tried to stifle a yawn and failing at it.  
  
"Oh, yes. I'm sure that there's so much for us to do tomorrow." Said Mrs. Weasley.  
  
Roberts and Mrs. Nichols were waiting by the door. Lupin turned to look at them. "I'll take Harry to his room." He said. "You can show the others where they'll be staying."  
  
"If the gentlemen will follow me, I'll show them to their rooms." Said Roberts in his serious tone of voice.  
  
"I'll show the ladies to their rooms." Announced Mrs. Nichols.  
  
"Thank you." Said Mrs. Weasley as she gathered her children around her. "Make sure that you behave. I don't want to hear any complaints about you." She admonished her youngsters.  
  
"We'll be fine, mum." Said Fred as he kissed her cheek.  
  
"Night." George kissed her cheek as well before following his twin out the door.  
  
Everybody said goodnight as they filed out of the room, until only Harry and Lupin were left in the parlor.  
  
"Where are they staying?" Asked Harry as Lupin led him out of the room.  
  
"They had been given rooms in the family wing, so they won't be far away from you." Lupin said with a smile.  
  
"What about you?" Harry asked with curiosity.  
  
"I'll be staying in the room I've always stayed when I came to visit." Lupin responded. "Also in the family wing."  
  
"How long are staying with us?" Harry asked. He didn't understand why Lupin was staying with them, he hadn't done so last year when they stayed at Grimmauld Place. He only stayed for short periods of time, at least, he had done so while Harry was in the house.  
  
"As long as you'll need me." Said Lupin. "Dumbledore thought that you might need some time to adjust to your new surroundings, and as I'm the closest person available to give you information about he Manor, he imagined that I could be of great help to you." He said as he looked down at Harry. "I don't have to stay if you rather I didn't"  
  
"Oh no! I'll love it for you to stay." Exclaimed Harry. "It could be helpful."  
  
Lupin smiled sadly at Harry. "I know it's hard for you Harry. It's hard for me too. I spent many summers here with James and Sirius. It brings a lot of sad memories." He whispered as he looked around the corridor. "A lot of sad memories." He said once more.  
  
Harry looked at Lupin with new eyes. He had seem so energetic and excited as he showed them the rooms in the first floor, but now Harry knew that it had been hard for him to look at all the rooms that he and his friends had used in past years.  
  
Harry saw the house in a new light. He had forgotten for a second that his former professor had been in this house while his parents had lived here, it had been easier to think of it just as a house that was under his care. He had been so busy worrying about what was expected of him, than in thinking about the memories that lived in the house.  
  
They started up the staircase from the entrance hall, and turned right on the landing. They started down a wide corridor. There were paintings of people along the wall, but unlike the ones in the lower floor, these were clearly magical, as the subjects waved and greeted them as they passed.  
  
"Welcome home, Harry!" Some said.  
  
"Glad to see you home, where you belong." Others said.  
  
"Hi Harry." A few uttered.  
  
Harry looked at them with gladness. In some ways, these pictures brought life to the people he had lost in the past. He was back in his family's arms.  
  
Several sets of doors were seen through the corridor.  
  
"There are some chambers here, but yours are in the upper floor." Lupin said as he pointed to the staircase along the wall in the middle of the corridor.  
  
They started to climb the stairs.  
  
"How many floors are there?" Asked Harry.  
  
"The public rooms are in the first floor. There are twelve in the second floor. The major rooms are in the third floor, those are for the immediate family and for important members of the family. The nursery is on the third floor. And the attics and servant quarters are in the third and fourth floors." He explained.  
  
"Aren't those a lot of stairs to climb?" Asked Harry. The servants must be in good shape after all the climbing, he thought.  
  
"They are, that's why your mother had James install a lift. There's one on each wing at the end of the corridor." He said.  
  
They had turned toward the front of the house. Some of the doors they passed where open and Harry could see some of the Weasleys settling in for the night. Finally, they reached the end of the corridor. A set of double doors stood at the end of the corridor. Lupin promptly opened them.  
  
Harry stepped into a large bedroom. Two large windows, covered by thick curtains stood at each end of the wall across from them. A large fireplace stood along the wall next to them and a large, four-poster bed stood along the wall next to the door. Another door stood in an adjacent wall.  
  
"This door leads to the bathroom." Said Lupin, opening the next door.  
  
Harry looked around, the carpet looked new along with the curtains across the windows and around the bed.  
  
"Everything was redesigned in this wing. The nursery is just upstairs, so these rooms were damaged a great deal during the fire." Lupin said. "There used to be two dressing rooms at each end of the room, but James changed it to just one, large enough to divide in two. There's a door in the bathroom leading to it. There's another door that leads to a sitting room. Lily used to sit there with her friends when they visited." Harry noticed that Lupin had said the word friends in an odd tone. "Well, I'll leave you to rest. If you need anything during the night, just pull that string by your bed. Lotty will come instantly." Lupin said. "I asked the elves to go to their rooms instead of waiting for you, I thought that you would rather be on your own on your first night."  
  
"Thank you Professor." Said Harry as Lupin closed the door behind him. With a sigh, Harry turned to look around the room. Professor Lupin didn't have to say it for him to know that this had been the room that his parents once shared.  
  
Harry saw his pajamas on the bed. He changed quickly and settled himself in bed. He didn't mind staying in the room that had once belonged to his mother and father. He felt like he was being embraced by his parents.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
A/N: There you go. I hope you enjoyed it. I've been away on a trip for a week so I didn't get a chance to prepare this chapter for you until now, even though I finished it before I left. I've barely started on the next chapter and I'll uploaded once it's done. Now to answer some of your questions.  
  
Exodus - When it came time for Harry to return to the Manor, I thought it better that he wouldn't go alone. Harry is a minor, as thus, he cannot live in the Manor without a guardian, that's where Mr. Weasley and Mrs. Weasley come in. Remus went along because Harry needs somebody to tell him about his family, somehow I feel that the servants wouldn't have been the right people to do this. Harry would feel more comfortable learning about his family and the Manor from somebody he has trusted for years. And let's face it, if Harry wants to be on his own he can easily find the place to do so as the Manor is big enough to keep everybody entertained on their own things.  
  
Obsessed with Snuffles - About Katie's age, I'm not entirely sure but I always thought that she was at least two years older than Harry as on the first book when they're playing for the first time Lee says that she had been part of the team on the previous year, even though it was as a back up. We know that Harry was the youngest player to play in the House team for over a century, I'm assuming that also include back up players, that means that if Katie started to play for the team the year before Harry joined that means that on Harry's first year she was at least in her third year. That's why I'm not including her in my current player's list.  
  
Samsam - Harry will have a relationship but I don't think it will be with any of the current characters in the story. I still haven't decided completely with whom yet.  
  
Tanya J. Potter - I'm a great fan of Hermione and Ron romances, so I'll definitely paired them in this story. I can't say I feel the same about Ginny and Harry, but I still haven't decided yet what I'll do with Harry yet, as I told Samsam. Emma and Katie will make an appearance once more. I had thought to bring Katie back before Harry's sixth year before OotP came out but with Sirius' death, I've changed my mind, I haven't figured out how I'm going to bring her back. You'll see Emma later in the story.  
  
Thank you to all of you who reviewed, Carmine, Candor, November Falls, Lady Reaper of the Shadows, Harryforeva, Blueangel9812, Ruthie, Doomspell, val, JJP9090, sjs, TBK, Sabreen, and Sirius gyal (What's the name of your story?) and of course to those of you who had questions. I hope you all continue enjoying the rest of the story. 


	52. Sixth Year Chapter 4

A/N: Hello once again! Now this is a slow chapter, even if it is long, but I think you'll like it. Thank you all for reviewing.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Chapter 4 ~ A Birthday Party  
  
Harry was awoken by the sound of Lotty unpacking his trunk.  
  
The curtains across the windows had been drawn and as he had forgotten to close those around the bed, the sunlight shone brightly around him.  
  
"Good morning, Master Harry." Lotty said the moment he noticed Harry stirring in bed.  
  
"Morning." Mumbled Harry.  
  
"Master wishes to eat in bed, or will Master Harry go down to breakfast?" Asked Lotty looking at Harry as he waited for his decision.  
  
"I'll go down." Said Harry promptly, he didn't know if he would ever get used to being served, it was a new experience for him.  
  
"Does Master Harry wishes for Lotty to ready his bath?" The elf asked eagerly.  
  
"Er.yeah, I guess." Said Harry. He would've preferred to do it on his own, but Lotty seemed so eager, Harry didn't want to hurt his feelings.  
  
"Lotty disappeared into the bathroom wile Harry slowly got out of bed.  
  
There was a bathrobe at the end of his bed. Harry grabbed it and hurried into the bathroom after Lotty. It was bigger than what he had expected.  
  
There was a large stall, where, Harry assumed, stood the toilet. A large sink with golden knobs stood beside it with a long counter running along the wall next to it. A round bathtub stood at the center of the room. It was big enough to hold four or five people with comfort. There were golden faucets around it, and Harry remembered the one he used in the Prefect's Bathroom when he tried to decipher the golden egg for the Second Task during the Triwizard Tournament. At each end of the room was a door, which he expected, led into the dressing rooms and the sitting room.  
  
The tub was full and Lotty was waiting with his arms full of clean towels, by the time Harry ended his perusal of the room.  
  
Harry looked at the elf in consternation, he didn't know what he would do if Lotty announced that he was helping with his bath. But one thing was sure, he was not bathing in front of the elf.  
  
"Lotty will ready Master's clothes." The elf said.  
  
Harry sighed with relief. "You do that." He said with a smiled.  
  
"Will master wear robes or muggle clothing?" Lotty asked.  
  
Harry looked at Lotty with surprise. He had never worn wizard robes outside of Hogwarts, even the Weasley children wore muggle clothing during the holidays. The only ones he had seen wearing robes were the adult witches and wizards. "Muggle clothing." He finally said, even though he had a strong urge to wear robes for a change. He was sure there was nobody to gainsay him if he wished to do so.  
  
Lotty nodded happily and quickly went into the room, Harry assumed, was the dressing room.  
  
Harry disrobed and stepped into the bathtub. He had never had anybody set upon granting his wishes, and it was a luxury for him to have another serve him hand and foot. He knew Hermione wouldn't approve if she knew how much he enjoyed having a personal elf.  
  
He stayed in the tub long enough for the water to get cold. Eventually, he stepped out of the bath and belted the robe around him.  
  
There was a pair of slippers at the end of the tub. Harry stepped into them and followed Lotty into the dressing rooms.  
  
It was a large room. Only a screen divided it into two. A large bench stood against one wall, between two large mirrors. Harry was strongly reminded of the Mirror of Erised, as the two mirrors resembled the style of workmanship of that mirror, but these ones, Harry knew, couldn't possibly have the same purpose. Next to one of the mirrors was a dressing table. Harry knew that it had once belonged to his mother as he noticed the golden set of combs and pins around the table. There were small pictures of him and his parents attached to the edges of the mirror.  
  
Harry looked away from the dressing room to look at the rest of the room. At each side were shelves full of muggle clothing and wizard robes. One side was clearly meant for the Mistress of the house as the other was meant for the Master.  
  
He was surprised to see that both sides were full of clothes, he had thought that all of his parents' clothes had been stored after they went into hiding and he was sure that those they had taken with them had been destroyed during Voldemort's attack.  
  
"Whose clothes are these, Lotty?" Harry asked as he neared the shelves that clearly held the Master's clothes.  
  
"Yours Master. Lotty and Minnie made these for you." Lotty said with a worried expression.  
  
"Thank you." Harry said. "How did you know my measurements?"  
  
"Lotty and Minnie don't, we need to measure Master Harry." The elf said as he motioned to a small box next to the mirror. "If Master stands before the mirror, Lotty will make sure the clothes fit."  
  
Harry nodded and one by one, the clothes the elves had made were fitted and tailored.  
  
Harry looked pleased by what the elves had accomplished. He couldn't remember a time when he hadn't worn Dudley's castoffs, and they never fit him properly. Now, for the first time in memory, he had clothes made specially for him, and all clearly made with the finest materials he had ever seen.  
  
It was an hour later when Harry stepped out of his rooms, dressed in linen trousers and a white polo shirt. His shoes were also new, as he walked happily down to the family dining room.  
  
Everybody was already there when he entered.  
  
"Hello, Harry. Had a good night?" Asked Lupin the moment Harry entered the room.  
  
"Yes, thank you." Said Harry with a smile. He had a great night, Harry thought, it was great knowing that he was back home.  
  
"Have some breakfast, dear." Said Mrs. Weasley as she motioned to the platters of food set at the middle of the table.  
  
Harry hurried to the only empty chair, the one at the head of the table. Roberts held it for him before sliding it forward.  
  
He filled his plate with all that he could find before him and settled himself to eat. He wanted to see the rest of the house and he knew he would need the energy to see it all.  
  
"Would you like to see the rest of the house?" Asked Lupin, who was sitting on Harry's left side.  
  
"Yes, please." Harry said between bites. "I'd like that very much."  
  
Lupin nodded with understanding. "We can see the gardens if you like, or the guests rooms if you prefer."  
  
"The gardens. I'm sure that the guest rooms are all fine." Harry said.  
  
"Can we come too?" Asked Ginny sitting next to Lupin. "I'd like to see the gardens."  
  
Ron and Hermione turned to look at Harry. Clearly, they wanted to come along as well, but were trying to be sure he wanted them along instead of going on his own.  
  
"Sure. Aren't you going to Diagon Alley with Fred and George?" Harry asked.  
  
"No. Mom told them we needed to unpack. But the elves did it during the night. We haven't told her that though." Ron said.  
  
"I didn't see them at it. I would've stopped them if I had. I'm more than capable of doing things on my own." Hermione exclaimed.  
  
"I'm sure you are Hermione." Said Ginny, stopping Ron from saying something he was sure to regret later. "But they are just trying to gain their wages, they get paid for their work after all."  
  
Hermione seemed thoughtful for a minute. "You're right. I don't want to be the one responsible for getting them sacked for not doing their duties." She said.  
  
Harry and Ron shared an amused glance before turning back to their food.  
  
One by one those sitting at the table left their chairs and made their way to the grate for their respective jobs.  
  
Harry soon finished his meal and waited for the others to finish. Lupin was sprawled back on his chair. Harry had never seen him so relaxed, he was sure that his former professor was happy to be back on familiar grounds. And Harry was happy to have him there with him.  
  
Ron was the last to push the plate away from him with an expression of complete satisfaction.  
  
"That was a good meal." He said feeling extremely replete.  
  
"Ugh!" Hermione frowned at the sight of the many plates Ron had eaten.  
  
"You are disgusting." Ginny exclaimed.  
  
Harry laughed. "Come on. Let's see the gardens." He said as he slid the chair back and started toward the door leading to the corridor.  
  
"We can begin with the topiary and the enclosed gardens." Lupin said leading them to the family parlor. "Then we can go around to the formal gardens and the lake."  
  
Harry followed Lupin into the sun bathed gardens. The flowery scents permeated the air and the colorful kaleidoscope of gardens brought an atmosphere of peace and made Harry forget about the troublesome dreams that had bothered him in the past nights.  
  
Lupin took them around the topiary, Ginny stopped once in a while to look at the cropped bushes trimmed in various forms. Harry was impressed by the close attention the gardeners obviously paid to their duties. There was no limb out place or a leaf on the ground. Everything seemed cleaned and well taken care of.  
  
They went around the enclosed gardens, except for the last one, which was locked.  
  
"Mrs. Nichols has the key, I'm sure she'll give it to you soon enough." Lupin said. Harry was surprised to note that the former professor sounded saddened, but he couldn't understand why.  
  
Lupin quickly led them through the rest of the gardens. They visited the greenhouses next. The lake was soon found and everybody agreed to row on it at the earliest opportunity. The mazes were impressive, although Harry was sure that they would not become a place he would enjoy. He had had enough of mazes and didn't want to be near one any time soon. The formal gardens were looked at with curiosity but everybody agreed that the enclosed gardens were better, as the flowers there were allowed to grow in a restrained kind of wildness that made the whole sight wondrous to see.  
  
"You said you would show us the orchard." Harry reminded Lupin as they finished inspecting the gardens.  
  
"Yes, I did. I'm sure you'll enjoy what's in the middle of it." Lupin smiled somewhat secretively.  
  
"What's there to see in an orchard? It's only full of apple trees." Ron said as he, Hermione and Ginny followed Harry and Lupin toward the orchard at the far end of the surrounding grounds.  
  
Harry looked skeptically at the tall trees standing side by side in close range. Ron was right, he thought, what could be so interesting about an orchard?  
  
They reached the outer trees and Lupin kept walking deeper into the woods. "We'll be there soon." He called to them.  
  
Harry frowned. "But we've reached it Professor. The apples do look delicious."  
  
"They are." Laughed Lupin as he reached up for a couple. "The cider made from these apples are famous around these parts, even the Leaky Cauldron orders a couple of barrels a week for its costumers."  
  
"Really? I didn't know they served cider." Exclaimed Hermione. "I love hot cider, my parents used to take me to this small inn out of town in winter just to drink a mug of hot cider."  
  
"Well, you'll love the one fermented here. There are hundreds of sealed casks in the cellar and I'm sure Roberts would be glad to open one for you. He has been waiting for so long for somebody to inhabit the Manor once more so he could have an excuse for bringing up a cask of cider." Smiled Lupin.  
  
The group continued to walk deeper into the orchard. Ron walked beside Harry and looked around with curiosity.  
  
"What is he trying to find?" He whispered to Harry.  
  
"Dunno, but he has been mentioning this orchard so often I expected to find a treasure." Harry whispered back.  
  
"What is that?" Asked Ginny as she pointed forward.  
  
Harry peered to the spot she pointed. It seemed that they were walking toward a wall.  
  
"A wall?" Said Hermione with some confusion.  
  
"Why do you have a wall in the middle of an orchard?" Ron asked.  
  
They stepped into a clearing. A white wall loomed over them.  
  
"Come, the door is this way." Lupin said as he pointed to their right.  
  
They turned and walked along the wall. It seemed to Harry that it must be circular as he couldn't see any sort of corners. They reached a pair of wooden doors. They were as big as those opening into the entrance hall at Hogwarts. Lupin pulled and pulled, until the doors began to budge and open.  
  
"You'll love this. It was one of James' favorite places to be. Sirius loved it too." He said with a bitter smile. He walked through the doors, followed closely by Harry and the others.  
  
"Wow." Breathed Harry in awe.  
  
The Quiditch Pitch opened proudly into the clearing. The grass had been trimmed and the poles polished. Along the wall stood hundreds of seats for spectators, along with some special seats for important guests.  
  
"Beautiful." Said Ron as he looked around. "This will be perfect for us to practice in before term."  
  
"It's as big as the one at Hogwarts." Ginny exclaimed.  
  
"Yes, it used to be an exact replica of the Hogwarts' Pitch, but it was remodeled several times.  
  
"Was it used often?" Hermione asked. Even though she wasn't a Quidditch player like the others and only watched because they played in the Gryffindor team, she was still impressed by the Pitch.  
  
"There used to be several games between the villagers and the tenants, especially during the Harvest Fair." Lupin said.  
  
"Harvest Fair?" Asked Harry.  
  
"A celebration during the second or third week of September. It's a tradition done in order to encourage the villagers and the tenants to do well and to celebrate the harvested crops." Lupin explained.  
  
"They're not celebrated anymore?" Asked Harry.  
  
"The Fair is celebrated, but I'm not sure if the Quidditch games continued. The Master of the Manor was in charge of the games after all." Lupin replied.  
  
Harry was thoughtful for a moment. For so long he believed that he had been the only one to be directly affected by his parents death, other than Voldemort that is, but now he knew that that hadn't been the case. The people leaving in the Manor and the village seemed to have been affected as well, and he couldn't help but feel that if he had know about it all, he wouldn't have felt so alone all those years with the Dursleys.  
  
"I can't wait to come and fly later." Exclaimed Ron snapping Harry from his thoughts.  
  
"We can practice for the next season." Said Ginny, her eyes sparkling with reined energy.  
  
Harry couldn't wait to come out with his firebolt, just as his two teammates, he was eager to come out and play. Now he understood why Professor Lupin had been so sure he would like the orchard.  
  
"Come, let me show you this. There's a changing room entrance down here." Lupin said as he led them to a door behind one of the poles at the end of the Pitch. "There's another across the Pitch." He said pointing to where the other set of poles stood in the distance. "But this one was used by the Manor team on the Harvest Games. He led them through a wide corridor ending in a large room there were lockers around the walls and long benches in the middle of the room.  
  
Harry looked around. He had missed playing with the team on the last season. Umbridge banned him from playing Quidditch after he and George had attacked Malfoy after the Gryffindor vs. Slytherin game. He had regretted that he had lost control of his emotions then, but he couldn't regret going after Malfoy. As he looked over the lockers, he noticed that some had names on it, and one had the name POTTER printed in golden letters on the door.  
  
Harry hurried to the locker and pulled it open. The hinges squeaked slightly, it seemed that Lupin had been right and the Pitch had not been used for a while. Inside, he found a set of golden robes, they had a scarlet lining with a large G with a P in the middle of it embroidered in the back of the robes below the golden J. Potter embroidered a the top.  
  
"Your father always played for the Manor team. It was his favorite part of the Fair." Lupin said as he watched sadly as Harry took the robes out and tenderly stroked the heavy folds of the fabric.  
  
Harry didn't say anything and he was aware that the others were silent as well. He roughly put the robes back into the locker. There was a broom at the back of the locker, he took it out and was surprised to find a firebolt in his hands.  
  
"How did he get one? The firebolt came out only three years ago." Ron said with surprise.  
  
"The Manor has always provided the brooms for the games, both teams have used the latest in broom technologies. In some cases, the broom companies have sent the latest prototype for the teams to test them. The groundskeeper is in charge of making sure that the brooms are replaced periodically. I can only assume that the costume continued and the brooms were replaced when the Firebolt came out." Lupin said.  
  
"Wow, too bad we don't have enough people to make up another team, we would have a ripping good game if we did." Ron exclaimed as he opened other lockers to find the same items Harry found in his father's.  
  
Lupin laughed. "You'll find enough young people in the village and the tenant farms, I'm sure you could form another team to play with."  
  
"We should do that, Harry. It would help us train for the next season." Ron exclaimed with eager anticipation.  
  
"We will. We'll go around visiting the tenants and the village and we'll see what can come out of it." Said Harry, Ron's enthusiasm was rapidly becoming contagious.  
  
Hermione sighed wearily and Harry knew that it was just an act as he was sure she was eager to make a niche for herself in the bookroom and read as much as she could.  
  
"Where do you want to go next?" Lupin asked as he watched happily as Harry, Ron and Ginny were looking through the lockers with curiosity.  
  
"Could we go and see the tenants?" Harry asked. He wanted to see the land that kept the Manor and its people provided for.  
  
"It would be better if we wait for another day, I think Mr. Stuart should go with us then, he can tell you a lot more about the farms and the tenants than I ever could." Lupin said.  
  
"Let's stay here, Harry, we can fly around for a while." Urged Ron.  
  
"Oh yes, let's." Said Ginny.  
  
"I'll go to the bookroom." Said Hermione and hurried out of the locker room.  
  
"We'll stay here." Harry told Lupin.  
  
"If you wish. Let me show you where the balls are kept." Lupin said and led them out of the locker room toward a small door by the entrance of the corridor they had crossed to get to the lockers. Behind the door they found a small cupboard. A chest, that Harry readily recognized as one that held Quidditch balls, was tucked against the wall. A rack against another wall held ten to fifteen firebolts, and three sets of back robes hanged stiffly against the remaining wall. Above the chest was a net, where Harry noticed several beater bats. "You'll find everything you need here." Lupin said.  
  
"We're allowed to use the balls here?" Asked Ron. "Is there any danger of muggles stumbling in here?"  
  
"No muggles can come unless they're invited. Some of the muggles in the village are related to witches, so they have attended the games now and then. Those who know nothing about the magical world are kept away by muggle repelling spells. There's a shielding spell around the Pitch and every spell necessary to keep the balls within the field has been performed accordingly." Lupin said.  
  
"Let's go get our robes." Said Ginny.  
  
"No. I want to use the one in the lockers." Said Harry. He wanted to use his father's robes and he didn't want to wait for the others to get their Gryffindor robes.  
  
"Let's see if we can find one that fit us, Ginny." Ron said, as if understanding Harry's decision.  
  
"All right." Ginny agreed with no comment.  
  
The three went back to the changing room, while Lupin decided to stay in the bleachers.  
  
Harry took his father's robes tenderly out of the locker. He could hear Ron and Ginny chatting happily in the background as they looked among the lockers for a set of robes to fit them. The J. Potter glistened brightly in the light. Harry sighed and he promptly put on the robes.  
  
They fit perfectly. Harry run down his hands among the folds of the robes as they majestically moved around him. He turned rapidly to look at Ron and Ginny and found them attempting to step into a set of robes.  
  
"I'm ready." Called Harry.  
  
"Just a moment." Grunted Ron as his head was lost among the folds of the robes.  
  
"I'm set." Said Ginny a moment later.  
  
"Ok, there." Sighed Ron as the robes fluttered in place.  
  
"Come on." Said Harry as he grabbed the Firebolt and led the others into the Pitch.  
  
Lupin stood in the middle with the chest of Quidditch balls at his feet. "I'll let them go once you're on the air." He said.  
  
"All right, just don't let the bludgers go. We don't have any beaters with us." Said Ron.  
  
"Yeah, I'll practice with the Snitch while Ginny throws the Quaffle to Ron." Harry said.  
  
"I much prefer the chaser position. The seeker has too much pressure." Said Ginny.  
  
Harry mounted his broom, Ron and Ginny followed his example. Moments later, three brooms were rising into the air.  
  
Lupin opened the chest open and the Snitch flew promptly into the air. He kept the bludgers strapped in place and threw the Quaffle toward Ginny.  
  
She caught it efficiently and flew around the Pitch as Ron took his place around a set of rings.  
  
Lupin sat on the bleachers watching the three young people flying around the Pitch. There were squeals of laughter and whoops of awe as each performed daring moves trying to show off their different skills.  
  
They passed almost an hour in this way when Hermione ran into the Pitch. "Come down." She yelled.  
  
Harry motioned to the others to land and seconds later they were landing gracefully by Hermione.  
  
"What is it, Hermione? We were happily entertained." Snapped Ron.  
  
"Oh, stuff it. Your mum wants you in for lunch." Hermione said.  
  
"You should've said that." Ron exclaimed and started running to the changing rooms.  
  
"Hurry up." Hermione yelled as Harry and Ginny followed Ron out of the Pitch.  
  
"What's the hurry? It won't take too long to change." Yelled Harry turning back to see Hermione flapping her hands as if that would make them hurry.  
  
"Three owls just came in, I saw them when I was coming out. I heard Roberts say that they came from the examination center." Hermione squealed.  
  
Ron and Ginny had stopped to hear what Hermione was saying.  
  
"The examination center?" Asked Ron with a blank expression.  
  
"The O.W.L.'s Ron, it must be our O.W.L. results." Hermione yelled with excitement.  
  
"Oh no!" Exclaimed Ron and ran faster into the changing rooms. Harry was close behind him.  
  
Harry dressed in a hurry, he didn't even bother to take a quick shower before he changed. Ron was hurrying at his side. Only Ginny took her time changing. It was less than fifteen minutes when Harry and Ron joined Hermione in the Pitch.  
  
"Come on, Hermione. Hurry up." Urged Ron.  
  
The trio ran out of the Pitch toward the Manor House. Lupin had stayed behind to walk back with Ginny.  
  
"What do you think you got?" Ron panted as they ran through the grounds past the enclosed gardens.  
  
"I just hope I got enough O.W.L.s, I'm only sure that I got an Outstanding in D.A.D.A." Said Harry.  
  
"Hurry up, the results are waiting for us." Hermione gasped as she ran by their side. She had to make an effort to keep up to them and the stitch at her side was become really uncomfortable.  
  
The Manor House loomed above them as they got closer. The glass door to the dinning room stood open as they ran into it.  
  
"Ron, Harry, Hermione. Please, behave yourselves. There is no need for you to come in running that way." Scolded Mrs. Weasley as she sat at the table waiting for them.  
  
"Sorry mum." Panted Ron.  
  
"I'm sorry." "Sorry, Mrs. Weasley." Said Harry and Hermione.  
  
"Come, sit down." Mrs. Weasley ordered. "Where is Ginny?"  
  
"She's coming with Professor Lupin." Ron said as he gulped down a glass of water.  
  
Roberts and the footmen were setting the full plates before them as Lupin walked in with Ginny at his heels.  
  
"There you are, Ginny dear. Had a good time?" Mrs. Weasley asked as Ginny kissed her cheek dutifully.  
  
"Oh yes. There's a Quidditch Pitch in the middle of the orchard. We had a great time." Ginny exclaimed.  
  
Mrs. Weasley laughed. "I'm sure your brothers will enjoy that when they return from work." She said.  
  
The meal had been served and Harry didn't know who to ask about the owls Hermione was sure had arrived.  
  
"Where are the letters?" Ron whispered to Harry.  
  
"Don't know." Harry whispered back. They turned to look at Hermione, who sat at Harry's other side.  
  
"I'm sure I saw them." She said.  
  
"Maybe they weren't from the examination center." Ron said.  
  
"But I heard Roberts say that they were." Hermione exclaimed.  
  
"Something wrong, dears." Mrs. Weasley asked to the trio sitting at the other end of the table.  
  
"No mum, we were just making plans for later." Ron said.  
  
They turned their attention to the rest of their food. Ginny was chatting happily with her mother and Lupin, while Ron, Hermione and Harry continued whispering on their side of the table.  
  
They were finishing with their meal, when Roberts entered the room carrying a silver platter in his hands. Three letters lay in the middle of it.  
  
"These letters arrived for you and your friends, Master Harry." Roberts said bowing to Harry.  
  
Harry took the letters. "Thank you." He said and passed one to Ron and the other to Hermione.  
  
The three of them looked down at the letters in trepidation.  
  
Hermione sighed and her shoulders straitened with determination. She ripped open the envelope and read the letter that slipped into her hands.  
  
Harry quickly followed her example and opened his letter.  
  
Dear Mr. Potter:  
  
On this present letter you will find the results of your Ordinary Wizarding Level Exams taken last June. As you are aware, these exams are very important for your future as they will decide your future career. We are sure that you did your very best and the results will show that.  
  
Good luck in your future endeavors.  
  
Sincerely,  
  
Griselda Marchbanks,  
  
Head of the Wizarding Examinations Authority  
  
At the bottom of the page was a table.  
  
Charms E 2  
  
Transfiguration E 2  
  
Herbology A 1  
  
Defense Against the Dark Arts O 3  
  
Potions E 2  
  
Care of Magical Creatures E 2  
  
Astronomy P 0  
  
Divination P 0  
  
History of Magic A 1  
  
Total of O.W.L. credits: 13  
  
Harry looked at his letter with surprise. He had done much better than he had expected. He breathed with relief. He had done the best he could and he had gotten good results. He couldn't hope for anything better than that, except a better grade in Potions if he wanted to become an Auror.  
  
"Oh, I did much better than I expected." Hermione exclaimed.  
  
"How could you? You know everything." Ron said.  
  
"Well, how did you do?" Hermione asked him.  
  
"Let's just say that I don't see how I'm going to become an auror with these results." Ron mumbled.  
  
"It couldn't be that bad." Harry said.  
  
"I have four A's, two P's, one O, and the rest are E's." Ron said.  
  
"That's eleven credits, that's good." Mrs. Weasley grinned proudly. "How did you do, Harry dear?"  
  
"13 credits." Harry said pushing the letter to Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"I bet Hermione got O's in everything." Ron said.  
  
"No. I didn't do as well as I expected in Ancient Runes and Astronomy." Hermione said.  
  
"I don't think anybody did very well on Astronomy, we were too distracted during the practical exam." Harry said.  
  
"You can say that again. I don't think I filled half of the chart by the time the commotion started." Ron said.  
  
Hermione nodded with alacrity. "I was almost finished but I got completely distracted by the end, I don't think I wrote the correct planets on the chart."  
  
"Well, no matter, we did better than we expected." Harry said.  
  
Mrs. Weasley was busy reading the results of their O.W.L.s, which had been passed to her by Ron after each had read their letter.  
  
"I'm very happy for you, dears. You did very well indeed. Although, I would've preferred for you to do a little better, Ron dear, after all Percy- " She didn't finish her sentence as she looked away disconcerted, Ron and Ginny looked away from her and looked down to their empty plates while Harry and Hermione looked at each other with consternation.  
  
It was more than a year since Percy left the family but the repercussions were still deeply felt by all members of the family.  
  
"I'm sure that they did the best they could, Molly. I'm sure James and Lily would be proud of you Harry. Thirteen O.W.L.s is a great accomplishment." Lupin said cutting through the silence that had enveloped the room.  
  
Harry smiled at Lupin with relief, Mrs. Weasley seemed in control of her emotions once more.  
  
"Now, why don't we all retire to the game room, I'm sure that you need some time for the food to settle in your stomachs before you go out and do whatever you want." Said Lupin as Roberts and the footmen quickly dispersed around the table gathering the dirty plates.  
  
"That's a good idea, dears. I'm meeting with Mrs. Nichols to go over the rooms of the guest wing and see what it's needed there." Said Mrs. Weasley hurriedly and quickly left her chair and made her way out of the room.  
  
"I think I prefer to go to the bookroom." Said Hermione. "I'd like to take a look around."  
  
"I'll go too. I want to see the section of Defense Against the Dark Arts you mentioned." Said Harry, pushing his chair away from the table preparing to go to the bookroom.  
  
"I'll go too then, I'd like to see those books too." Said Ron. An afternoon closeted on a library was not his idea of fun, but he was curious about the books Professor Lupin had mentioned.  
  
"I might as well work on my summer assignments if we're going to be there." Said Ginny.  
  
"Very well, I have some letters to write so I'll accompany you." Said Lupin.  
  
The group crossed the corridor to the bookroom. The curtains had been drawn and lamps lit in preparation for their work in the bookroom.  
  
Hermione hurried to the nearest bookcase and started to look around. Ron and Harry hurried up the ladder and looked around the cases in the gallery searching for the Dark Arts section. Ginny had gone to her room in search for the materials she needed and Lupin sat behind the desk pulling from the drawers parchment, quills and ink. Minutes later only the sound of scribbling quills and shifting pages could be heard through the room.  
  
Night had fallen when Mr. Weasley walked into the room looking for them.  
  
"Ah, Roberts said I could find you lot here." He said with a smile as Ginny and Ron greeted him with a "Hi dad!"  
  
"Hello, Mr. Weasley." Harry called, Hermione repeated his greeting moments later.  
  
"You have been entertained, I see." Mr. Weasley said as he sat on one of the chairs near the desk.  
  
"You should see all these books in here, dad." Called Ron from the gallery. "These would've helped greatly in the D.A. meetings."  
  
"I suppose they would." Said Lupin. "The Potters always made sure they had the latest in Dark Arts History and Defense. I'm sure the estate manager updated it during the past years."  
  
"Talking about the estate manager, Remus. I received a letter from a Mr. Nicholei. He wants to meet with us tomorrow evening. Something about trusts and arrangements. I truly didn't understand what he was talking about." Said Mr. Weasley with a confused air.  
  
"Mr. Nicholei was the Evans' solicitor and James and Lily did some work with him as well. I'm sure we just has some things to go over with us now that Harry is back home." Lupin said.  
  
"I see." Said Mr. Weasley breathed with relief. "I'm sure we all need to hear what he has to say."  
  
"Indeed. There is nothing to worry, Arthur, Mr. Nicholei is one of the trustees of Harry's inheritance. I'm sure he is coming mostly just to meet Harry. He hasn't seen him since he was a baby, after all." Lupin replied.  
  
"Oh, I'm sure you're right." Mr. Weasley said. "Come, Molly is waiting for us to wash up for dinner."  
  
There was a lot of scrambling through the room as everybody hurried from their places around the room. They left the room hurriedly, Mr. Weasley and Lupin were the last to leave.  
  
"Dumbledore wants the Order to meet tonight." Mr. Weasley whispered in Lupin's ear.  
  
"I thought he might. Tomorrow is the 31st, there might be some trouble afoot." Lupin whispered back.  
  
"Do you think it wise, to leave the children here on their own, I mean." Mr. Weasley asked.  
  
"They'll be safe. I had the gamekeeper and his assistants set up a schedule to keep watch on the house. Mrs. Nichols and Roberts will keep an eye on the children and the elves will be working around the house. There'll be enough eyes to keep watch on them for the night." Lupin said.  
  
"Molly will worry, she doesn't like the idea of leaving the children during the night." Mr. Weasley said as the pair started down the corridor toward the family dinning room.  
  
"I know, but Hogwarts is the only place we have where we can meet safely." Lupin replied. "Until we find another place, we'll have to go to Hogwarts whenever we have a meeting."  
  
"We'll have to find somewhere else soon, we won't be able to meet at Hogwarts once schools starts." Mr. Weasley exclaimed. "We'll have only one month left after tomorrow."  
  
"I'm sure Dumbledore will think of something." Lupin said as they neared the dinning room.  
  
Everybody was already there, Harry, Ron and Hermione sat at one end of the table discussing their O.W.L results. Ginny, Bill and the twins sat across each other in the middle of the table talking about the latest Quidditch game, while Mrs. Weasley was talking with Tonks at the other end of the table in whispers.  
  
Mrs. Weasley looked up as Lupin and Mr. Weasley entered the room. She motioned to them to join her at her end of the table.  
  
"I had Roberts bring some of that fabulous cider to celebrate the O.W.L. results the kids got this morning." She said with a smile directed at Harry, Ron and Hermione. "They did quite well."  
  
"Please don't tell us that we have a future Head Boy." Fred exclaimed.  
  
"I don't think we could handle the shame of it." George shook his head sadly.  
  
Mrs. Weasley pursed her lips in displeasure while Mr. Weasley chuckled in amusement. "Will you sod off?" Ron exclaimed.  
  
"Ron!" Hermione hissed.  
  
"Hermione will certainly be Head Girl." Said Ginny piling food on her plate. "But I don't think Ron's results will win him that badge."  
  
"Hey! I did well! Maybe not as good as Hermione but well enough." Ron said with hurt pride.  
  
"But Harry got more O.W.L.s than you did. If the Head Boy is chosen by the results, he is more likely to be chosen than you." Ginny said unruffled by Ron's glaring.  
  
"She's right, mate." Fred said pushing the plate full of sweetened apples to Ron.  
  
"I don't think I'll get it either." Harry said. "Dumbledore didn't give me the prefect badge because he thought I had too much to deal with, I don't think a Head Boy badge will make any difference."  
  
"As long as he doesn't give it to Malfoy." Ron grumbled.  
  
Hermione looked frightened by the thought and Harry nodded with agreement.  
  
Conversations continued around the table. Harry could hear the others talking animatedly as he emptied his plate.  
  
By the end of the meal, they all seemed satiated. The empty plates lay discarded around the table and the pitcher of cider had been emptied and filled several times during the meal.  
  
"I'll be in the bookroom, there is a report I have to do for tomorrow morning." Mr. Weasley said.  
  
"We'll go to the game room, mum." Fred said nudging George on the arm with discretion.  
  
"Very well dears, but I want you all in bed early tonight. It'll be a big day tomorrow." She said cryptically.  
  
"What does that mean?" Asked Ron as he, Hermione and Harry followed the twins to the game room. Ginny had decided to go to her room and finish the schoolwork she had started that afternoon.  
  
"It means that they have something planned for tomorrow." Hermione hissed with exasperation.  
  
"But what's so special about tomorrow?" Ron asked in confusion.  
  
"Honestly!" Hermione exclaimed.  
  
"She means my birthday." Harry said with a smile. He had forgotten about his birthday, but Mrs. Weasley's excited chatter and the servants mysterious glances had reminded him of it and was looking forward to having a real celebration after all the years he spent in neglect at the Dursley's.  
  
"Oh." Ron's eyes opened in understanding.  
  
Hermione looked at him exasperated.  
  
"Well, I didn't know what you were talking about." Exclaimed Ron.  
  
"Talking about what?" Asked Fred as he and George settled to play a round of pool.  
  
"About tomorrow." Said Harry, he went for the couch in front of the television. For years, he had watched what others wanted to watch, now for the first time, he could sit and watch whatever he wanted.  
  
"What about tomorrow." Asked George as he leaned across the table lining his shot.  
  
Hermione growled with frustration. "It must be the Weasley genes." She mumbled as she joined Harry on the couch.  
  
Harry laughed as he flipped through the channels searching for something to watch.  
  
"Harry's birthday." Ron said as he stood by the table watching the game.  
  
"Oh, heard they were planning something." Fred said.  
  
"I think it was meant to be a surprise." Hermione exclaimed.  
  
"Sorry." George laughed.  
  
"Don't worry, Hermione. I would've guessed something. Mrs. Weasley and Mrs. Nichols were whispering excitedly earlier today." Harry said.  
  
"Well, if you're sure." Hermione sighed with resignation.  
  
"I'll still enjoy it." Harry replied. "It would be the first time my birthday was celebrated."  
  
"See, he doesn't mind knowing." Ron said as he joined them on the couch. "Maybe we could have a game, Harry." He said excitedly.  
  
"I'm sure we could gather enough players." Harrry responded with enthusiasm.  
  
"A game of what?" Asked Fred as he waited for George to take his shot.  
  
"Of Quidditch, of course." Ron exclaimed.  
  
"Quidditch? And where do you plan to have this game?" George asked straightening after taking his shot.  
  
"In the Quidditch Pitch. You should see it, it's huge." Ron said excitedly.  
  
"A Quidditch Pitch? Where?" Asked Fred, forgetting their game for a moment at the mention of a Quidditch pitch.  
  
"In the middle of the orchard." Said Harry, putting the control aside for a moment as he turned to look at the twins. "Same size as the one in Hogwarts, with changing rooms and everything."  
  
"And every locker has a Firebolt and a set of robes. We played a bit this morning, it was great." Ron replied, his eyes shone with excitement and the others were soon become so.  
  
"We got to go and see it." George exclaimed sticking his cue on a rack, ready to step out of the glass door leading to the gardens.  
  
"You can't go out." Hermione said. "Your mum is not going to like it. Besides, you could see it better tomorrow morning."  
  
"She's right." Said Fred. "And everybody'll be here, we can set up a team and have a game."  
  
"It'll be great, and we'll have enough practice for the next season." Ron sighed with contentment.  
  
"Too bad the rest of the team can't do so." George said.  
  
"Yeah, they need it. It was a miracle Gryffindor kept the Cup." Fred said.  
  
"It was so embarrassing." Harry shook his head with disappointment.  
  
"I got better." Ron exclaimed, his ears had turned as red as beets. "I helped keep the Cup with Gryffindor."  
  
"Well, yes. You did redeem yourself, but we can't say the same about our replacements." Fred replied.  
  
"Ginny was good. Maybe not as good as Harry, but she did well." Hermione chided them.  
  
"Well, but she's our sister, she was bound to do well." George said.  
  
"Besides, she wants to be a chaser, not a seeker." Harry reminded them.  
  
"But our replacements were a disappointment. Can't say when we were disgusted with the team as we were last season." Fred said sadly.  
  
"Went to the game just to support, didn't see a minute of the games, knew we wouldn't like what we could've seen." George explained.  
  
"I'm sure we could do better this year. We need to replace almost half of the team." Harry said.  
  
"Yeah, all the chasers have left us." Ron said, glad that they hadn't said much about him and his performance on the team on the previous season. He knew how bad he had performed at the beginning.  
  
"You only need two chasers, now that Harry is back and Ginny takes over one of the vacant positions." Fred said.  
  
"Might as well replace the beaters too. I'm sure there are better players in Gryffindor somewhere." George said.  
  
"Yeah, we didn't have time to have a good try out last year after you lot were banned. We had to find replacements in a hurry." Ron explained.  
  
"You might want to keep all this planning until the new captain is chosen." Hermione replied. "Can't do much until you know who McGonagall is going to choose."  
  
"She's right." Harry said.  
  
"We know who the captain will be." Fred said.  
  
"There's no other choice. Harry is the only one left with experience." George exclaimed.  
  
Harry flushed as the others looked at him. He didn't want to seem like he agreed with the twins. But he was indeed the only one left in the team with the experience necessary to take on the part of Gryffindor Quidditch Team Captain.  
  
"Don't count your chickens before they hatch." Said Hermione.  
  
The Weasleys looked at her in confusion.  
  
"What do chickens have to do with anything? There are no chickens in Quidditch. Are you feeling all right?" Ron asked with a worried expression.  
  
Harry laughed. "She means that we shouldn't take everything for granted. McGonagall might just agree with Dumbledore and decide that I have too many things to deal with and choose somebody else as Captain." He explained.  
  
"Who is she going to choose? Ron?" Fred exclaimed.  
  
"I could do it, I could be a good captain." Ron mumbled.  
  
"Ronnikins, you couldn't take the responsibility. You don't have the experience Harry has, and let's face it he's a natural leader, something you're not. Besides, he deserves that position more than you do." George said.  
  
"I'm not saying he shouldn't get it. I know he would be a better captain, but we are talking about options. McGonagall never does what we expect." Ron said.  
  
"He got us there. She never did a thing we wanted her to do." Fred sighed.  
  
"That's because you never wanted anything good." Hermione replied.  
  
"But she wants the best for the team, she wouldn't have chosen Harry as seeker if she didn't. And he has never lost us a game." George said.  
  
"Except for the one against Hufflepuff in third year." Harry replied, happy that the others had much confidence in him.  
  
"That wasn't your fault. If the dementors hadn't appeared during the game, you would've gotten the snitch before Diggory." Ron exclaimed.  
  
Silence fell among the young people.  
  
Harry looked down at his hands, the image of Cedric as he had seen him last on that fateful day more than a year ago was still fresh in his mind's eye.  
  
"Sorry." Whispered Ron.  
  
Harry shook his head. "It's nothing." He mumbled.  
  
"Come, I think it's time to go to bed. I'm sure we'll have lots to do tomorrow and if you lot want to have a game, you have to have a good rest." Hermione said, shooing them to the door.  
  
"She's right, we have lots to do tomorrow if we want to have that game." Fred said.  
  
They hurried to put everything back in place before they started leaving the room.  
  
"Harry, are you all right?" Asked Hermione after Fred and George left the room.  
  
"Sorry, mate. Didn't mean to make you remember." Ron said with worry in his eyes.  
  
"I'm fine. I'm sure that Cedric would be wanted to be remembered as he was in that moment." Harry said.  
  
"It will get better. Maybe." Whispered Hermione.  
  
"Let's go to bed." Said Harry as he left the couch and started toward the door.  
  
"Are you sure? We could stay up and keep you company if you want." Hermione said.  
  
"I'm fine. I'm a bit tired." Harry said and walked out the door.  
  
He heard Hermione call him before Ron's voice said "leave him, he'll be all right." He was glad that Ron restrained her from following him.  
  
On that last couple of nights, his sleep had been dreamless. He had been so excited to be in the Manor that for a time he had forgotten all about Voldemort, Cedric, Sirius, about everything that could bring him pain. He had slept as he hadn't done for so long, now, he didn't know if he would sleep in such a way again.  
  
The corridors were silent as he made his way to his room. Torches had been lit and lighted his way. He hurried to the third floor, he could hear the twins arguing in one of the rooms but he didn't stop to see what the argument was about. He sighed as he closed the door as soon as he entered his room. Lotty was busy preparing his bed.  
  
"Thank you, Lotty. Why don't you go to rest? I can get ready by myself." Harry said.  
  
The elf bowed and promptly disappeared from the room.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
It was the middle of the night, and Harry hadn't slept much. After Lotty had left the room, Harry hurried into his pajamas and snuggled between the sheets. Sleep hadn't come. The memories of Cedric and Sirius' deaths kept intruding his mind. He twisted and moved around the bed, trying to find a comfortable position to sleep in, but sleep proved elusive.  
  
Now, he was sitting on the bed, his potions book stood open in his lap and Harry was trying to pay attention to the page before him. But he couldn't keep his eyes on the page for more than a minute. His eyes kept straying to a collection of photos that stood on a table beside the bed.  
  
Harry had found them around the bedroom the day before, while he was looking around the room after settling for the night. He found many of his parents, some when they were young, others after their marriage. There were pictures of his father and Sirius, some included all four Marauders, Harry looked at those with sadness at the thought of what had happened to each member of that group.  
  
His mother had kept pictures from her muggle family. He had found some in which his Aunt Petunia stood by his mother and an older couple, who he assumed were his grandparents. There were others of his mother around Hogwarts' grounds, he could clearly see the lake and the Quidditch Pitch in the background. In most, she wasn't alone. He recognized Hagrid in some of them, but in most, she was accompanied by a couple of young girls, who clearly were close friends. Harry didn't know who they were, but wished they hadn't suffered the same tragedy his family had suffered.  
  
Light was dawning when Harry finally fell asleep. But dreams started to intrude soon enough.  
  
He was standing in the middle of a large circular room, there were doors around the wall and torches with blue flames lit the room. It was the one in the Department of Mysteries, where the circular wall rotated every time a door was closed. Harry could see the traces of the fiery marks that they had left behind to mark the doors they had checked. Harry was standing before one of these doors.  
  
Harry turned to look at the other doors, all stood open, except for the one before him. He could see the arch through which Sirius had fallen, the brains glistening in the dark. He recognized all of the rooms behind each door, they had passed all of them as they tried to escape the clutches of the Death Eaters.  
  
Harry turned to look at the closed door and understood which door it was. It was the locked door they had tried to open. All their efforts had been in vain. The knife Sirius had given him had melted when he passed it around the sides of the door, the Alohamora Charm had not worked, and no matter how hard they pushed against it, it had stayed closed.  
  
Harry saw his hand touch the door, it opened slowly and silently. He stepped into darkness. He saw darkness turn into fog. Light was dim, he could barely see shadows among the fog. There was silence, it seemed that he was alone among the mist.  
  
Suddenly, he could hear whispers. At the beginning they were unintelligible but they became clear after a moment. He could hear Dumbledore's voice as he explained the importance of the prophecy, he heard Neville's voice as they tried to escape from the Death Eaters, he could hear Bellatrix's laughter, the same he heard after Sirius' fell through the veil. Then there was silence. Seconds later he heard another voice. ".born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies.and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not.and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives."  
  
Harry peered into the fog, shadows moved but he could see no one. "I know about this." He yelled into the mists. "Either I kill him, or he will kill me." He whispered.  
  
The mist shifted. The shadows were lost in the fog and silence was restored.  
  
Harry looked curiously around. He didn't feel fear or nervousness. There was a power around him that made him feel safe. "You're not alone." He heard. He looked around hoping to see where the voice had come from. It was a voice of a girl and among the mists he could see the silhouette of a young woman, standing proudly against the dim light. The fog around her shifted once more and she disappeared from sight.  
  
A bright light spread around him, blinding him.  
  
Harry awoke. The curtains had been drawn from the windows and the sunlight shone around the room.  
  
Harry sighed and remained on the bed. The memory of the dream still clear in his mind.  
  
"Good morning, Master Harry." Lotty said.  
  
"Morning, Lotty." Mumbled Harry as he tried to sit up. His potions book fell to the floor as he tried to straighten the sheets that trapped his feet.  
  
"Minnie has brought the Master's breakfast." Squeaked the elf.  
  
Harry turned to look at Lotty, who was pointing to the younger elf waiting by table set before the fireplace with a large variety of foods.  
  
"Thank you." He said.  
  
"Minnie will serve Master in bed." Said Minnie promptly.  
  
"I'd like that." Exclaimed Harry, he had never been served breakfast in bed and he didn't mind it this morning. It was his birthday after all.  
  
Minnie hurried to serve him. Harry enjoyed his breakfast, by the time he had finished his meal he couldn't remember the dream that had disturbed him so much.  
  
Minnie took the plates away while Lotty prepared the shower for Harry.  
  
Half an hour later, Harry was hurrying down the corridor to the family dinning room. Everybody was there.  
  
"Where have you been? We had to start breakfast without you." Said Ron the minute Harry opened the door.  
  
"I already ate. Minnie and Lotty served me breakfast in bed." Harry said.  
  
"That was sweet of them." Said Hermione pushing her empty plate aside.  
  
"Don't stand there then, open your presents." Exclaimed Ginny.  
  
"Presents?" Harry asked with excitement.  
  
"Of course, you don't think that we could let the day pass without giving you something, do you?" Asked Fred.  
  
"Come dear, open your gifts." Mrs. Weasley said as she pointed to a table in a corner loaded with brightly wrapped packages.  
  
Harry hurried to the table, there were more gifts that he had ever seen in his life. He was sure that if Dudley had been there, he would've thrown a tantrum from envy. He didn't care to know how many gifts there were, he would've been happy with just a few. It was the first time in his memory that his birthday was celebrated properly.  
  
He started with the top package, a set of books about the Defense Against the Dark Arts fell on his lap. He happily put them aside before reaching for the next package. An hour later, he had a new set of robes, a set of Weasleys' Wildfire Whiz-Bangs Deflagration Deluxe, a box full of his favorite sweets, a case for his broom, Quidditch robes with two large C's on the back, and several packages of Dungbombs.  
  
"Wow, thanks." Exclaimed Harry after every package had been unwrapped.  
  
"Shame we're not at Hogwarts anymore." Sighed Fred at the sight of so many Dumgbombs.  
  
"Yeah, those would've been of so much use." George said understanding his brother's thoughts.  
  
"Don't you two be putting any ideas into Harry's head." Mrs. Weasley chided. "Now Harry, dear. Why don't you take your presents up to your room?"  
  
"I'll help." Said Ron as he finally pushed away from the table.  
  
Hermione accompanied them as they trekked up the stairs.  
  
At their return, they found the whole household waiting for them in the entrance hall. Lupin was waiting for them at the bottom of the stairs.  
  
"The staff has something to say to you, Harry." He said, motioning to the servants standing in line by the staircase.  
  
Harry walked to Lupin and looked at him with a question in his eyes.  
  
"Come." Whispered Lupin as he led them to where Roberts and Mrs. Nichols waited at the front of the line.  
  
"In the name of the staff, here at Gryffindor Manor," Roberts said, "I'd like to wish you a happy birthday, Master Harry."  
  
"Thank you." Said Harry.  
  
"We have prepared something for you, Master Harry. If you'll follow me." Roberts said motioning to the open door.  
  
Harry started toward the door, he could hear everybody following him out. Roberts led him toward the lake. In the distance, Harry could see colorful tents erected on the grounds around the lake. And there were many people waiting.  
  
"Happy Birthday, Master Harry!" The people shouted as soon as Harry was in sight.  
  
Harry was surprised by what he saw.  
  
There were balloons and banners all over the place, Happy Birthday was printed in each as they fluttered in the breeze.  
  
There was a tent, where food and casks of butterbeer waited for those present, and in one table, he could see a towering cake waiting to be cut.  
  
There were tables and chairs, there was even a stage where a small band waited to play for them. Children were running around the tents. Small boats were tied around the shore of the lake. And people were waiting to start the celebration.  
  
"Thank you." He whispered. He could feel a knot forming in his throat, he tried to push it down as the threat of tears started to form in his eyes.  
  
"Come Harry, let's celebrate your birthday." Said Hermione and pulled him toward the smallest tent.  
  
There was a throne like chair, raised on a pedestal. Around it were several wrapped packages.  
  
"Wow." Sighed Ron.  
  
"Let's meet the tenants, shall we. You did hope to meet them and form a Quidditch team." Urged Hermione.  
  
They mingled with the tenants. Harry heard many "Welcome Home" and "Glad to see you." People nodded happily at him and few even stopped to say how much he looked like his father. Young and old people greeted him, some, he was told, had walked from the village just to see him and wish him a happy birthday.  
  
The band had started to play and a group of dancers had queued around the stage. Many of the older residents sat around the tents drinking butterbeer or cider. Children played and young couples rowed in the small boats around the lake.  
  
After meeting many of his well-wishers, Harry joined Ron, Hermione and Ginny near the stage where they watched the dancers having fun.  
  
"Come Harry." Commanded Ginny pulling him to the dance floor.  
  
"Er.all right, but if I hurt your toes, you better not complain." He said with a laugh.  
  
Harry spied Ron and Hermione standing at the edge of the dance floor, both looking a little self-conscious.  
  
"Are you sure we should leave them on their own?" Asked Harry.  
  
"They'll be fine. Maybe Ron can do what's right." Ginny said.  
  
Harry looked confused for a minute but shrugged with indifference the next.  
  
After a few minutes, he saw Ron lead Hermione into the dance floor.  
  
Ginny giggled but said nothing when Harry looked at her in confusion.  
  
"Never mind." She said as she led him through the dance.  
  
They danced several sets, changing partners several times. After more than half an hour on the dance floor, Ron and Harry said enough and led the girls to the refreshment tent, where they drank several glasses of cider and butterbeer.  
  
"Let's go for a round around the lake." Ginny proposed after they had rested a little.  
  
"We can do that any time, let's get the others and see if we can find enough players to have a good game of Quidditch." Ron said.  
  
Harry rapidly agreed to that idea.  
  
Ginny and Hermione shrugged and accompanied them to look for the twins and Bill.  
  
They found Bill cheering by the children's sack races.  
  
"Bill, do you want to join for a game of Quidditch?" Asked Ginny as she came to stand by her brother.  
  
"Quidditch, you say?" Bill asked turned to look at her after a while. "That'll be fun. Who's playing?"  
  
"Well, Ron, Harry and I. You, if you want, we'll ask Fred and George, and we'll try to see who else wants to play." Ginny replied.  
  
"Right, I'll play if you find enough people to have a game with." Bill said.  
  
Ginny returned to Ron, Harry and Hermione who had been talking to Tonks by the lake.  
  
"Bill said he'll play." Announced Ginny as she joined the group.  
  
"Good, Tonks wants to play too." Said Ron.  
  
"Let's get Fred and George." Harry hurried them.  
  
"You still don't have anybody to play against." Hermione reminded them.  
  
"Oh, yeah." Sighed Ron.  
  
"We'll ask some of the guests, I'm sure we can gather a team." Tonks said.  
  
"You go get Fred and George." Ordered Ginny.  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione went looking for the twins. They found them with Professor Lupin talking to a middle-aged woman and an old gentleman.  
  
"Harry!" Called Lupin as soon as he spied the group among the crowd. "Come, I want you to meet somebody."  
  
Harry walked briskly toward them with Ron and Hermione hurrying behind him.  
  
"Harry, this is old Dr. Pomfrey and his daughter Miss Pomfrey." Lupin introduced the couple. "Dr. Pomfrey here was the one who helped your mother through her pregnancy and labor."  
  
"How do you do?" Said Harry politely.  
  
"I see you've done very well, Young Potter. Must say, we've never had anybody so famous in our village before." Said the old man.  
  
"He's rather proud of being the one to help in your delivery." Explained his daughter.  
  
"Miss Pomfrey is a doctor as well, she is helping Dr. Pomfrey in his practice." Lupin said.  
  
Harry and Ron nodded in understanding, it was very clear that the old doctor wasn't up to snuff anymore.  
  
"Are you related to Madam Pomfrey?" Hermione asked with curiosity.  
  
"Yes!" Exclaimed the old man. "Oldest daughter, she is."  
  
Lupin laughed. "Indeed. Madam Pomfrey decided to become a mediwizard, while Miss Pomfrey became a healer and a muggle doctor."  
  
"Have you lived here long?" Harry asked.  
  
"Oh, many years. Your grandfather hired me when the previous doctor died of old age. He was a muggle doctor as many in the village are muggles. Master Aliaster put ads in London newspapers, including the Prophet. I saw the ad asking for a doctor trained in muggle medicine. I had trained in both so I applied. He hired me in the instant." Doctor Pomfrey said happily.  
  
Doctor Pomfrey had kept his eyes on Harry. After a while, Harry started to shuffle his feet as he became uncomfortable under the peering eyes of the old man.  
  
"I'll take father to the refreshment tent." Said Miss Promfrey. "Come dad, you need your rest."  
  
She led the old gentleman into the crowd and Harry sighed with relief.  
  
"You have another fan, Harry." Laughed Fred.  
  
Harry glared at him.  
  
"Never mind that, we're getting together to have the game." Ron said.  
  
"Oh good, wondered if we were going to have one." George exclaimed.  
  
"Tonks and Ginny are rounding up enough people for another team." Said Harry.  
  
"You'll find that the tenants and villagers will be very willing to play you." Lupin said.  
  
They heard Ginny calling to them as she run through the crowd to join them.  
  
"We found players." She panted as she came to stand before them.  
  
"Good. Where are we playing?" Asked Fred.  
  
"Quidditch Pitch. Where else?" Said Ron.  
  
"You should go and prepare then, I'm sure the rest will follow you." Lupin said.  
  
"Could you referee?" George said.  
  
"If you want me to." Lupin smiled.  
  
"Please, we'd like that." Harry urged.  
  
"Very well, go and prepare, I'll round up the rest." Lupin said.  
  
The group ran toward the orchard. Harry could hear in the distance the voice of Professor Lupin talking to those assembled. He heard the words "Quidditch game" and "Pitch" clearly and he assumed that he was telling the crowd about the game.  
  
Harry led them to the center of the orchard the tall white walls loomed before them and they went round looking for the entrance.  
  
"Wow!" Fred sighed in awe as they stood at the edge of the pitch.  
  
"Come, let's change." Urged Ron.  
  
The group followed Harry into the changing room. Harry walked rapidly to the one that had once belonged to his father, but as he opened the door to his locker he found something different.  
  
Harry noticed that the robes didn't say J. Potter any longer, instead, the golden letters said H. Potter.  
  
He heard the rest scrambling into their robes. Tonks and Bill had joined them.  
  
"Everybody is coming to see the game." Tonks was saying.  
  
"Said there hasn't been one for a quite a while." Explained Bill.  
  
"Great! It's been a while since we played Quidditch." Exclaimed George.  
  
"Let's show them how Gryffindor plays Quidditch!" Yelled Fred.  
  
Harry laughed. It felt good to be back on a Quidditch Pitch and play in a team once more.  
  
"Who's captain?" Asked Tonks as she and Ginny stepped from behind a screen in a corner of the locker room. They had changed quickly.  
  
"Bill is, he's the oldest." Said Ginny.  
  
"All right, if we're set, let's have a good game." Said Bill.  
  
Everybody grabbed their brooms and lined up to step out to the Pitch.  
  
"Harry's seeker, Ron's keeper, Fred and George are beaters, and the rest of us will be chasers. All set?" Bill asked as they stood waiting in the corridor waiting to see the other team on the opposite side.  
  
Everybody nodded. They saw Lupin step out into the Pitch, there were cheers and applause as he did so. He motioned to them to enter the Pitch.  
  
"Mount your brooms, we'll go round once around the Pitch." Said Bill.  
  
They mounted their brooms and zoomed around the pitch.  
  
Harry fell elated at being back in the air. He could hear the people cheering from the stands. They flew around for a few moments before taking their positions at the center of the Pitch. The other team zoomed around the pitch and took their places a few moments later.  
  
Harry saw Bill and a burly young man shake hands. They took their positions with the rest of the team and waited for Lupin to mount his broom and release the balls.  
  
It was an energetic game. Harry barely kept his attention in the rest of the players as he tried to keep ahead of the opposing seeker.  
  
He thought it was probably the use of the Firebolts that made the game more competitive than the ones at Hogwarts. Here, everybody was flying quickly and efficiently but it was each player's skill that made the game seem faster.  
  
By the end of half an hour, each team had scored a great number of goals, the only way a team would win was if its seeker caught the snitch.  
  
Harry felt the pressure mount. The snitch was out of sight and he had to keep sight of the other seeker as he flew around the pitch. Suddenly, he saw it. The snitch fluttered about three feet from the floor near their team's goal posts.  
  
He dived with great velocity toward the ground. The audience gasped before the other seeker noticed Harry's move and made to follow.  
  
The chasers stopped for a moment to follow the dive of their seekers. Ron cheered Harry forward. Bludgers were flying around the pitch, each beater trying to keep them away from the other members of their team.  
  
The snitch continued to flutter near the floor. Harry zoomed after it. He could sense rather than see the other seeker beside him.  
  
"Come on, come on." He whispered as he pulled his broom a little to the left trying to block passage to the other seeker.  
  
He was getting near the snitch. Suddenly the snitch zoomed about twenty feet up in the air. Harry turned his broom up but the other seeker was a little faster than him and took the lead.  
  
"Come on, come on." Harry urged his broom as he kept getting closer and closer to the other seeker. Moments later they were neck to neck. Harry inched forward reaching out with his right hand. The other seeker was doing the same. Harry tried to get his broom nearer to the snitch. The fluttering golden ball was within grasp when the snitch changed directions once again.  
  
Harry watched in frustration as the snitch flew toward his right, zig- zagging around the pitch. He could hear his team groaning, he could swear that Ron screamed in frustration.  
  
Harry rapidly gave chase, but the other seeker wasn't too far behind.  
  
Nobody was paying attention to the chasers any longer, nor were they trying to score any more. All eyes were clasped on the zooming seekers trying to reach the snitch.  
  
They zig-zagged across the pitch. The snitch always stayed a few feet from reach. Night was falling and many spectators were afraid that the game would continue well into the middle of the night. They hadn't seen such an exciting game for a long time.  
  
Harry was getting tired. He had a strong urge to just let the other seeker get ahead of him. But his sense of honor and his strong competitor side would not allow him to do so. He kept urging the broom forward always a foot or so ahead of his opponent, but the snitch stayed out of his reach. Until the snitch made another change in direction. It went straight down.  
  
Harry dove after the snitch, allowing gravity to help him gather speed. He was ten feet away from the ground when he finally closed his hand around the snitch.  
  
The Pitch broke into tremendous applause. Harry landed gracefully on the ground, his teammates diving to join him as the snitch fluttered gently in his hand.  
  
"Good game, that." Exclaimed his opponent. He didn't seem angry or disappointed, quite the contrary, he seemed ecstatic by the result.  
  
He was congratulated by the spectators, as they cheered and waved happily.  
  
"To the showers." Directed Lupin as he shooed the players to their respective locker rooms.  
  
Harry happily followed his team to the lockers. It had felt good to be back on a broom and playing a good game. It had been months since the last time he joined his team. He was now feeling elated by their performance and felt that if only they could find members as good as the ones that played this night, Gryffindor would surely keep the Cup one more year.  
  
The Weasleys and Tonks kept clapping him on his shoulder. Ron was chatting happily the whole time they showered and changed into their clothes.  
  
Harry and Ron were the first to leave the lockers and found everybody waiting for them around the Pitch.  
  
Applause broke through the silent night.  
  
"Master James would've been so proud." Mrs. Nichols was sobbing into her handkerchief before she hugged Harry tightly.  
  
Harry looked at Ron for help, but Ron was trying to keep his mother from hugging him in the same way.  
  
"Come Alice, Master Harry doesn't need you to be a watering pot at this moment." Roberts said at their side and Harry saw his arms pulling Mrs. Nichols from him.  
  
"Thank you." Sighed Harry.  
  
"Well done, Master Harry." Roberts said with a bow.  
  
"Thanks." Harry smiled.  
  
Mrs. Nichols was still crying into her handkerchief. Harry looked worriedly at Roberts.  
  
"You better join your friends, Master Harry. Dinner will be served in the refreshment tent in a few minutes." He said.  
  
Harry nodded and rapidly made his way to the Weasleys.  
  
Hermione was standing nearby. "That was great!" She exclaimed as she threw her arms around him for a quick hug.  
  
"I thought so too." Harry said as he happily turned to Ron who had come to stand beside him.  
  
Ron was frowning slightly as he looked at them.  
  
"Something wrong?" Harry asked.  
  
Ron seemed to notice that he was spoken to and turned to look at Harry. His frown disappeared and he smiled at Harry. "No." He said quickly.  
  
"Are you sure?" Asked Hermione as the three started to walk from the pitch. "You seemed to be deep in thought."  
  
"Er.just thinking about the game." Ron said but Harry thought that it wasn't the truth as he saw Ron's ears turn red. "Just thought that it was a shame that Gryffindor didn't have a similar team."  
  
"Hmmm - It certainly would've been nice if we had one." Hermione agreed.  
  
"We'll get two new members for next season. We'll make sure we get the best." Harry said.  
  
They had reached the grounds around the lake. Lanterns had been lit around the area where the tents stood ready for the guests' comfort.  
  
The refreshment tent was proudly set in the middle, surrounded by tables and chairs. The night was warm, and the new moon stood hidden in the sky.  
  
Beef stew, smoked ham, grilled chicken and fried fish were served in platters around the tent. At one corner of the tent stood the cake surrounded by cookies, pudding, pies and different kind of pastries. By the door were the casks of cider and butterbeer.  
  
There was chatter and laughter all around as everybody sat around the tables surrounding the tent.  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione chose an empty table near the door of the tent. Ginny and the twins joined them soon after.  
  
"I'm starving." Said Fred as they sat around the table.  
  
"So am I. That game surely gave me an appetite." Exclaimed Ron.  
  
"Very energetic. Best game ever played." Said George in between bites.  
  
"It was very exciting." Agreed Hermione.  
  
"Too bad the rest of the team didn't see it." Said Ginny.  
  
"It would've helped if they had." Fred said.  
  
"They'll need a lot of help." Said George.  
  
"We're not that bad." Exclaimed Ron.  
  
"Ronny. You say that because you haven't seen it for yourself." Said Fred.  
  
"If you've forgotten, I was there." Ron said.  
  
"But it's different Ron. You see things different from the seats than you do from the pitch." Said Hermione.  
  
Ron sulked in silence, while Harry happily ate his dinner. He didn't want to say it but he agreed with the others, even though Gryffindor had won the Quidditch Cup, the team needed a lot of practice to do much better.  
  
They soon emptied their plates, Ron and the twins returned for seconds. Harry wanted to wait for the cake to be cut and waited eagerly as everybody continued with their meal. He had never had a proper cake during all his years he lived with the Dursleys. Year after year he had seen Dudley have parties, open presents, go to fun places on his birthday, but never had Harry been able to celebrated his own birthday in the same way.  
  
When he was very young, he didn't understand why it was so, but as he got older it became clear to him that the Dursleys weren't too happy having him in their home.  
  
But now he had a home of his own and he was glad that the Weasleys and Hermione had come along. He didn't think he could be very happy here on his own. Everybody kept mentioning his parents and even though he wanted to learn more about them, he couldn't help but feel sad and angry that they weren't here with him.  
  
He was shaken from his thoughts moments later by Hermione. "Harry, look." She whispered.  
  
Mr. Roberts was wheeling a tray table toward him. On it, was the large cake that had decorated the pastries' table all day.  
  
"Happy Birthday to you, happy birthday to you - " Everybody started to sing. Harry watched happily as the cake was set beside him.  
  
Applause broke through the grounds as the song ended and Harry had blown off the candles.  
  
Roberts took the cake back into the tent, where Mrs. Nichols could be seen ready to cut the first piece.  
  
"Harry, everybody is waiting for you to go to the tent with the gifts." Said Lupin.  
  
"Gifts?" Asked Harry.  
  
"Indeed, they have been collecting gifts for you since your second birthday. They have been hoping for years that you would come one day and they could have the opportunity of presenting you with their gifts." Explained Lupin as he led Harry through the crowd toward the tent where piles of wrapped packages waited for them. It seemed that there were a lot more than that morning.  
  
"Wow." Exclaimed Harry at the sight of the towering piles of gifts.  
  
"Never seen the like." Whispered Ron.  
  
"Well, if they have been accumulating for fifteen years, it was bound to be a large pile." Hermione said.  
  
"Pile? This is not a pile, Hermione, this is a mountain." Said Ron.  
  
Harry wasn't listening to them. He was busy trying to decide what to do with his gifts, he didn't know whether to open them now, or wait until they had been taken to his room. One thing he was certain of, Dudley would be dead with jealousy if he had seen this. There were more gifts here than his cousin had ever received since the day he was born.  
  
"Well, come on Harry. Open them." Fred said as he reached them with a couple of plates in his hands.  
  
"But there are so many." Said Harry.  
  
"Never thought to hear anybody complain that he had too many presents." Said George handing one of the plates he carried to Hermione. A piece of cake lay at its center.  
  
"But where am I going to start? I'll never finish with them tonight." Harry laughed.  
  
"You should start on them then." Said Ron as he pushed Harry toward the nearest pile.  
  
Harry started with a small package at the top of the pile. It contained a set of cufflinks with his family coat of arms and small diamonds embedded around the edge.  
  
He continued opening presents as his friends surrounded him and watched eagerly as he unwrapped each package.  
  
The party was almost over and Harry still had many to open.  
  
"I think I'll better have all of this taken to my room. I'll open them there." Said Harry as he held up a set of wizard robes he had just unwrapped.  
  
"It's for the best." Said Hermione. "I think everybody is getting ready to leave."  
  
Harry left the tent, where the gifts had been housed all day and stood by it as each guest came to him to wish him a good night.  
  
An hour later, Harry was sitting by his bed as the gifts accumulated over the years waited to be opened by the windows behind a large desk.  
  
Harry neared the piles of gifts. For years, he had thought that nobody had cared for him. Now, he knows that others had waited patiently for years for him. It was too much for him to take.  
  
Harry sat at the edge of the chair behind the desk. He had seen the desk on his first night in his parents' room. But had not gone near it as he dreaded to see what he could find in it. He didn't want to see if his father had kept notes or letters within the drawers. Now, he rested his head on his hands as he turned to look out the window.  
  
It was a clear night. The courtyard below the windows was clean and trimmed. The lane that led to the front door was empty as the cars and bikes that had brought his guests that day had all gone home.  
  
His birthday was now over, and he had the greatest time in memory. He sighed with pleasure at the thought of their game that afternoon. It had been a great day.  
  
Harry stood abruptly from the chair and as he did so he bumped his knee against the desk.  
  
"Ouch!" Exclaimed Harry as he sat back down and rubbed his knee.  
  
It was then that he noticed something. One of the drawers had slid open a little and a glowing light came from within.  
  
Harry reached down and opened the drawer. There were a lot of small things in it, a music box, a small jewelry box, a box of pictures and toward the back, was a glowing ball.  
  
Harry took the ball and held it in his palm. He had never seen anything like it. For a moment he had thought that it was a remembrall, just like the one Neville had received from his grandmother on their first year, but the color of the mist within was the wrong color. Silver fog glowed within, and two small grooves were found at one side of the ball. Harry took the ball with his index finger and thumb and found that they fit perfectly into the grooves.  
  
He held the ball before him, but he couldn't imagine what it was suppose to do. He thought he would ask Mr. Weasley in the morning as he twisted the ball around. The moment he held it upside down, the ball started to glow more intensely and the fog within it started to move.  
  
Harry held the ball closer and watched in awe as images started to appear. He could see his parents appear for a moment before being replaced by the image of his twin cousins and his grandmothers. More images of his parents reappeared and Harry watched hungrily at the foggy images.  
  
"Mum, dad." Harry sighed sadly.  
  
The ball glowed once more and the image of his father and mother appeared once again. His mother was lying on a bed, which Harry recognized as being the same he slept on every night, she was sweaty and clearly in pain. He could see his father leaning at her side, whispering in her ear and wiping her forehead. He could also see old Dr. Pomfrey and Madam Pomfrey. He could see his mother twisting in pain.  
  
"Ok, Lily, I can see the head." Said doctor.  
  
"GET HIM OUT OF ME!!!!!" Screamed Lily.  
  
"Here comes the head." Exclaimed the doctor.  
  
James moved to see. "Lily I can see him." He screamed.  
  
"GET HIM OUT! GET HIM OUT!" Lily panted.  
  
"Ok, Lily. One more push." The doctor ordered.  
  
"Oh no, I can't." Panted Lily.  
  
"You can do it Lily. I know you can." Said James as he dried her brow.  
  
"Here it comes." She gasped.  
  
After some vociferous moments, the cry of an infant was heard.  
  
Lily sighed with relief.  
  
"Congratulations." The doctor said as he and his daughter cleaned and examined the baby.  
  
"Oh give him to me." Pleaded Lily.  
  
Madam Pomfrey approached the bed. A bundle of blankets on her arms. "Here you go." She said with a smile as she put the bundle into Lily's arms.  
  
"Oh James, look." Sobbed Lily.  
  
"He is perfect." James said.  
  
Baby Harry yawned. "Hello Harry. I'm your mum." Whispered Lily.  
  
"And I'm your daddy." James whispered.  
  
Baby Harry opened his eyes and looked at the two faces above him.  
  
"He looks like you James." Lily smiled turning to her husband.  
  
"But he has your eyes." James smiled back and leaned in to kiss her softly.  
  
Tears were running down his cheeks, but Harry didn't notice them as he watched the image in the ball get lost within the fog.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
A/N: How did you like that? I was very happy with the ending, weren't you? Although I couldn't help but tear up a bit when I wrote it (the memory is of course from the last chapter of Part II). I was reading CoS, again, and I read something that made me very glad. I know there was some discussion about Alicia's status on the team, whether she was still in school or not. Well, in Chapter 5 of CoS, it says that Alicia is in fourth year. That means that she leaves after OotP. Glad I noticed that. Phew! Anyways, I wanted to thank all of you who reviewed, I really appreciate hearing from my readers. And to those of you who have asked about Emma and Katie, don't worry, you'll hear about them soon enough. 


	53. Sixth Year Chapter 5 Part I Ancestral ...

A/N: Sorry it has taken me so long to update, but everything gets so busy after the holidays. No matter, I'm done with this chapter but I'm not sure whether it was a good idea or not, I wanted to give Harry an experience that would take his mind off his problems. But now I'm not too happy with it and it took the story into a whole different direction. Well, I'm going to leave it to you to make that decision. It's a bit long so I'm going to uploaded in two parts when you reply, let me know, do you want the chapter to stay or should I take it out?  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own anything that pertains to Harry Potter, it all belongs to the wonderful JK Rowling.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Chapter 5 (Part I) ~ Ancestral Tidings  
  
Harry was awoken by the sounds of Lotty putting away the gifts he had opened the night before. He blinked a couple of times as the sunlight hit his eyes.  
  
Harry groaned and raised his hands to rub his eyes. That's when he noticed the silver ball clasped tightly in his hand.  
  
The memory of what he'd seen the night before became overwhelming.  
  
"Will Master Harry have breakfast downstairs?" Asked the elf as soon as he noticed that Harry was awake.  
  
"Yeah." Mumbled Harry. He heard Lotty walking around the room before finally going to the dressing room, where Harry was sure he was choosing the clothing he was to wear that day.  
  
It was minutes later that Harry followed the elf into the bathroom. The bath had been prepared and his clothing was hanging at one corner of the room.  
  
Harry hurriedly disrobed. He wanted to be down to breakfast as soon as he could.  
  
Half an hour later, Harry was making his way down to the family dining room. The silvery ball that occupied much of his thoughts lay safely in his pocket.  
  
Only Mr. Weasley was down when Harry entered the dinning room.  
  
"Good Morning, Harry!" Exclaimed he as Harry entered the room.  
  
"Good Morning." Replied Harry.  
  
"Had a good night, I suspect. It was a great day you had yesterday." Mr. Weasley smiled.  
  
"Yes, it was great." Smiled Harry as he piled food from the platters onto his plate.  
  
Mr. Weasley turned to the paper he held before him. Harry noticed that it was the Daily Prophet.  
  
"Anything of interest?" He asked curiously. After all the emotional turmoil of the last few days, he had paid scant attention to the latest news.  
  
"Hmmm...no. Minister still in trouble. Aurors are in active duty looking for You-Know-Who. And the Minsitry still waiting to hear word from the representatives they sent to the giants." Mr. Weasley read.  
  
"They haven't found anything?" Harry asked. He was surprised to hear was keeping low after the attack on the Ministry on June.  
  
"No. You-Know-Who and his Death Eaters have kept low for the past weeks. Dumbledore reckons that he wants to regroup after their failure in June. A great number of his followers were captured and it's not going to be easy to get them out without making much fuss." Mr. Weasley explained.  
  
"What is happening to the Minister? Are people still angry at him?" Harry asked. He agreed that perhaps it was time for a new person to take over the Minister position. Mr. Fudge was clearly not someone who could lead them into battle against Voldemort.  
  
"Indeed they are." Said Mr. Weasley setting the paper on the table. "A group has already collected more than a thousand signatures petitioning for his resignation."  
  
"Do you think he will?" Harry asked full of curiosity.  
  
"Can't say if he will or not, but he might if there is enough public pressure for him to do so." Mr. Weasley replied.  
  
Harry chewed thoughtfully as Mr. Weasley turned his attention to his food. He understood why people were angry with the Minister. Hadn't he himself been angry as well? But he dreaded the chaos that could result by it. Voldemort could easily take advantage of the Ministry's weakness and lead a major attack.  
  
He moved restlessly on his chair and felt the ball hidden in his pocket. Harry reached for it and held it tenderly in his palm.  
  
"What do you got there? A present from one of the neighbors?" Mr. Weasley asked as he noticed the glistening sphere in Harry's hand.  
  
"No, I found it in my dad's desk." Harry explained as he passed the ball to Mr. Weasley.  
  
Mr. Weasley looked at it in awe. "How the devil did he get this?" He exclaimed.  
  
"Why? What is it?" Asked Harry.  
  
"This is a pensive Harry. A very old pensive." Mr. Weasley said as he took a closer look of the ball.  
  
"A pensive? It doesn't look like Dumbledore's." Harry said.  
  
"No, it wouldn't be. Pensives such as this one were made hundreds of years ago. They require great control and it was rather difficult to make. That's when the ones, like Dumbledore's, started to appear. But these pensives are very rare, Harry, and rather expensive." Mr. Weasley said as he passed it back to Harry.  
  
Harry held the pensive in his hand. "Do you think it was passed down from his father?"  
  
"Probably. Magical items such as those usually are." Mr. Weasley replied.  
  
Roberts had entered the room carrying a tray of pastries while the footmen followed with trays of tea and coffee.  
  
"Is there anything more you want, Master Harry?" Roberts asked after the trays had been placed on the table.  
  
Harry shook his head.  
  
Ron walked in, Mrs. Weasley was chatting happily behind him.  
  
"...and then he said that it would be a great idea if we did so." Said Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"Great mum." Mumbled Ron and quickly joined Harry while his mother turned to greet her husband.  
  
"Oh, Harry dear. We moved your meeting with your solicitor for this afternoon. We didn't think you would have time for it last night." Mrs. Weasley said.  
  
"Thank you." Harry said.  
  
Hermione and Ginny entered soon after. The twins were the last to join them.  
  
"Where's Bill?" Asked Ginny.  
  
"Oh, he had to go to the office early." Mrs. Weasley said.  
  
The twins sniggered. "Bet he did." Whispered George.  
  
"Fleur probably needed help this morning." Fred chuckled.  
  
Ron and Harry stifled their laughter while Hermione's "you don't know that" was ignored.  
  
"Where did Remus go?" Asked Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"Oh, he went to look for a Mr. Stuart. Said he would join us soon." Mr. Weasley replied.  
  
Roberts approached Harry with a tray, on which several letters lay.  
  
Harry took them hurriedly as he recognized the familiar Hogwarts seal.  
  
"Hogwarts letters." He said as he passed a letter to Ron, Hermione and Ginny.  
  
"Ah! The joys of Hogwarts letters." Sighed Fred.  
  
"Will miss getting them." Nodded George.  
  
Ginny giggled and Hermione rolled her eyes while Harry on Ron were busily reading their notes.  
  
"Well, Ron. Did Dumbledore change his mind and decided to take your prefect badge?" Asked Fred.  
  
"Oh, no! He wouldn't do that, would he?" Exclaimed Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"It's alright, mum. I'm still prefect." Said Ron putting away his letter. "Many new books though." He turned to look at his parents with apprehension.  
  
"Don't worry dear, you'll get your books." Smiled Mrs. Weasley as if money was of no concern.  
  
Harry was looking down at his letter, this time, a note had been included along with the usual letter.  
  
"Harry, something wrong?" Asked Hermione, who seemed to be the only one to notice Harry's silence.  
  
"No." Harry shook his head. He passed the note to Hermione.  
  
She took it with a frown, but squealed with excitement a moment later. "Oh, Harry. This is great news, you do deserve this."  
  
"What?" The rest exclaimed.  
  
Hermione passed the note to Ron, who was trying to read over her shoulder.  
  
Ron took it eagerly and whooped exuberantly.  
  
"What happened?" "What is it?" The others asked.  
  
"Harry's the new Gryffindor Captain! Harry's the new captain!" Ron Exclaimed.  
  
"Well done mate."  
  
"Knew you'll get the title." The twins exclaimed.  
  
"There was no question, with Angelina gone." Ginny said.  
  
The note was passed around the table until it eventually returned to Harry.  
  
Dear Mr. Potter:  
  
It read.  
  
As you know Gryffindor's Quidditch Team has been left without a captain. Under some consideration, I have decided to name you the new Gryffindor Captain. You are the only one with enough experience in the team as well in leadership. I expect a good performance from you, and you may be sure that any breaking of school rules will make me reconsider my decision in appointing you to this position. Attached is a list of the current members of the team. Try outs should be scheduled within the first weeks of the term.  
  
Sincerely,  
  
Minerva McGonagall, Head of Gryffindor House  
  
Harry couldn't help but reread it over and over again. They had all said that he was bound to be the new Gryffindor Captain, and although he had hoped so, he hadn't dared dream about it. His chest swelled with pride.  
  
There were only five names on the list.  
  
Harry Potter, seeker (Captain)  
  
Ronald Weasley, keeper  
  
Ginny Weasley, seeker (to be determained)  
  
Andrew Kirke, beater  
  
Jack Sloper, beater  
  
"I hope you do something about those beaters, a real disappointment they were." Snorted Fred with disgust.  
  
"Can't see how Angelina could've replaced us with them. We were the best beaters that team ever had!" Exclaimed George.  
  
"We'll see. Our main concern is the chaser section. We need to replaced them all." Harry said looking down at his list.  
  
"Remember I want to be chaser." Piped Ginny.  
  
"Not much good if you're the only one playing." Ron said. "You got your work cut out. Try outs will take so long and we won't have enough time for training before the first game of the season."  
  
"And you have to do a good impression on that game, remember, it's Gryffindor vs. Slytherin." Said Fred.  
  
"I know." Harry sighed. This business of team captain was getting to be a bit much.  
  
"Don't worry, Harry. You'll do fine, you are a natural leader, and a great one at that." Said Hermione.  
  
"Of course you are, we wouldn't have survived the school year if it hadn't been for you." Said Ginny.  
  
Harry nodded, but doubts had already been planted on his mind.  
  
"When you're done, Harry," said Lupin coming into the room after Mr. Weasley had left to the Ministry. "Mr. Stuart will be waiting for us at the stables. We'll go around the land, I'm sure you'll want to see what belongs to the Manor."  
  
Harry nodded and put his note away. Lupin was right. It was time for him to learn about the lands and his responsibility to his tenants.  
  
By the time Harry was ready to join Lupin and Mr. Stuart the twins had left to their store, Hermione had taken Ron in hand and led him to the bookroom and Ginny had flooed to Diagon Alley to help the twins for the day.  
  
"Come, Harry." Lupin said as soon as Harry pushed his chair away from the table.  
  
Harry followed Lupin out the glass doors into the kitchen gardens. There were beds of herbs and hen house. They walked past the green houses and made their way to a couple of buildings in the distance.  
  
"The stables are not big. There's only space for five horses. The back area is designated for the kennels. Some of your ancestors were fine hunters and hunting season was always a big thing in these parts. In fact, there has always been a hunt during the Harvest Feast, but in the last years it has become more like a race than a hunt." Lupin explained as they walked farther into the back gardens. "The Potter kennels were always famous among breeders and for a time, long ago, it became the most important source of income to the estate, but eventually the land started to produce and there ware more investments and the kennels lost its importance. But the kennels remained."  
  
They had neared a couple of buildings. One was obviously a garage as two cars were parked inside while Martin, the driver, was cleaning them. The other, was the stables.  
  
The doors stood open and Harry could hear the snorting horses. He could also see cows and sheep grazing a few miles away.  
  
"The dairy farm is in the back." Lupin explained. "And sheep are stabled there as well. You should try the cheese they make there."  
  
There was an older man waiting for them at the door of the stables.  
  
"Welcome, Master Harry. I have been looking forward to taking you around the estate." He said as soon as he noticed Harry.  
  
Harry nodded, tongue-tied. He didn't know what to say to this man.  
  
"Allow me to introduce you, Harry. This is Mr. Stuart, he is the estate manager, he has been in charge of the estate production and management for more than twenty-five years. If there's anything you want to know about the estate, he is the person to help you." Lupin said.  
  
"Nice to meet you." Harry said quietly as he shook Mr. Stuart's hand.  
  
"Well, young Master. What do you want to see first?" Mr. Stuart said as he led them into the stables.  
  
There were six stalls, three at each side. One was empty and a pile of tools rested against the wooden wall. Five long noses sniffed and snorted as the new humans intruded into their home. The reins and saddles were hanging in racks along the wall. Two stable-boys were cleaning one of the stalls while the horse was being taken by another man to brush.  
  
Harry looked at the large animals with trepidation. He had never been on a horse before, and was dreading the thought of mounting one.  
  
Lupin seemed to know what was in his mind. "Don't worry, we won't ride today. We'll take the gig. The lanes are too narrow for the cars, but the gig is small enough for us to ride in comfort. We'll have to walk in some areas, but I'm sure we'll welcome the exercise."  
  
Harry breathed with relief. "Will I have to learn how to ride?"  
  
"If you wish too. I'm sure the stable master will enjoy teaching you to. There are parts of the estate that can only be reached by horse, if you don't want to walk that is, but most of it can be reached by car or gig." Lupin said.  
  
Harry nodded, it wasn't that he was scared of the horses, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to ride in one.  
  
Mr. Stuart led them through the door at the end of the stables. The noise in the room increased as dozens of dogs barked from behind small stalls.  
  
Harry stopped several times to see the hounds. There were a couple of litters and he couldn't help but stop and scratch the ears of the young pups.  
  
Mr. Stuart led them to the back of the stables where a gig waited to be harnessed while one of the horses was brought around to be strapped to the gig.  
  
They waited for a few minutes while Mr. Stuart was explaining to Harry the production of the dairy farms and the kennels.  
  
"Of course, I do not mean to overwhelm you with all this, Master Harry." Mr. Stuart said after a few moments. "You are not expected to take it all up at this instant. There's time enough for you to learn what you need, to keep this place in order."  
  
Harry only nodded. From what he had heard so far, there was a lot that he needed to learn in order to be able to run the estate as he should.  
  
They climbed into the gig once the horse had been harnessed and they were ready to start on their tour.  
  
Mr. Stuart took them all around the estate. They stopped several times to show Harry the different sights of the Manor from different points. They visited all the tenant families and drank with the workers of the Manor lands.  
  
Harry couldn't think of a better morning. Many of the old tenants took him apart and told him stories of his father as a child. Harry enjoyed these the most. A few remembered when his grandfather was a young man, and were happy to tell the eager youth everything they remembered about the family.  
  
Harry felt more closer to his family than ever. Through the land and its people he could feel the connection to his ancestry as nothing could ever do. He was glad that Lupin had taken him to meet Mr. Stuart.  
  
"Is there something that needs to be done right away?" Asked Harry as they neared the stables after their tour.  
  
"Not really. All the cottages and buildings have been taken care of and the gardens are in good hands. But if you want to change anything, you have only to say so." Mr. Stuart said.  
  
Something had been on his mind the whole morning and a plan had formed that he was eager to implement. "Can I invite anybody I want?" Harry asked.  
  
"Of course, you don't have to ask Master Harry. I'm sure Mrs. Nichols and Roberts will like to have guests in the Manor. They've been saying for years that they missed the house parties that were usually thrown in the Manor." Mr. Stuart said. "Only tell us what you want to do and we'll do it."  
  
Harry smiled. He had never had anything on his own, his livelihood and well being had been in the hands of others. His wishes had never been of the uppermost importance to others and it was a thrill to find that they could be so.  
  
Lupin walked with him back to the Manor house. Luncheon had passed but a light snack would be welcome.  
  
"Remember Harry, we have a meeting with your solicitor this evening." Lupin reminded him as they stepped into the family parlor.  
  
Harry nodded and went in search of the kitchens for his meal.  
  
He hadn't stepped into the servants' hall since the day he came to the Manor. The kitchens looked extensive to Harry's eyes. He hadn't seen any kitchens as this one except for the one at Hogwarts.  
  
"Master Harry!" One of the elves piped at the sight of Harry in their domain. "Is there anything we can do for Master Harry?"  
  
"Oh, I don't mean to bother you." Harry said as he noticed that the elves had stopped what they were doing. "I just wanted to get something to eat."  
  
"Otty will be pleased to serve Master Harry." One of the elves replied. Harry recognized him as the third personal elf, the one that had been introduced as the cook elf. He was grinning happily at Harry. "Master James preferred to come to the see Otty when he was hungry too." The elf said as he started piling food on a plate at hand. He placed it on the counter near the stove and moved a chair to it.  
  
"Did he?" Asked Harry curiously as he sat on the chair.  
  
"Oh, yes! Master James said Otty's cooking tasted better in the kitchen than above stairs." The elf smiled proudly.  
  
"Did mum come here sometimes?" Harry asked.  
  
"Mistress Lily came only to consult Otty." The elf said. "But sometimes Mistress Lily stayed for tea."  
  
Harry stayed in the kitchens for a long while, even though he didn't eat much he liked hearing about his father's childhood from Otty.  
  
Otty was busily preparing their evening meal by the time Harry left the kitchens. Roberts and Mrs. Nichols had found him there as they went about their business and Harry had been afraid that they would ask him to leave. But they didn't, in fact, they seemed very pleased to find him there and Mrs. Nichols even set a dish of candy before him during one of her trips into the kitchen.  
  
"Where have you been?" Asked Ron the moment he spied Harry making his way along the corridor toward the game room.  
  
"In the kitchens, why?" Asked Harry waiting for Ron to catch up to him.  
  
"We've been looking for you." Ron said. "Dad is home and an old man just arrived. Lupin said that he had business to discuss with you." He pointed toward the entrance hall. "In the book room."  
  
"Does he?" Harry sounded a bit surprised. "Oh! I think it might be the solicitor Lupin was talking about earlier." Both started walking back through the corridor.  
  
"What do you reckon he has to say?" Ron asked.  
  
"The usual I imagine." Harry said with a shrug. "Don't know really, except that I expect he'll say how much money mum and dad left."  
  
"I suppose." Ron said. "But why does he need the rest of us to be present? The only one not called was Hermione."  
  
"You're sitting at the meeting with us?" Harry asked.  
  
"That's what Lupin said. Only Ginny is not coming along, said she wanted to keep Hermione company." Ron said.  
  
"I don't understand." Harry replied.  
  
"You and I both. Makes no sense really." Said Ron.  
  
Harry shrugged. "Your mum and dad are there?"  
  
"Yeah, with Lupin. The twins and Bill are not home yet and they don't want to wait." Ron explained.  
  
"All right, then." Harry sighed as they stopped before the door to the bookroom. "Let's see what they have to say."  
  
A footman was nearby and he opened the door for them.  
  
"Thank you." Said Harry just before he entered the room.  
  
Mr. Weasley, Mrs. Weasley and Lupin were sitting in chairs that had been placed before the desk in a semicircle. Only two chairs were left empty. Behind the desk was an old man. He sat straight, peering through his thick glasses at Harry.  
  
"Ah, Mr. Potter." He said with a pleased tone. "I see you've grown very well."  
  
"Harry." Lupin had stood by the desk, motioning Harry to come near. "This is Mr. Nicholei. He was the Evans' solicitor before their death. Lily and James then hired him to represent the trustees of your estate."  
  
"How do you do, Sir?" Harry greeted the old gentleman.  
  
"Very well indeed. But, we're here to talk about you, Young Potter. Shall we?" The old man said taking his seat.  
  
Harry sat directly before the old man. Ron sat at his left and Lupin at his right.  
  
"Let us see here." Mr. Nicholei mumbled as he opened one of the several folders he had before him on the desk. "Oh, yes. Here we are." He exclaimed as he took several papers from the folder.  
  
"Well, then." He continued. "Let's start from the beginning, shall we?"  
  
Harry nodded but didn't have time so say anything as Mr. Nicholei started to speak once more.  
  
"This is a list of your assets and investments." Mr. Nicholei said passing a paper to Harry. "As you can see, there are three major properties belonging to the Potters and three rather small ones. Gryffindor Manor and the Potter House in London are the two largest properties with the most capability of producing an income. The other three are small buildings, more like hunting cottages, really. They don't bring much of an income but have been let to rent for the last eighteen years. Mr. James decided on doing so three years after leaving school, I didn't think you would mind if we kept the leases with the renters. The income from the rent was originally invested, by Mr. James, into certain stock. As you can see, it has increased tenfold in the last fifteen years. The sixth property is Godric's Cottage, the one at Godric's Hollow." He stopped for a minute to see if Harry was affected by the mention of the infamous cottage. When he saw that Harry remained silent looking down at the list, he continued. "The Cottage has been repaired, of course, but it has stood inhabited for the last fifteen years, you may decide what to do with it of course."  
  
Harry felt a tinge of pain at the mention of the Godric's Hollow property, and didn't know what to do with it. A side of him wanted to go and see it. See the place where his parents had lost their lives and Voldemort had started the prophecy that could lead to his or Harry's death. But he put it aside and decided to pay more attention to what he was seeing in the page he held.  
  
Harry looked incredulously to the paper in his hand. He couldn't understand what the old man was saying, and if he was honest with himself, he wasn't really listening. But he could understand a little of what he saw in the page.  
  
He saw a list of properties, by their name was a row of numbers he imagined was the yearly income and another which he thought was the accumulated income in the last ten years.  
  
The numbers were staggering. He knew that his family had been wealthy, hadn't they left a vault full of gold for him? But he had never imagined that they had dealt with that sort of quantities he was looking at. How was he supposed to handle that much money?  
  
"Now, if you look at this page, you'll see all the expenses procured in the last ten years." Mr. Nicholie continued not noticing that nobody seemed to be following his explanations. "The top list show the wages paid to all the employees. The second list show all the expenses of the different estates have generated. You can see that a new roof has been installed in two of the cottages and the amount of steel bought to enforce the fence around the Manor. There are the different knick-knacks bought for the comfort of the Manor and so forth. I can give you a more complete list if you want..." Mr. Nicholei continued with his explanations while Harry stopped looking at the lists in his hands. He couldn't really understand much of what he was seeing and looked around to the others. It seemed that he wasn't the only one that didn't understand what Mr. Nicholei was saying.  
  
Ron was staring out the window with blank eyes as if his mind was lost in his own thoughts. Mr. Weasley was trying to hide a yawn behind his hand, while Mrs. Weasley nudged him on his arm with her elbow. Lupin had his chin against his chest and if Harry hadn't seen his eyelids fluttering and his head moving from side to side slowly, he would've thought that Lupin was sleeping.  
  
Harry turned his attention back to Mr. Nicholei. It seemed that he had progressed down the lists and was finally reaching the end of that page.  
  
"And if you see that last notation, it will show the total amount paid to the Dursleys for your care in the last fifteen years." Mr. Nicholei said.  
  
Harry looked abruptly down at the page at the mention of the Dursleys. He noticed that it showed payment for every month he had been at the Dursleys, the total amount paid made him angry.  
  
"Are you telling me that every month they have been receiving 10,000 pounds for fifteen years?" Harry exclaimed in fury.  
  
Mr. Nicholei looked at him with surprise as he had taken another paper ready to pass it to Harry. "Yes, indeed. It is in the Potters will that whoever took you in to receive such amount for your care."  
  
"THEY HAVE BEEN TREATING ME LIKE CRAP AND THEY HAVE BEEN PAID FOR IT?" Harry yelled.  
  
Everybody was now paying attention to the proceedings.  
  
"Well, we were afraid that they wouldn't be too happy with you in their house-"  
  
"HAPPY!" Harry interrupted Mr. Nicholei. "Of course THEY haven't been too happy. They made me sleep in a cupboard for ten years. I have been wearing Dudley's used clothing and for fifteen years I have listened to them grumble about the expense I have been on them. I accepted it all because I thought that they had taken me in even though they clearly didn't want to. And now, you're telling me THAT THEY HAVE BEEN PAID FOR MY CARE!"  
  
"Well, but it was on the will, and we thought that it would be safe to do so. It was the only way to be sure that they kept you in, you know." Mr. Nicholei explained.  
  
"Well, they kept me all right." Snapped Harry. "And probably used all that money to give Little Duddikins everything he wanted."  
  
"We knew, you see, that they probably wouldn't keep you and Dumbledore had said that you needed to stay with them if you were to be kept safe, so we thought that it was a good thing to keep that article of the will as an incentive, you know. It worked as we expected. Of course, the monthly payment stops when you're not with them. That means that they haven't received anything when you are at Hogwarts or with the Weasleys." Mr. Nicholei said.  
  
Harry snorted with derision. Of course the Dursleys kept him after they found out that they would be receiving money as long as he was with them. It was no wonder that they tried to keep him from going to Hogwarts either, although their fear of magic would explain it as well. But he felt betrayed. He felt anger at the thought that it had been the money that had kept him from going to an orphanage and not a sudden feeling of family honor as he had hoped over the years.  
  
"What now? Are they going to continue receiving the money?" Harry asked angry.  
  
"Oh no! You are no longer under their care. Dumbledore has made it quite clear that their temporary guardianship over you is over now that you are back in the Manor. That's where the Weasley's come in. They are to be your guardians and as such, the money will be paid to them." Mr. Nicholei said.  
  
"What? What was that?" Asked Ron in surprise.  
  
"Yes. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley have been named guardians of Harry by Dumbledore. That means that the amount of..." Mr. Nicholei looked down on his notes. "Oh, yes, here we are. They will be paid the amount of 10,000 Galleons every month. Already 40,000 have been transferred to their vault for the times Harry spent under their care on the last four years."  
  
"Forty..." Gasped Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"Forty thousand galleons." Whispered Mr. Weasley.  
  
"Wow. We're rich." Exclaimed Ron with a huge smile.  
  
"But we didn't care for Harry for money." Said Mrs. Weasley. "He's like a son to us, there is no need to pay us for staying with him."  
  
"Oh, I know that, we all do!" Said Mr. Nicholei. "But it is in the will, you know. The amount was placed aside by Mr. James himself months before their death."  
  
"I much preferred it that you get that money, Mrs. Weasley, instead of the Dursleys." Harry exclaimed, happy to know that the Weasleys would be helped because of him.  
  
And he had been truthful when he said that he much preferred the Weasleys to get that money instead of the Dursleys.  
  
"Well, Harry dear, if it's alright with you." Said Mrs. Weasley.  
  
Ron whooped happily until his mother told him to settle down.  
  
"I think, Mr. Nicholei, that this is enough for this evening." Said Lupin. "I'm sure that Harry has much to learn and I don't think we have the time to go through it all. Perhaps if we set a weekly visit it would help him to understand better about his inheritance."  
  
"Yes." Said Mr. Nicholei as he closed his folders and piled them in order. "Perhaps it would be better that way."  
  
"Dinner should be ready any time soon, perhaps you would like to stay for dinner?" Mrs. Weasley said.  
  
"Thank you but no, I have to travel back to London tonight, I don't think I can stay for much longer." Mr. Nicholei said. "If that's all, I'll say goodnight. Nice meeting you again young man." He said to Harry. "I'm sure your parents would be pleased with you."  
  
The old gentleman turned to say goodbye to the others.  
  
"Come," said Harry to Ron, "let's go find the girls, I'm sure they're wondering what happened."  
  
"Yeah." Nodded Ron and both made their way out of the room. They run up the stairs directly to the girls' chambers.  
  
They found them in Hermione's room.  
  
"So? What happened?" Asked Ginny as soon as Hermione let them into the room.  
  
"We're rich. That's what happened." Exclaimed Ron.  
  
"What?" Asked Ginny. Her eyes had opened wide and looked confusedly at her brother.  
  
"I don't understand." Said Hermione, frowning.  
  
"It seems that according to my parent's will there is an article that says that whoever is in charge of me gets a monthly stipend of ten thousand galleons." Explained Harry.  
  
"Ten thousand galleons? That's a lot of money." Exclaimed Hermione.  
  
"And because mum and dad have been made guardians for Harry, we get that money." Smiled Ron. "They have already transferred forty thousand to our vault for the times Harry stayed with us in the last years."  
  
"Forty thousand!" Gasped Ginny.  
  
"Yeap." Grinned Ron and grabbed Ginny's hands and started dancing with her around the room. "We have money, we have money." He chanted as he spun her around.  
  
"Ron!" Both Ginny and Hermione exclaimed.  
  
"You're being a git!" Ginny said.  
  
"You're going to make Harry believe that you don't care anything for him except his money." Hermione chided.  
  
Harry was grinning at the sight of Ron happily dancing with his sister. "I don't mind. I'm rather glad, really." He said. "I often wondered what I could do to thank Mr. and Mrs. Weasley for their care. I would've shared the gold in my vault if I thought they would take it, but I knew they wouldn't." He was looking at Hermione as her frown started to disappear from her brow. "I much prefer it that they are getting that money instead of the Dursleys."  
  
"Stupid gits. They have been getting that money for fifteen years and they had the nerve of treating Harry badly." Ron said as he stopped twirling Ginny around the room.  
  
"Oh, surely not!" Exclaimed Hermione.  
  
"You mean they have been getting that much money all these years?" Asked Ginny with surprise.  
  
"Yeap." Said Ron.  
  
"The nerve of them." Gasped Hermione in anger.  
  
"I guess now I know how they could afford to give Dudley so many gifts for his birthday and Christmas. He usually got more than thirty-five every year." Harry said.  
  
"You're not serious." Said Ginny.  
  
"Who could possibly get that many gifts?" Asked Ron incredulously.  
  
"Dudley. Every year they bought him dozens of gifts, not to mention the parties and the trips to expensive restaurants and theme parks." Harry said bitterly. "And they've been doing it with my money! They begrudge me every bite of food, clothing even my glasses. Always complaining how much it cost to keep me and they have been getting rich with my money all these years!"  
  
"Well!" Hermione exclaimed. "Honestly, one would think that getting that much money would've made them treat you like a king."  
  
Harry snorted with derision.  
  
"Obviously it didn't do a thing." Said Ron. "The gits."  
  
"Now, let's forget about them. Harry is not going back to them and they won't get any more money." Ginny said looking worriedly at Harry. She hadn't forgotten that last year he had lost his temper to such degree that they had all been scared of him for a while. She didn't want to go through that again. And she could plainly see that if they continued with this conversation, he would start screaming at any moment.  
  
"Yes, let's. What do you plan to do with the team, Harry? You must have some plans for training." Said Hermione who shared Ginny's fears about Harry's temper.  
  
Harry allowed himself to forget about the Dursleys and the money and turned his attention to planning a training session for the team.  
  
"Too bad the new members never got the chance to train with the old team. Could've shown them how to do things properly." Sighed Ginny.  
  
Ron nodded. "Could've gotten some good pointers from Wood."  
  
"Perhaps they could." Said Harry.  
  
"What? What do you mean?" Asked Ron in surprise.  
  
"Well, what if I invite all the old members to stay with us for a while and send for the rest of the team to practice before school begins." Harry said.  
  
"A summer training session." Said Hermione.  
  
"Yes! They do it in muggle schools all the time, with their sports teams. Why can't we do the same? In fact, why don't we invite all of those in Gryffindor interested for the open positions to come. We could see how everybody does and tryouts would be much easier." Said Harry.  
  
"That's very ambitious of you, Harry. And it would take a lot of time to plan." Hermione said. When the others looked at her questioningly, she explained. "I mean, you'll have to plan where they're going to stay. How much food will be needed. Not to mention writing to McGonagall to get the addresses of everybody in Gryffindor. And let's face it, she might not give it to us, and even if she did, there would be so much to do to prepare. It would be quite difficult to prepare for."  
  
"Hermione, you make everything sound so difficult." Exclaimed Ron. When Hermione opened her mouth to tell him off, he continued as if she hadn't anything more to say. "You are forgetting the servants, not to mention the elves. I'm sure they would be happy to help, you've heard Mrs. Nichols, she has missed all the house parties that used to take place. And it's not as if we would be indoors all the time. We would be at the Pitch. And we can help with the preparations. Let's face it, you're good at organizing, and I'm sure mum wouldn't mind helping a bit. And if we can't get the rest of the old team, we can ask some of the young people in the village if they would like to help with the training. You saw them playing yesterday, they were brilliant."  
  
Hermione seemed to be thinking about Ron's argument.  
  
"It would be great for the team. If I don't do anything drastic, we're going to lose that Cup this year. And I don't know about you, but it took Gryffindor a lot of work to get it back and I'm not about to let it slip through my fingers very easily. You know as well as I do that we need a lot of help with the current members of the team, and with the whole chaser lineup to replace, we won't get the best during tryouts. It would be better if we did some training here. We don't have to worry about anybody from the other houses to bother us and we could have the help of the rest of the others as well. I don't know if I could make good choices without their help." Harry said.  
  
"Well, if you're sure." Hermione said.  
  
"It would be great, Hermione." Ginny exclaimed.  
  
"I'll write to McGonagall tonight and send Hedwig early in the morning." Harry said.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Harry did as he planned. He wrote a lengthy letter to Professor McGonagall before he climbed into bed and sent Hedwig with his note as soon as Lotty had awakened him the next morning.  
  
He hoped that Professor McGonagall would agree with him and allow him to train during the summer. Now, after a good night's rest, he was doubtful of his idea. Perhaps Hermione was right and he was being too ambitious. Perhaps it would be better to wait until school started.  
  
He spent the morning in his rooms. Hermione and Ron had come after breakfast to see if he wanted to go out and look around the gardens. Harry told them to go ahead without him. They did, but not before trying to persuade him to accompany them.  
  
Harry sat behind the desk in silence. His father's pensive grasped tightly between his fingers as images of his father's memories passed before him in the crystal sphere. He smiled sadly as each image changed.  
  
His stomach was growling by the time he left his room. The images of his parents and their friends had started to bother him, especially when the images of Sirius started to appear. He walked purposely to the kitchen. He knew that breakfast was already over and that it would be some time yet for luncheon to be served, but he was sure that Otty would gladly give him something.  
  
The kitchen was buzzing with elves and servants preparing luncheon. Otty was happily cooking before the stove while the other elves cut, cleaned and washed the rest of the food. Mrs. Nichols was busy instructing the maids, stocking the pantry and cooler. And even Roberts was there with the footmen cleaning the silverware and the crystal.  
  
"Oh, Master Harry." Exclaimed Mrs. Nichols when she noticed Harry standing at the bottom of the servant's stairs. "Can we do something for you?" She hurried to his side.  
  
"No, I didn't mean to trouble you." Harry said as he noticed that everybody stood still waiting to see what he wanted.  
  
"Oh, it's no bother, Master Harry." Mrs. Nichols said promptly.  
  
"I only wanted to grab a snack while I waited for luncheon." Harry said.  
  
"Of course you do, the poor dear." She mumbled as she turned to Otty. "He didn't eat anything this morning."  
  
"Otty will prepare the master a meal." Otty said determinately.  
  
"Oh, no! I don't want too much, just a sandwich will be enough." Said Harry hurriedly. He didn't meant to make the elf prepare a whole meal for him.  
  
Otty looked at Harry with surprise. "If Master Harry is sure..."  
  
"Yes, I only want a snack, Otty, not a whole meal." Harry said.  
  
Otty groaned but made a couple of sandwiches in an instant. He put them in a plate and set it in the counter where Harry had eaten the day before.  
  
"I think I'll go and look around the gardens while I eat it." Said Harry. He saw that the servants and the other elves were not working with the same enthusiasm as they had done before while they watched him curiously. And he was sure that there was a lot to do before luncheon.  
  
Otty put the sandwiches in a little basket and put some cut vegetables and fruit inside as well as a bottle of cider.  
  
Harry took the basket and hurried toward the back door.  
  
"Oh, Master Harry." Mrs. Nichols called just as he was about to step into the gardens. "I've forgotten to give this to you, I'm sure you want it." She said as he hurried back to her.  
  
"What is it?" He asked.  
  
"It's the key to the garden of course." She said before she ran back into the kitchen.  
  
Harry stood by the door looking curiously at a small golden key. "The key to the garden?" He asked. What garden did she mean? All the gardens were open, weren't they?  
  
Harry shrugged and ran into the kitchen gardens.  
  
He walked purposely past the windows of the family dining room and the game room and made his way deeply into the gardens. He saw the enclosed gardens in the distance and made his way to them. He was sure that he could find a private spot in one of them where he could eat his snack.  
  
He crossed each enclosed garden carefully, noting the many exotic plants that were found in them. The pools and the fountains looked clean and the water glistened in the sun. Some had exotic fish swimming and he entertained himself for a while feeding the fish small pieces from his sandwiches. Finally he reached the last garden. He had noticed before that the garden had been locked, and he had heard some of the servants say that it had been charmed with anti-apparition spells as well as shielding spells. Why, Harry wondered, would a garden be locked?  
  
Harry felt the golden key in his pocket. "It's the key to the garden." Mrs. Nichols had said.  
  
Harry took the key and started looking for the door. He found it easily enough and slid the key into the keyhole. He twisted it with ease and the door opened in an instant.  
  
It was so different from the others. It was clear that most of the plants in this garden were magical, and Harry understood why it had been closed. It wouldn't do for a muggle to stumble into this garden. The pool was covered with water plants, and he recognized some as water lilies. The flower bushes had been planted with care in a wild configuration that made it all look as wild as if nature had created it.  
  
He found a bench around the pool and sat down to eat.  
  
He liked this garden, he thought, and he could easily picture his parents spending time in here.  
  
He didn't stay for long in the garden. As soon as he finished his snack, he took the basket and let himself out of the garden. He locked the door again and walked back to the Manor. His mood had changed since that morning and he didn't fear McGonagall's response any more.  
  
Ron and Hermione were waiting for him in the game room.  
  
"Harry! Harry!" He heard as he passed the glass doors of the game room. Hermione was waving to him from the open doors. "I thought you said that you were staying in your rooms today.  
  
"I was, but then I got hungry and went to the gardens to eat." Said Harry as he walked toward her.  
  
"Good, now come and help me explain to Ron that the people in the telly are not really inside there." She said as she pulled him into the room.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
They stayed in the game room until they were called for luncheon.  
  
"Where's Ginny?" Asked Harry as they sat around the table.  
  
"She went to Diagon Alley with Fred and George." Said Ron as he piled food into his plate.  
  
"Why haven't you gone lately?" Asked Hermione.  
  
Ron shrugged, "they said it hasn't been busy lately. Did you send the letter to McGonagall?"  
  
Harry had hoped that his friends had forgotten about his intentions. "Yeah."  
  
"I just don't think you two should get too excited about this summer training idea." Hermione said in her bossy tone. "I just don't think McGonagall will go along with this."  
  
"And what makes you so sure of that?" Snapped Ron.  
  
"Well, for one thing you are being a little discriminating aren't you?" Hermione said.  
  
"Discriminating? How are we being discriminating?" Harry asked angrily.  
  
"You are forgetting about the first years. The new students haven't been sorted yet, you are keeping them from having the chance of being part of the team." Hermione replied.  
  
"That makes no difference!" Exclaimed Ron. "First years are not usually chosen for the house teams, everybody knows that."  
  
"What about Harry?" Pointed Hermione.  
  
"That's different and you know it!" Said Harry.  
  
"Yeah, it was McGonagall who chose him, not Wood. If by chance, there's another first year with the natural talent Harry showed back in first year, you may be sure that McGonagall will make certain that the kid gets into the team." Ron said.  
  
"Well, that's true." Hermione conceded. "But still, what about those people not interested in playing Quidditch? You're inviting the rest over, what about them?"  
  
"What about them? They'll have their own things to worry about. This is a training session, not a house party." Ron exclaimed.  
  
"So only those who care to train will be invited, is that it? Well, if that's how you feel, maybe I should just go back home." Snapped Hermione and stood abruptly from her chair. She threw her napkin on her plate and stormed out of the room.  
  
"What's with her?" Ron asked surprised to Harry.  
  
Harry shrugged.  
  
"I didn't say that she had to go home. Did I?" He looked worriedly to Harry.  
  
"Nope. I think she's against the training session because she thinks we're going to leave her on her own for the rest of the summer. She'll feel left out." Harry said.  
  
"That's nonsense!" Exclaimed Ron. "She knows we like to have her around. Besides, she's most likely to stay closeted in the bookroom."  
  
"Perhaps, but we still have to talk to her." Harry said.  
  
Ron groaned. "Couldn't we wait until Ginny comes back?"  
  
Harry shook his head. "It would only make it worse if we wait."  
  
"Oh, well. I suppose. I hate it when she's angry though." Ron mumbled.  
  
Harry didn't respond as he was sure that Ron hadn't meant to say it out loud.  
  
Mrs. Weasley came into the room. "I'm sorry, dears, I was busy with the linen and didn't hear the lunch bell ring." It seemed that that she had made it to the dining room in a hurry as she sat tiredly into her chair. "There's an owl for you, Harry dear. Roberts will bring it in a moment."  
  
Ron and Harry looked at each other.  
  
"Maybe it's from Hagrid, she couldn't have come to a decision so soon." Harry said.  
  
Ron shrugged. "Maybe."  
  
They continued with their meal, waiting for Roberts to bring the mail.  
  
They were just finishing their puddings when Roberts walked in with the mail.  
  
"This owl came for you, Master Harry." Roberts said as he presented Harry with the silver platter on which mail was usually placed when it was received.  
  
"Thank you." Said Harry.  
  
"Well? Come on, open it." Urged Ron.  
  
Harry ripped the envelope open and slid the parchment into his hands. It was from Professor McGonagall.  
  
Dear Mr. Potter,  
  
It read.  
  
Thank you for your note, I'm pleased to see that you are taking your position of captain of Gryffindor Team in all seriousness and that you're planning to start training early this year. After some discussion of your idea with the Headmaster, we have decided that it would not be against school rules if you wish to invite your fellow housemates into your home for a few days.  
  
I'm eager to see what you do with Gryffindor team and hope that your efforts are enough to keep the Quidditch Cup in Gryffindor's hands for a long time.  
  
I'm enclosing a list of addresses of all Gryffindor students. Good luck in your endeavors and hope to see you and the rest of the team in great form next September.  
  
Sincerely,  
  
Minerva McGonagall  
  
Head of Gryffindor House  
  
"I can't believe it!" Exclaimed Ron. "She liked your idea, Harry."  
  
Harry was busy looking at the list of addresses, it indeed held the names of all remaining Gryffindor students. "We'll have a lot of work to do to send invitations to this lot." He replied.  
  
"I'm sure the others will help. C'mon we have to look for Hermione." Ron said and pushed his chair from the table.  
  
"Where are you going?" Asked Mrs. Weasley. "Have you finished your meal?"  
  
"We're done, mum. We have to look for Hermione." Ron said as he hurried toward the door.  
  
"Very well, dears." Mrs. Weasley said as she glanced at the newspaper she had been reading from the moment she sat at the table.  
  
Harry was about to ask her if there was something interesting in the paper but Ron pulled him out the door with a "C'mon!"  
  
They hurried down the corridor toward the bookroom. Hermione wasn't there.  
  
"Where could she be?" Asked Ron.  
  
"Her bedroom." Harry said.  
  
They climbed the stairs at a run and made their way to the family wing.  
  
"Which one is hers?" Harry asked as they reached the corridor where they were all housed.  
  
"The one near the servant's stairs." Ron directed.  
  
The door was locked, but they were sure she was inside as they could hear things being moved in the room.  
  
"Hermione!" Ron called as he knocked on the door.  
  
The noise inside stopped, but she didn't answer.  
  
"Come on, Hermione, we know you're in there." Ron called.  
  
"We're sorry, Hermione, we never meant to say that you're not welcome to stay here!" Harry called rapping at the door.  
  
"You're our best friend. We'll never do anything this important without you." Ron said.  
  
They could hear her muttering behind the door. When suddenly she opened it just a crack and they could see her eyes peering at them.  
  
"I don't know anything about Quidditch, you know." She said.  
  
"You don't have to tell us that, we know that already." Said Ron.  
  
"What he means," said Harry before Hermione closed the door once more, "is that we don't care that you don't know much about it. You're good at other things, and that doesn't mean that you wouldn't be of help to us in the training session. You could set up training schedules and sort everybody into groups and that sort of thing."  
  
"Yeah, Harry and the rest of the team will be so busy training and looking at the candidates that we couldn't possible organize it all. We need you Hermione." He said in a wheedling tone.  
  
"Well, if you think I can help." Hermione murmured.  
  
"Of course, you can help. We have to write to all that people, and your writing is much better than ours." Ron said.  
  
"You got a response from McGonagall then." Hermione sounded more excited than before.  
  
"Yeah, just got the owl. What do you say? Wanna help us organize it?" Harry asked.  
  
"Yeah, if you want me to." Hermione said opening the door wide.  
  
"Of course, we want you to." Ron exclaimed.  
  
"Let's go to the bookroom, we'll have more space there." Harry directed and the three friends made their way through the corridors with friendship restored and full of excitement for the upcoming party.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
They spent several minutes arguing about what to do first once they got to the bookroom.  
  
"I think we should send the owls first thing tomorrow morning." Ron said for the tenth time since they assembled in the bookroom.  
  
"But Ron, we don't know where to put them, or who's going to be here." Hermione said.  
  
"That's why there's a wing full of empty rooms, Hermione, and if you remember is set aside for guests." Ron replied.  
  
"I think we should write to the rest of the team first. This is supposed to be a training session, me must begin with them." Harry interjected, not wanting one of Ron and Hermione's famous arguments to make lose track of their plans.  
  
"Yes, that is the most logical thing to do." Agreed Hermione.  
  
"I suppose. We do have to write to them to make sure they're free for a couple of weeks." Ron said.  
  
"Let's start with that, then. Once we have their responses we can start writing the invitations." Hermione said taking a blank piece of stationary she found on the desk and started making a list. "We have to talk to Mrs. Nichols and Roberts to organize the rooms and meal times. I suppose the public rooms will have to be readied since the family rooms are too small to hold more than twenty people. Once we get the acceptances of those planning to come, we can start planning accommodations. I don't know how many guest rooms are there, so we'll have to check on that."  
  
"I think there're thirty. Lupin said so." Harry interrupted.  
  
"Oh, so there's more than enough room. I don't expect more than twenty people to accept. There're not a lot of people who has enough courage to try out for the team, and with the rest of the team members," Hermione did a quick calculation, "there should be at least twenty-five people coming."  
  
"You're forgetting how curious people are, Hermione." Said Ron. "I'll bet there will be a lot more than twenty people accepting the invitation. They're all going to come out of curiosity instead of real interest in the training. They might even try to bring guests, and once they get here it will be rude to show them the door."  
  
Harry groaned at the thought of it all. It sounded so simple when they were just thinking about it.  
  
"Well, we'll have to include in the invitation that only those with real interest in trying out for the team should send their acceptances and that no guests should be brought as there will be no social programming scheduled but only Quidditch practice." Hermione said.  
  
"You can't write that, a lot of people would get angry." Exclaimed Harry.  
  
"Well, I don't know what else you can write to let them all know that it's only practice and not a house party." Hermione replied.  
  
"Wish I hadn't started this now." Sighed Harry with frustration.  
  
"Well, you can't stop now. You've already written to McGonagall and she's bound to tell somebody. By the end of the week there many people talking about it." Ron said.  
  
"Professor McGonagall wouldn't gossip like that." Hermione chided him.  
  
"She's a woman, isn't she? Women gossip." Ron replied.  
  
"Ronald Weasley!" Exclaimed Hermione.  
  
"Let's just continue with this, we'll discuss McGonagall later." Said Harry.  
  
Hermione glared at Ron before turning back to her list. "Well, first thing first, let's write to the team. There is no reason arguing about how many people are coming if we don't have the team with us when they get here." She said.  
  
"All right, you write it, you write more neatly than any of us." Ron said.  
  
Hermione looked pleased by this and started writing in her neat handwriting on a piece of parchment Harry passed to her.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
It was two days later when they got the first response to their letter.  
  
Harry was sitting behind the desk in the bookroom with Ron and Hermione as they made up a training schedule when Roberts entered the bookroom and presented Harry with a note.  
  
"This has just arrived for you, Master Harry." The butler intoned in his customary grave voice.  
  
"Thank you, Roberts." Said Harry as he took the envelope from Roberts.  
  
"C'mon, open it." Urged Ron as soon as Roberts had left the room.  
  
Harry opened the envelope in a hurry and slipped the parchment from its folds. He read it quietly and then passed it to Ron and Hermione who had tried to read it over his shoulder.  
  
"He's coming then. I wonder if training is over for the summer." Ron said as he put the note aside on the desktop.  
  
"Must be, if he's available to come." Harry said.  
  
"That's one, then." Hermione said as she took a blank piece of paper and started to write.  
  
"What are you writing now?" Ron asked, warily as watched her.  
  
"His name of course." Hermione said in exasperation.  
  
"What for? We know who he is." Ron exclaimed.  
  
"Honestly, Ron! We need to have a list of those who have accepted our invitation, don't we?" Hermione replied.  
  
"Why can't we just put an x or something next to the name in the list of people we sent owls to?" Asked Harry pointing at the list they had been working on earlier that day.  
  
"Because I need to give this to Mrs. Nichols and Mrs. Weasley." Said Hermione. "I told them that I would make a list of the people coming."  
  
Harry and Ron looked at each other in exasperation, they had written more lists in the past two days than they had ever written in their lives.  
  
"Very well." Said Harry, "we have Wood. I just hope the girls would answer soon."  
  
"They will. Fred and George are looking forward to seeing the whole team back again." Ron said taking the list of names they had written earlier. "Are we sure we want to write to everybody in Gryffindor?"  
  
"Of course, it wouldn't be fair not to invite somebody just because you think that they're not Quidditch material." Said Hermione snatching the list from Ron's fingers.  
  
"But many in them will probably say no, anyways. Let's face it, Neville is not likely to get on top of a broom again, specially for Quidditch training." Ron said.  
  
"Ron, that would be mean and you know it. Besides, McGonagall wrote that all should be invited." Hermione said as if McGonagall's word was the law that couldn't possibly be broken.  
  
"Alright, alright." Said Ron. "Let's get back to the training schedule then." He took the paper they had been working on when Roberts had come in with Wood's note.  
  
"I want to show this to the others, get their opinions on this. Specially Wood. He could give me real pointers at being captain." Said Harry.  
  
Ron shrugged. "Seems we can't do more until we get the letters from the others."  
  
"Yes, we should wait. We can't plan until we know how many people are going to be here." Hermione said.  
  
Harry stretched his arms. "This is more tiring than I thought." He groaned.  
  
"What did you expect? Planning this sort of things takes a lot of energy." Hermione said as she separated all their lists into piles.  
  
"Luncheon should be ready soon." Said Ron looking at the clock above the door. "Let's wait in the game room."  
  
"All right." Shrugged Harry and led them down the corridor toward the game room.  
  
They didn't have long to wait. Roberts entered the game room followed by the footmen carrying platters of food.  
  
"Mrs. Weasley will be away this afternoon, she thought you would prefer to eat here, Master Harry." Roberts announced.  
  
Harry turned to look at the others as if asking if they would like that.  
  
"It would be nice to eat here." Hermione said.  
  
"Yeah, we could do with a change." Said Ron.  
  
Roberts pulled a table before the couches in front of the T.V. and ordered the footmen to place the platters on it.  
  
It was an energetic meal, as one only teenagers are bound to have with no adult supervision. They watched television while they ate (Ron asking a million questions about it until Hermione felt the need of stuffing a ball of bread in his mouth), played pool as they ate their pudding, and played cards as they drank glass after glass of pumpkin juice.  
  
They were still there (Harry was loosing for the second time to Ron in a game of Wizards Chess) when Ginny came looking for them.  
  
"Here you are! I've been looking for you for half an hour!" She exclaimed.  
  
"We've been here the whole afternoon. Should've asked Roberts where we were, he always seems to know where everybody is." Ron said.  
  
"I assumed you would be working on your lists in the bookroom." Ginny snapped.  
  
"We decided to leave the rest until we get the responses of everybody else." Said Hermione.  
  
"Oh. Who've you got so far?" Ginny sat beside Hermione who sat on a chair watching the game.  
  
"Only Wood has written." Hermione said as the boys glared at them for talking during their game.  
  
The girls looked at each other and tried to stifle their giggles.  
  
"We might as well get it over with." Snapped Ron and moved his final piece. "Checkmate."  
  
Harry sighed defeated and turned to look at Ginny.  
  
"Where are Fred and George?" He asked. He knew that Ginny had spent the last few days in the twins' store while he, Ron and Hermione planned for their training session.  
  
"They stayed behind with Lee. Said they wanted to have a drink before coming home." Said Ginny. "Where's mom?"  
  
Ron shrugged. "Don't know, she left early this afternoon. Haven't seen her since."  
  
"Do you think it has to do with the Order?" Ginny asked in a hushed voice.  
  
"Could be." Ron said.  
  
"But Mrs. Weasley wouldn't have left us on our own." Hermione said. "Even with Robertsa and Mrs. Nichols keeping an eye on us, she wouldn't like to be away from home."  
  
"She didn't have any choice, now did she?" Ron said.  
  
"Specially if it's about the Order." Harry replied.  
  
"But the time is all wrong! People work at that time, they wouldn't have been able to attend a meeting." Said Hermione.  
  
"Maybe it wasn't a meeting. Maybe Dumbledore wanted her to do something." Ginny said.  
  
"It's no good trying to guess what is happening." Hermione said. "It wouldn't do to start making conjectures of things that aren't true."  
  
Ron rolled his eyes and glared at Hermione. Harry kept silent, he agreed with Hermione, it wouldn't do to start thinking about what could happen, especially since he knew how things could end for him.  
  
He had thought several times of telling Ron and Hermione about Dumbledore's revelation about the prophecy. And several times he had come close to telling them, but had changed his mind as soon as he had opened his mouth. He sighed. Things couldn't get any better for him, he thought.  
  
He looked at the others and was glad that none seemed to have noticed his lapse of attention. They were busy arguing about Mrs. Weasley's absence.  
  
"Dinner should be served soon, don't you think." He interrupted before Hermione and Ron launched into one of their famous arguments.  
  
"Yeah, mum should be home by then, don't you think?" Ginny asked. Harry was sure that he heard some worry in her voice.  
  
"I'm sure she will. They twins should be back by then too, and the others." Said Hermione, letting her mind wander into other subjects.  
  
Nobody had time to answer as loud voices could be heard from the corridor.  
  
"I tell you, if that git gets near us one more time - "  
  
"I know, I know."  
  
The door opened and the twins walked into the room.  
  
"Roberts said we would find you lot here." Fred said with a smile.  
  
"Did something happen while you were having your drink?" Ginny asked.  
  
"What do you mean?" George asked with feigned innocence.  
  
"You know what she's talking about, we could hear you arguing out there." Ron snickered.  
  
"Oh, nothing of consequence." Fred said with a disinterested wave of the hand.  
  
The others looked at them with incredulous glances.  
  
"Alright, alright." Said Fred.  
  
"We saw Perce at Diagon Alley, it's all." George said with disgust.  
  
Ron and Ginny looked at each other with worry. Harry understood why the family was weary of hearing Percy's name.  
  
"What did he want?" Asked Ron in a querulous tone.  
  
Fred snorted  
  
"To give us some advice." Leered George.  
  
"What did he say?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Not much." Fred replied.  
  
"Didn't let him." George continued.  
  
"We just went on with Lee to the Leaky Cauldron." Fred finished.  
  
"Maybe he had something worthy to say." Ginny said quietly.  
  
George scoffed. "I doubt it. The stupid git has more brains than common sense."  
  
"Honestly, George, he's not all that bad." Hermione exclaimed.  
  
"Of course he is. He made mum cry." Ron snapped.  
  
"Unless he apologizes to her and dad, he has nothing more to say to us." Fred said coldly.  
  
Ginny sniffed and Harry noticed unshed tears gathering in her eyes.  
  
"Here." He said passing a handkerchief to her. He was glad that Lotty was used to placing clean handkerchiefs in his pockets every day.  
  
Ginny dried her tears and blew her nose, while Ron patted her back softly.  
  
"Where's mum?" Fred said looking away from Ginny.  
  
"Roberts said she was away." George said as he sat in a couch across from them.  
  
"Don't know. She left early afternoon." Harry said.  
  
"Wonder if Dumbledore sent for her." Fred said joining his twin in the large couch.  
  
"Let's not start this again." Hermione exclaimed.  
  
Ginny gave a watery chuckled and even Ron smiled. Fred and George looked confused.  
  
"We'll explain later." Said Harry.  
  
They heard footsteps in the corridor before the door opened and Lupin walked into the room.  
  
"Hello." He greeted them with an easy smile. "How are you plans coming along?"  
  
"Oh, good." Harry said.  
  
"We got a note from Wood today." Ron said quickly. "Said he could join us."  
  
"That's good news." Fred said.  
  
"Would be good to play with the old team once more." George smiled.  
  
"We still have to hear from the others. Once we do, we'll plan for what comes next." Hermione reported.  
  
"Did McGonagall give you all the names of Gryffindors?" Ginny asked.  
  
"A while ago. Their addresses too." Ron said happily.  
  
"You don't have much time, you know." Fred said.  
  
"Only three weeks until the term starts." George said.  
  
Harry was concerned for a minute. It did seem like they didn't have much time left. He hoped they heard from the others by tomorrow so they could start sending owls to the rest of Gryffindor House. Even one week of training would be beneficial.  
  
"We'll have enough time if we get word from the others soon." Hermione said. "Not much left to organize."  
  
"We need to send all those owls, though." Groaned Ron.  
  
"Well, you better start on it then. We talked to Lee and he agreed to care for the store while we help with this plan of yours." Fred said.  
  
"He wanted to come too, but that's the week when most Hogwarts students go to Diagon Alley, it wouldn't do to close the store at such time." George said.  
  
"Are you sure you can take the time off?" Ginny asked.  
  
"Yeah, we are interviewing some assistants. You lot will be gone soon and we'll need somebody to stay in the store at all times. Fred and I are too busy to stay behind the counter all day long." George said.  
  
"What are you doing then, Professor? You could come to work for us." Fred said looking at Lupin.  
  
Lupin laughed. "I appreciate that boys, but I have plans for the fall."  
  
"Oh?" His audience seemed curious.  
  
"Indeed." He smiled mysteriously.  
  
"Anywhere we know?" Ron asked.  
  
"You might have heard of it." Said Lupin with a grin.  
  
They seemed to be eager to continue with their questions, but at that moment, Mrs. Weasley came into the room, followed closely by her husband.  
  
"Hello, dears." She smiled brightly.  
  
"Hello, mum." "Mrs. Weasley." They answered.  
  
"Dinner should be served in a few minutes. Have you washed your hands?" She asked looking at her children with a piercing glance.  
  
"We'll be right back." Said Fred in a hurry as he pulled his twin along with him.  
  
"How was your day, Molly?" Said Lupin looking at Mrs. Weasley's happy expression.  
  
"Oh, it was great. Today, we must celebrate." She squealed with excitement.  
  
"Why?" Asked George as he and Fred came into the room in time to hear their mother's excited response.  
  
"You'll see." She said as she smiled brightly to her husband.  
  
Harry turned to look at Hermione and Ron, who seemed to be as confused as the rest.  
  
Roberts came in to say that dinner was ready.  
  
Everybody piled out of the room toward the dining room. They were all eager to hear Mrs. Weasley's news.  
  
Dinner seemed to be special indeed, as roasted Ham, baked duck, glazed pheasant, stewed beef, pork chops, salads and mounds of pastries were served around the table. Even the wineglasses that Harry had noticed in a closet in the butler's pantry had been taken out and a bottle of champagne was cooling in a bucket at the center of the table.  
  
"What's all this, mum?" Asked Fred looking surprised at the feast served to them this evening.  
  
"We'll tell you after you've eaten." Mrs. Weasley said.  
  
She didn't have to tell them twice. The boys piled their plates full. Hermione glared at them in disgust and served herself small servings of everything.  
  
"Mum's news must be great indeed." Harry heard Fred murmur to George nearby.  
  
Ron looked across the table to his parents. Both were lost to themselves as they talked quietly to Lupin.  
  
"What do you reckon she has to say?" He asked after swallowing a large piece of ham.  
  
"Don't know, but it's clearly good." Harry said.  
  
"Wonder if it has to do with Percy." Hermione said. "Maybe that's why he tried to talk to Fred and George."  
  
Ron shrugged. "Could be, but then, they would've brought him with them."  
  
Hermione seemed thoughtful for a minute.  
  
"Weren't you the one who told us not to make guesses that could be proven false?" Harry said.  
  
"You're right. She'll tell us soon enough." She said as she turned her attention back to her food.  
  
Ron and Harry looked at each other and chuckled.  
  
The meal was soon over and Roberts was serving the chilled champagne. Harry looked at his glass with trepidation. He had never tasted the bubbly beverage before and hoped it wasn't too strong. He didn't want to make a fool of himself in front of everybody.  
  
Mr. Weasley stood up and Harry turned to look around the table. Everybody quieted down and turn to look at Mr. Weasley standing at his end of the table.  
  
"I have great news for you. As you may have gathered by the special dinner." Said Mr. Weasley. "I'm pleased to announce that I got a promotion this afternoon."  
  
Those around the table burst into applause.  
  
"Yay!" Ginny was squealing happily as she bounced excitedly on her chair.  
  
"About time!" Harry heard Fred yelled over the noise.  
  
Mr. Weasley was grinning while Mrs. Weasley beamed proudly at his side.  
  
"What's the position, Arthur?" Asked Lupin once the pandemonium was over.  
  
"I'm the new Head of the Muggle Relations and Liaison Department." Said Mr. Weasley.  
  
"Wow!" Exclaimed Hermione. "I didn't know there was such a department in the Ministry."  
  
"There wasn't." Said Lupin. "I assume it's a new office."  
  
"Indeed. After some discussion, the Minister came to the conclusion that such department should exist." Said Mr. Arthur.  
  
"You mean he was pushed into it by other members of the Ministry." George mumbled under his breath, loud enough for Harry and his siblings to hear.  
  
"Some of the existing offices will become part of the department." Mr. Weasley continued uninterrupted. "Like my old office, the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts. The Obliviators Headquarters Office and the Muggle-Worthy Excuse Committee will transfer as well."  
  
"That's a lot of people, dad." Exclaimed Fred. "The Obliviators Squad alone is made up of more than fifty wizards."  
  
"Indeed. We have much to do to rearrange ourselves." Mr. Weasley replied.  
  
"Are there any new offices planned?" Asked Hermione who was clearly struck by the idea of a whole department taking care of Muggle Relations.  
  
"Oh yes, we'll begin interviewing wizards for the Muggle Liaison Office and the Muggle-born Counselor Office." Mr. Weasley announced proudly.  
  
"What are they supposed to do?" Asked Ron.  
  
"Well, Muggle Liasion agents will go undercover into the Muggle world to keep abreast of everything happening that may affect or be caused by anything magical." Explained Mr. Weasley as puddings and cakes were passed around the table. "The Muggle-born Counselor Office will counsel those muggle-borns just receiving their owls. Many go into Hogwarts without knowing what to expect and as a result go under so much stress that it affects their studies. The office will help them understand what the Magical world is as well as abate the fears that their muggle parents may undergo. They will take the new students to Diagon Alley and show them around so that they don't have any problems getting their school materials."  
  
Hermione was nodding happily as Mr. Weasley listed the duties of the new offices. "That will be great. I know that many will appreciate some help after getting their first owl."  
  
"You didn't have any problem." Pointed Ron out.  
  
"Well, of course I did, at the beginning. For one thing, how was I supposed to get to Diagon Alley? I didn't know. Professor McGonagall sent instructions along with the letter, but sometimes, that's not enough." Hermione said.  
  
"Does this means you'll get a raise?" Asked George curiously.  
  
"Of course he gets a raise, you silly boy." Mrs. Weasley laughed.  
  
The rest started to chat happily across the table.  
  
The sound of Lupin's voice silenced them once more.  
  
"I think we should make a toast." Said he raising his champagne glass. "A toast, to Arthur Weasley, the first Head of the Muggle Relations and Liaison Department."  
  
"Cheers." The rest said raising their glasses, and drank.  
  
Mrs. Weasley seemed ecstatic. She looked proudly at her children and smiled brightly to her husband.  
  
They continued their celebration in the parlor room, where a small piano had been brought in and enchanted to play by itself in a corner of the room. Roberts had sent the footmen for bottles of wine and champagne and Mrs. Nichols had sent up trays of tea and pastries for the young people.  
  
Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny sat in a corner with a pot of tea and biscuits chatting happily as the rest sat around Mr. Weasley who was talking about all the plans for the new department.  
  
"I'm so glad your father got the promotion." Said Hermione setting her cup aside to grab a few biscuits.  
  
"So am I, they couldn't find anybody more enthusiastic about Muggles anywhere." Harry said.  
  
"He's happy enough. Mum is so proud." Smiled Ginny.  
  
"Bet old Percy will try to kiss off to him now." Ron smirked.  
  
"Oh, he wouldn't do that, would he?" Said Ginny looking at his father with worry.  
  
"Of course he will. You heard Fred and George, he tried to talk to them earlier." Ron said.  
  
"I'm sure your father will do what's best." Said Hermione.  
  
Ron grunted but Ginny nodded and changed the subject.  
  
"Do you think you will hear from the rest of the team soon?" She asked.  
  
"I imagine so." Said Harry. "Probably in the next couple of days."  
  
"I hope we have them by the end of the week, we need to start preparing the letters for the rest, otherwise we won't have much time to practice. We only have three weeks left of vacation." Said Ron.  
  
"I'm certain we'll have time for everything. It's not like you could practice for more than a week anyway." Said Hermione.  
  
"But one week it's not going to be enough." Ron exclaimed.  
  
"We'll have enough time for what we want to do." Said Harry. "No point getting worried about it before we get everything in place."  
  
Ginny yawned. "I think I'll go to bed. Good night."  
  
"Night." They said as they watched her go toward her parents to say good night.  
  
The party broke up soon after.  
  
Harry lay thinking about everything they had learned that day. It seemed like a long day, but a happy day all the same. He was truthful when he had said he was glad about Mr. Weasley's promotion. Harry knew he deserved it.  
  
Sleepiness overtook him and soon after he fell asleep.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
The sun was shinning and the room was warm when Harry woke up the next day. After allowing Lotty to help him prepare for the day he went down to the dinning room in search of his friends.  
  
He found Ron and Hermione arguing while Ginny sat nearby looking bored.  
  
"They've been at it since I came down." She whispered after he sat at her side with a loaded plate in his hands.  
  
"What is it this time?" Harry asked.  
  
"I'm not sure, but I think it's about Krum." Ginny replied eating her meal slowly.  
  
"Krum? Why would they argue about him?" Harry asked looking at his best friends who seemed to be too involved in their argument to notice them nearby.  
  
"Hermione received an owl from him." Ginny said.  
  
Harry shook his head amused and turned his attention to his plate.  
  
"Fine!" Ron exclaimed.  
  
"Fine!" Yelled Hermione in return and stormed out of the room.  
  
Ron stabbed his eggs in resentment but didn't look up from his plate.  
  
"Trouble?" Asked Harry breaking the awkward silence.  
  
"No." Snapped Ron.  
  
Harry raised his eyebrows in disbelief and Ginny giggled at his side.  
  
"What's so special about him, that's what I want to know?" Ron exclaimed as his eggs went flying into the air.  
  
"You mean apart from the fact that he's famous, a great Quidditch player and the first boy to show any interest in her." Ginny said.  
  
Ron glared at her. "He's not that great, Harry is better than him, and more famous than he is and you don't see Hermione falling on his feet."  
  
Harry choked on his tea.  
  
Ginny laughed and patted his back.  
  
"I don't think I could see Hermione in that way." Harry wheezed.  
  
Ron shrugged but didn't say anything.  
  
"That's the trouble. Neither of you ever did." Ginny said and pushed her chair back. "I think I'll go find her."  
  
Ron glared at Ginny's back as they watched her leave the room. "What was that supposed to mean?" He asked turning to look at Harry.  
  
"Don't know." Harry said with a shrug.  
  
"Girls are just mental." Said Ron.  
  
"Not all of them I should think." Harry laughed.  
  
"Of course they are. There's no mistake about it." Said Ron turning to his food in a happier mood.  
  
Harry laughed at him but he too turned his attention back on his food.  
  
"What are we doing today?" Asked Ron as he emptied his plate.  
  
"Look through the mail first, if we find any more responses we can begin with the letters to the rest of Gryffindor." Said Harry.  
  
"I hope we can find something in the mail today, not much to do around here otherwise." Ron said.  
  
Harry smiled but didn't contradict him.  
  
Roberts soon came in with the mail tray. Harry was happy to find three letters addressed to him.  
  
"Katie, Alicia and Angelina." He said showing Ron the three letters.  
  
"What's that other one?" Ron pointed curiously at the remaining letter in the tray.  
  
"The Dursleys." Said Harry looking at the letter with curiosity and dread.  
  
"What could they want?" Ron glared at the note.  
  
Harry shrugged but took the note from the tray.  
  
"They mailed it by Muggle post." Said Harry looking at the envelope.  
  
"Of course, they don't have an owl, do they?" Ron replied.  
  
"No. They wouldn't like one for their own." Harry said.  
  
"Open it, see what they say." Urged Ron.  
  
Harry turned the envelope and opened it. A single sheet of paper fell from the envelope. Harry read it in silence while Ron looked at him with curiosity.  
  
Harry sighed and pushed the letter aside.  
  
"Well?" Ron asked.  
  
"They want me to go back to Privet Drive." Harry said.  
  
"What? Have they lost it? Why would you leave your own home to return to them?" Asked Ron incredulously.  
  
"I think, it's because of the money. They're not receiving any more of it." Harry said bitterly.  
  
"That's probably it. Are you going to write back?" Asked Ron glaring at the note as if it could relay his feelings back to the Dursleys.  
  
"No, there's no need." Harry said. He folded the sheet and slipped it into the envelope once more. He took the other letters and pushed his chair back. "Come, let's see if we can find Hermione and Ginny. If Alicia and the others are coming for the training we should start with the rest of the letters."  
  
They left the room with the letters, except the Dursley', which remained on the table.  
  
The girls were found in the garden, and Ron and Hermione seemed to have shed their differences aside as they talked peacefully about the letters.  
  
They were, in fact, responses to their letter agreeing to be part of the training.  
  
"Good, we have most of the team in, we just need Andrew and Jack to write and we'll have all of them in. But we can start with the letters to Gryffindor, that will take a while." Said Hermione.  
  
"Why? We just need to replicate it. That's a simple spell." Said Ron.  
  
"We can't use magic, remember." Replied Ginny.  
  
"We don't have to do it, we can just ask Roberts to do it for us." Ron said.  
  
"That's not the trouble, is the addressing of the envelopes which will take a lot of our time." Hermione said.  
  
"We might as well begin." Harry said and led them to the bookroom.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
A/N: There you go, that's the first part of this chapter, this is not too bad but it's the part about the summer training session that I'm not sure about, read the next part and let me know if I should take that part out, should I edit it and cut it out of the storyline or should I keep it. Hmmm? 


	54. Sixth Year Chapter 5 Part II Quidditch...

A/N: Here is the second part of Chapter 5.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Chapter 5 (Part II) ~ Quidditch Camp  
  
They spent the next five hours working on through their mail list, Mrs. Nichols sent trays with cider and pumpkin juice and platters of fruit and sandwiches for them while they worked.  
  
Harry worked furiously through his list. The three weeks he had spent at the Manor were the best he had had as long as he could remember. And for that he was grateful. It had been a long time since he had woken up in sweat from a nightmare that had become a constant in his life since Cedric's death. But there were times when during the middle of the night, when everything was quiet and everybody else lay sleeping, he lay in his bed looking through the darkness toward the pictures that stood above the mantel around the fireplace. He had seen those pictures with great care during the first days he spent at the Manor, but after a while they became bittersweet images of what his life could've been. There were so many ifs in his life, and he didn't want to think about them anymore. He hadn't looked at those pictures since that first week. He didn't want to see the images of the most important people in his life when they couldn't be with him. He'd rather think about his plans for the Gryffindor team and allow enough time to meet with Mr. Nicholei to discuss his assets.  
  
"Something wrong, Harry?" Harry heard Ginny ask. He shook his head. His quill stood motionless above the envelope a blot of ink in the middle of the blank parchment. He had lost himself in his thoughts, forgetting what he was supposed to be doing. "I'm fine." He said as he put away the tainted envelope and took another from the pile at the center of the table.  
  
They were sitting around a round table in the bookroom, Ginny sat next to him with Ron and Hermione across from him. He noticed that his two friends were back to bickering once more. He couldn't hear them as they bickered in whispers. He turned to look at Ginny with a questioning glance.  
  
Ginny tried to stifle her giggles behind one hand and shrugged. "They've been at it for the last five minutes."  
  
Harry looked at Ron and Hermione, who seemed to have reached an agreement and turned back to their envelopes. Harry sighed and turned his attention back to his work. The pile of addressed envelopes was getting bigger and bigger. Roberts had duplicated their letter for them and set a basket on the table for them to place the addressed envelopes in for him to owl when they were done.  
  
"We have to finish our school work." Said Hermione suddenly as she threw her last envelope in the basket.  
  
"What? We're on vacation." Exclaimed Ron looking up abruptly from his work.  
  
"And we won't have time to finish it once everybody gets here." Hermione said matter-of-factly.  
  
Ron groaned but didn't say anymore, they all knew that she was right and the thought of going back to Hogwarts without their work done was not one they wanted to think about.  
  
"It shouldn't take us long to do it." Hermione continued taking some of the finger sandwiches that were still left on the platter. "Ginny has started on hers, and she's the one with the most as it's O.W.L.'s years for her, and we only have a few papers to write."  
  
"You call three four feet papers a few?" Said Ron throwing his last envelope into the basket.  
  
"We can do it in less than a day?" She replied.  
  
"Less than a day? You might, but I don't think it will be so easy for Ron and me." Harry declared.  
  
"Honestly, one would think that you two are idiots, you're not you know - "  
  
"Who said we were idiots?" Ron exclaimed but Hermione continued as if he hadn't interrupted her.  
  
" – all you need to do is put a little more effort into your work. If you want to become an auror, you'll have to work hard in the next two years. Mr. Fudge and others in the Ministry will try to make it difficult for you to make it in. You'll just have to make sure that your work is excellent so they won't have anything to say against you."  
  
"Well, she's right in that." Sighed Ron looking at Harry.  
  
Harry nodded. "Especially me. Fudge will make it very difficult."  
  
"Oh, I don't think he'll be the problem. I wager he won't finish the year as the Minister of Magic." Said Ginny.  
  
Ron seemed to cheer up at this thought. "You're right. With all the trouble at the Ministry, people might succeed in getting him to resign."  
  
"Wonder how they'll choose the next Minister if he does." Hermione seemed thoughtful about this. "There is no precedence for this. No Minister has ever been asked to step down from office. There have been revolts of course, but in those cases the ones heading the revolts have named their own Minister and they usually didn't last long and people voted for their own official."  
  
"Maybe they'll have special elections." Said Ginny as she tried to put the envelopes in the basket in order. They were all done with their assigned lists and were ready to owl their letters.  
  
"We'll just have to wait and see." Said Harry.  
  
Nobody else had anything to say as Roberts came in with a new tray.  
  
"Owls have arrived, Sir." He said presenting two envelopes to Harry.  
  
"Thank you." Said Harry taking the notes from the tray. "We're done with ours."  
  
Roberts nodded and took the basket before walking out of the room.  
  
"Andrew and Jack." Harry said showing the letters to the others.  
  
"This is it, then. We're ready." Said Ron excitedly.  
  
Yes, we are, thought Harry.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
It was two days later that they started to receive the responses from their fellow Gryffindors.  
  
"How many so far?" Asked Ron looking over Hermione's shoulder as she wrote in her list of names.  
  
"Ten." She said as she continued to make notes.  
  
"Why are Pavarti and Lavender coming? They're not interested in playing Quidditch." Said Harry as he looked at the letters received that morning.  
  
"Because they know that all Gryffindor boys are going to be here." Ginny said.  
  
"This is not a social gathering! This is a Quidditch training camp." Ron exclaimed.  
  
"You knew it would happen." Hermione said. "Many of these," she pointed to the list of names, "are not interested in playing but they're curious about the Manor, not to mention about this party of ours."  
  
"But it's not a party, all we'll do is train." Said Harry.  
  
Hermione sighed in exasperation. "We know that! But you have to understand that by now everybody knows that Harry is back in Gryffindor Manor." She said. "Many people will be curious about it. This place has been part of our history and people have heard of it. Why do you think they have placed so many charms and incantations around it to keep Harry safe while we're here? Not everybody will come because of Quidditch."  
  
"Well, we'll have to tell them that they'll have to entertained themselves, we won't have time to do anything other than Quidditch." Said Ron.  
  
"I'll take care of them." Hermione replied.  
  
"Just keep them away from us, we don't want them bothering us." Ron exclaimed.  
  
Hermione glared at him but didn't respond as Roberts came in with more letters for them.  
  
Harry sighed. "We better talk to Mrs. Nichols about rooms."  
  
The others sighed. They were going to have their hands full for quite some time.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Eight days until they needed to return to Hogwarts, and the whole family was sitting in the formal parlor in front of the Manor waiting for their first guest. The time had come for their idyllic peace to be over.  
  
The cars had been sent to the village where the guests were to floo or be dropped off, then they would be driven to the Manor, where the Weasleys, Hermione and Harry awaited them. Lupin had volunteered to meet everybody in the village. Dumbledore wanted safety to be the word of the day.  
  
Harry was pacing around the room, waiting. The footmen waited around the entrance hall to be called on to take the guests to their rooms. Roberts stood stately by the door, waiting for the sound of the car engines to open the door. Mrs. Nichols had ordered tables to be placed at one corner of the room where tea pots, platters of biscuits, sandwiches and pastries waited for those who wanted a little refreshment at their arrival.  
  
The sound of the car reached their ears. Harry, Ron and Hermione ran to the window and watched as the car came to a stop before the open oak doors of the entrance hall. Martin, the driver, went around the car and opened the door.  
  
"Come from there, you must receive your guests." Called Mrs. Weasley.  
  
The three turned away from the window in time to hear Roberts voice welcoming somebody in the entrance hall. Footsteps followed and soon, the parlor door was opened and Roberts came in.  
  
"Mr. Wood, Miss Spinnet and Miss Bell." The butler said before stepping aside and their guests came in.  
  
"Wow." Said Oliver Wood as he watched Roberts walk out of the room, leaving the door open.  
  
"This is a great house, Harry." Alicia said in awe as she looked around.  
  
"I'll want to go exploring a bit." Katie exclaimed as she stepped toward Mrs. Weasley who stood up ready to welcome them.  
  
"I'm sure we can give you a tour, my dear." Said Mrs. Weasley with a smile.  
  
"I hope your trip was uneventful." Said Mr. Weasley as he shook hands.  
  
"Oh, yes. Katie and I flooed to the village." Alicia said as she took a seat on one of the many chairs around the room.  
  
"I prefer to fly." Oliver said. "There's a lot of open fields in the area Harry. Where do you plan to have this training of yours?"  
  
"Oh, we won't use a field, there's a Quidditch Pitch on the grounds." Harry exclaimed.  
  
"You're kidding." Oliver said excitedly. "You got to show it to me."  
  
"Not now. You'll have enough time later." Said Hermione as both Oliver and Harry were about to leave their seats. "There are many others coming, and I'm sure Oliver will prefer to rest up for a while before we start with the training plans."  
  
"Yes, of course." Said Oliver looking somewhat disappointed.  
  
"Tell us about your team, Oliver. I saw you play last June." Said Fred coming up to his former captain after talking to the girls for a moment.  
  
Minutes later Roberts came back to the parlor leading Angelina Johnson, Seamus Finnigan and Andrew Kirke, the last looking a little nervous.  
  
"Professor Lupin is putting everybody into groups of three." Seamus explained after greeting everybody and sitting near Harry and Ron, after the acrimony of the last year he had been trying very hard to get along better with Harry. "He says it's safer that way."  
  
"I suppose he knows what he's doing." Ron shrugged.  
  
The room was full of noise. One of the footmen had led Oliver to his room a few minutes before, and the luggage had been taken to the guest rooms by footmen and elves.  
  
The afternoon was spent greeting their visitors. Every time the car stopped with a new group of guests, Roberts brought them into the parlor. Some stayed there for a while talking with the others, some preferred to go up to their rooms after greeting Harry and the Weasleys.  
  
Dinner had been put back until eight that evening. Harry was glad that Mrs. Weasley had done so as it was almost seven when they greeted their last group of visitors and the cars had been sent back to the village to bring Remus and Tonks, who had come to help that afternoon. Moody and Kingsley Shacklebolt had turned up that morning and stationed themselves besides the gatehouse, using their dark arts detector spells as the cars passed by to make sure that everybody was safe from any surprise attacks. The other members of the Order had been told to be ready at any minute's notice just in case they were needed.  
  
By half past seven, everybody started to reunite in the formal parlor. Mrs. Weasley was happily greeting their guests back. Harry was happy to notice that she enjoyed the attention and the duty of hostess. The servants also seemed happy, especially Mrs. Nichols and Roberts, Harry had heard them talk about the house parties of the past and saw how excited they had become in the last week as everything was being readied for the visitors. The house had been cleaned from top to bottom, the guest rooms readied (some with extra beds), the broomsticks waxed, the Pitch trimmed and the formal dinning room table extended to include all their guests around it. Even the ballroom was cleaned and prepared for use if needed.  
  
Harry had been surprised to see that almost every Gryffindor had accepted his invitation. Even Neville Longbottom, whom he had been sure his grandmother wouldn't allow him to attend, was there. They had close to sixty guests, which meant that in most guest rooms they had to set an extra bed, thus, most guest would have to share a bedroom, only Oliver Wood and Angelina Johnson had their own room. Even the remaining rooms in the family wing had been prepared, for Dumbledore had asked some members of the Order to stay at the Manor during the weeklong Quidditch training. Every room in the Manor was now occupied, and the servants were happy to have it so.  
  
Harry, Ron, Oliver, Fred and George sat in a corner talking about training procedures while Hermione sat with Ginny, Lavender and Pavarti. Several groups formed around the parlor while they waited for dinner to be announced. A cacophony of voices filled the room, as everybody chatted and greeted each other as some saw their friends for the first time since the end of school.  
  
Finally, Roberts stood by the doors opening to the dinning room. "Dinner is served." He said.  
  
Mrs. and Mr. Weasley led the group into the dinning room. "Oooh," and "Aaahh" were heard as the guests started to pile into the room. Even Harry was awed by the glittering elegance of the room. He could clearly picture his grandparents sitting with guests during their famous house parties.  
  
Windows opened along one of the walls, in the middle stood a glass door that lead into the formal gardens. The wall opposite was made of mirrors, which made the room look larger than it actually was, in the middle was a pair of large oak doors that opened up to the entrance hall. At the opposite wall from the one they had come through was another glass door and beyond it was the conservatory, where tropical plants were grown and preserved all year long.  
  
A large chandelier glittered brightly from the light of the many candles lit upon it. Golden candle holders lined the walls a few feet from the ceiling. Elegant lamps and tables stood at each corner of the room. The large table had been extended to sit eighty guests. The table cover was made of a thin fluid looking material that changed color as the light hit on its surface. The chairs were made of wood, a curved, straight back and a fluffy pillow on the seat.  
  
"This place is exquisite." Harry heard Pavarti say to Lavender. "Padma will be green with envy when I tell her."  
  
"Was she very angry? That she couldn't come, I mean." Said Lavender as each took a seat along the table.  
  
"Very. But the invitation clearly stated that it was for Gryffindors only. She didn't want me to come." Pavarti responded.  
  
"How did you convince your parents to let you?" Lavender wanted to know.  
  
"Didn't have to, Mother wanted me to come, said that she had heard so much about the Manor when she was growing up and she wanted to have at least one daughter to attend." Pavarti sounded smug by this.  
  
"Mum said the same thing when I received the owl, said that it didn't matter if I fell off the broom during the tryouts, but she wanted me to be here. A story to tell my children, she said." Lavender confessed.  
  
Ron looked laughingly at Harry, who was equally amused at the heights some people were ready to go to in order to be able to say that they had been at the Manor that summer.  
  
The meal was a noisy one. As soon as the first plate had been brought in, people turned to their neighbors to chat and plan for the upcoming days.  
  
It was a formal dinner, and all were awed by the elegant atmosphere that surrounded them; especially after seeing the butler and footmen serving the dishes as they were brought in.  
  
Harry was in agitation when they first sat around the table. He wanted everything to go right. By the end of the meal, Harry was happy that he had agreed to Mrs. Weasley and Mrs. Nichols' plan to have a formal dinner that first night. He knew that on the next days the meals would be as informal as those in Hogwarts, but for tonight, he felt important.  
  
When the meal was done, everybody piled into the sitting room once more. Trays of tea, butterbeer and cider had been brought in for those who wanted more drinks as well as biscuits, pastries and puddings.  
  
Groups reformed and chatter broke out through the room once more. Giggles, laughter and chuckles were heard from different groups.  
  
"Gran says that I could do whatever I wanted." Neville was telling Ron, Harry, Hermione and Ginny, as they sat close to the windows. "Kind of proud, she is, after what happened in June."  
  
"Well, you can." Ginny said vehemently. "If you want to try out for the team, you certainly can give it a try."  
  
"Well, I really don't want to try out." Said Neville sheepishly. "But I thought the training couldn't hurt. It's bound to make me a better flier, not up to Gryffindor Team standards of course, but a better flier nonetheless."  
  
"You know, I never thought of it like that. I only thought of it as training for the team, but you're right, this training will certainly help those who are not really good at flying." Hermione said.  
  
"Does this means that you'll join us for the training?" Asked Ron with a cheeky smile.  
  
"No! I fly good enough to get me where I want to go." Hermione said with a dignified air.  
  
"But you heard Neville, and you just said it yourself, it's bound to make you a better flier." Ron said with a laugh.  
  
"Laugh all you want. I'm not joining you." Hermione exclaimed.  
  
"Don't pay him any attention, Hermione, you know he is just teasing you." Soothed Ginny as she glared at her snickering brother.  
  
"Besides," said Harry, "Hermione agreed to keep some of our guests entertained."  
  
"Right." Smiled Hermione. "I thought that a picnic by the lake would be a good idea, Lupin said that they used to have them several times during summer when he visited when he was still at school. He said there are five small boats in the boathouse that we can use to paddle in the lake if we wanted."  
  
"And who's going to paddle for you?" Ron asked. "Every boy is bound to be at the Pitch with us."  
  
Hermione glared at him before continuing with her plans. "I can ask Lupin to charm the boats to drift around the lake. We don't need you lot to paddle for us."  
  
"A good idea. I would be tempted to leave training just to join you." Ginny exclaimed.  
  
"You wouldn't dare." Gasped Ron.  
  
"I'm sure that we can all get some free time now and then to join Hermione in her entertainments." Said Harry, who was tempted himself to join in the picnic she was planning.  
  
"Well..." grumbled Ron slowly.  
  
"As I'm not planning to tryout, I could join you in some of your plans." Offered Neville.  
  
"Thank you Neville, I'm sure you'll enjoy yourself." Hermione replied with a smile.  
  
Conversation lagged after a while and soon people said their goodnights and started walking toward their rooms.  
  
"I guess we should get going too." Yawned Ginny. "We have a long day tomorrow."  
  
"Yeah." Mumbled Ron who had fallen sleep against next to Hermione.  
  
She nudged him with her elbow. "You certainly should." She giggled. "You're already asleep."  
  
Harry smiled and led the way out of the room. Before they reached the door he stopped next to Mrs. Weasley and Mrs. Nichols who were conversing quietly.  
  
"Thank you Mrs. Weasley, and you too, Mrs. Nichols, it was a magnificent evening." He said with a happy smile.  
  
"Oh, it is nothing, my dear, it is your home after all." Replied Mrs. Weasley who seemed to have enjoyed herself during the evening.  
  
"We are glad to help you with your house party, Master Harry. It was time the Manor was opened up to society once more." Said Mrs. Nichols happily.  
  
"Good night." The young people said and left their hostess and housekeeper behind to prepare for the upcoming day.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Harry slept fitfully that night. It had been some time since memories of the night of Voldemort's return as well as that night in the Ministry had invaded his dreams. He had kept himself busy during the last weeks planning this week of training and had found that the more tired he was the less he dreamt.  
  
He had succeeded, but now, it was catching up to him.  
  
He was glad when the sun started to appear in the horizon.  
  
He heard Lotty appear in the dressing room, hearing the familiar pop that marked his appearance. The sounds of Lotty preparing his clothing and his bath came clearly to his ears and he stretched tiredly on the bed.  
  
"Good morning, Master Harry." Lotty greeted him. "Lotty has prepared Master Harry's bath."  
  
"Thank you Lotty. I think you better have my robes ready for me today, we'll start with some training." Harry directed as he stood gingerly from his bed. His body complained as he had spent the night twisting and moving around on his bed.  
  
Lotty promptly disappeared into the dressing room while Harry made his way to the bathtub. He sighed with contentment as he immersed himself into the hot water. Ginny had been right, it was going to be a long day.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
An hour later, Harry found himself sitting at the head of the table waiting for his guests to arrive.  
  
Long tables had been placed before the mirrors, loaded with large platters full of delicious looking dishes. Plates and glasses stood on a table by the door ready to be picked up as the guests made their entrance to the dinning room.  
  
Only Mrs. Weasley, Mr. Weasley, Bill and Lupin were in the room with him. The others hadn't made their appearance yet.  
  
"What are your plans for today?" Asked Lupin as he sat with a full plate by Harry's side.  
  
"We'll begin with some basic training today. I talked it over with Oliver and Angelina, we'll divide the others into groups and do some basic training this morning. Two hours should be enough." Harry explained.  
  
"More than enough." Lupin agreed. "How many groups in all?"  
  
"There are fifty others beside the team." Harry said thoughtfully. "Fred and George will be in charge of a group each. Oliver another, Angelina, and then I will take the last group. Ten to each group. Andrew and Jack will help Fred and George, hopefully they will get better working with them. Katie will work with Oliver, Alicia and Ginny with Angelina and Ron with me."  
  
Lupin was nodding agreeably. "Seems like you have all in hand."  
  
"Told Roberts to open the ballroom and place tables around it. We'll use it to sort the people out and know which group they will need to work with." Harry said.  
  
"Excellent idea, you'll have enough room there to do so." Lupin replied.  
  
"In the afternoon we'll have the advance training. Mostly for the team members as well as those planning to tryout. Oliver agreed to help me with it." Harry said, feeling proud of all their plans as Lupin happily nodded his agreement.  
  
Ron, Ginny and Hermione made their entrance.  
  
"I love Otty." Said Ron as he sat beside Harry. "He knows how to make a good meal."  
  
Harry laughed but Hermione only rolled her eyes with exasperation.  
  
"The ballroom is ready." Said Ginny joining them. "I just saw Roberts close the doors. He certainly knows how to do things promptly."  
  
"It helps that he's a wizard." Ron sneered.  
  
Ginny glared at her brother but refused to pay him any more attention. "I think it's going to be great. Mum is so pleased to have so many young people here."  
  
"She certainly seems not to mind." Hermione said looking at Mrs. Weasley, who was kissing her husband goodbye.  
  
"I think she has been feeling like she has nothing to do, thus, this party is a perfect opportunity to feel busy." Lupin said.  
  
"That makes sense." Ron said thoughfully. "She has never had servants, not even one, so she has had to do all the housework on her own. Moving here certainly was a change for her."  
  
"I guess it's different doing your own housework than to order others to do it for you." Said Ginny as she looked at her mother talking companionably at Moody and Kingsley who had just arrived to keep an eye on the Manor while they trained.  
  
"Dumbledore seems worried that we're not going to be safe enough." Hermione mused as she noted the new arrivals.  
  
Harry looked promptly across the table where she could see Moody and Kingsley sitting near Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"It never hurts to be safe." Lupin murmured.  
  
"I suppose." Harry sighed. He wished that he hadn't seen them; it was easier to forget that there was a war about to start and that Sirius was no longer with him as long as he didn't see the members of the Order around. He knew he shouldn't feel like that, but he couldn't help but feel bitter at the sight of the members who had survived the Death Eater attack last June when his godfather had not been able to.  
  
Nobody had a chance to say anymore as their guests started to enter the dinning room.  
  
Harry couldn't help but think of the Great Hall during meal times, it certainly felt like they were all back at the Gryffindor table under the wary eyes of their teachers.  
  
Fred and George passed notes around on which the day's itinerary was clearly printed with directions.  
  
"I'll meet you lot in the ballroom." Harry said as both Hermione and Ron finished their meal.  
  
"All right, mate, but don't take too long." Ron urged him.  
  
Harry nodded his agreement and continued to look around the table. Everybody seemed to have accepted his invitation. He had been sure that Seamus Finnigan and Dean Thomas would accept as well as the Creevy Brothers, he had been surprised by Pavarti, Lavender, and Neville's acceptance, but it seemed that they were all eager enough to take part of the training if not in the tryouts. Most he didn't know, he recognized seeing them in the common room or around the Gryffindor table but they were not on speaking terms, and after what had happened the year before and the Ministry's efforts to make him seem like a nut, he had thought that not many would come. That they had more than fifty people under his roof, was a surprise to Harry, he hadn't expected that many people.  
  
He noticed that everybody was soon satiated and were looking at him for directions. He noticed Fred and George take Angelina and Oliver to the ballroom, he assumed.  
  
"All right, if you will all take a minute to look at your itineraries you'll find a letter by your name. I'll lead you to the ballroom, where you'll find five tables with a large letter before it. Make a line in front of the table corresponding the letter in your paper." Harry said. He stood up and led his guests through the entrance hall, up the staircase and into the ballroom.  
  
There were many feminine gasps of approval as they stepped into the glittering ballroom. Every candle in the room had been lit. The floor cleaned and waxed, the tables draped in lacy covers, comfortable chairs lined the walls.  
  
"Oh, mum was right. This place is magnificent." Said Lavender in an awed whisper to the girls around her.  
  
Fred and George were standing behind one table. Ginny and Angelina behind another. Oliver and Hermione behind a third. Katie and Alicia behind a fourth. Ron waited for him behind the last.  
  
"Look at your itineraries and line up in front of your corresponding tables." Harry ordered.  
  
There was a moment of confusion and noise as everybody tried to find the tables where they were supposed to go. Eventually, order settled and five lines appeared in the middle of the room, each ending at each of the tables.  
  
Lupin and Mrs. Weasley stood by the door, smiling at each other as they looked proudly to the young people. Moody and Kingsley had gone to check the grounds and the perimeter around the estate. Hagrid had been sent by Dumbledore to guard the main entrance to the estate, and this morning with the company of Fang he sat by the gatehouse keeping an eye on the closed gate.  
  
Despite their efforts, news of the planned training party had leaked to the media. During the last week several reporters from the Daily Prophet, Witch Weekly, the Quibbler and other major publications had tried to gain entrance to the manor. None had been successful. Now, Hagrid's presence by the door maintained the eager reporters at a wary distance from the main gate.  
  
Dumbledore had also sent Professor McGonagall and Madam Hooch to help overseeing the safety of the party. Madam Hooch had even agreed to help Harry with the training as well as to referee the upcoming games planned for the end of the week. At the moment, both ladies kept vigil over the students as they signed up for the training sessions as well as the tryout games.  
  
Many Gryffindors had not been too happy to find their Head of House among the guests but after a while they decided not to let it bother them as everybody knew that when it came to Gryffindor Quidditch Team, Professor McGonagall was the one person who wanted the best for it.  
  
Half an hour later, everybody had been assigned a training group as well as a number for tryouts.  
  
"Everybody go change into robes and bring down your brooms, if any of you didn't bring one, we can supply some." Ordered Harry as the last people signed up at their respective tables. "We'll meet at the entrance hall in half an hour."  
  
There was an stampede to the door as everybody tried to make it to their rooms to change in the time allotted to them.  
  
Harry, Ron and the others behind the tables had brought their Quidditch robes down and changed in the bookroom, which had been converted into a makeshift changing room for them.  
  
It took them all only fifteen minutes to get ready. None of the others had returned by the time they stepped into the entrance hall.  
  
Eventually, one by one, the trainees started to appear. Some with brooms, some without them.  
  
"All right. Those of you who will need a broom, please make a line by Fred and George." Harry said motioning to the twins who stood by the entrance door. "The rest follow me."  
  
Fred and George led their group toward a table where several old brooms waited. The groundskeeper had stored the old brooms every time he changed the ones in the changing rooms and Harry had decided to use these instead of the Firebolts in the broom closet of the Pitch. They were relatively new as there hadn't been anybody to use them for fifteen years.  
  
Harry led the rest toward the orchard. Professor McGonagall and Madam Hooch were waiting for them at the edge of the gardens.  
  
The group stopped, while they waited for the twins' group to catch up to them. Professor McGonagall stood before them with their usual stern expression. Many shifted noiselessly around trying to keep the attention from their strict teacher.  
  
"Before you begin," she said the minute everybody was finally together. "I want to reinforce the need for safety. You are not to leave the premises at any time unless it is a form of entertainment supervised by an adult. You will stay only within the place enclosed around the Manor house, that means you can come to the orchard, walk around the gardens, the lake or the green houses, as long as you do it in groups. I need not remind you that your safety is the most important thing."  
  
Everybody was silent after she finished her speech. She looked stonily around the young people before her. What she saw seemed to have lay her worries to rest, as she nodded and turned to Harry, who stood at the front of the group.  
  
"Go ahead, Mr. Potter. I hope that Gryffindor will leave with a superior team from this." She said.  
  
"Yes, Professor McGonagall." Murmured Harry.  
  
"Well, go ahead, take them in." She snapped.  
  
"Oh, yeah." Harry exclaimed and turned to the group behind him, missing the amused expression that crossed McGonagall's face that lasted only a second. "Remember your assigned groups." Harry said to the trainees. "Group A will be lead by Oliver and Katie, Group B with Fred and Andrew, Group C with George and Jack, Group D with Angelina, Alicia and Ginny, and Group E with me and Ron." He turned back to Professor McGonagall and Madam Hooch. "Follow me." He said and led them all through the orchard.  
  
"Where are we going?" He heard somebody whisper.  
  
"Obviously to somewhere safe where muggles can't see us." Another answered.  
  
"Those apples look good."  
  
"Maybe we can get some after practice."  
  
The whispering continued as they walked deeper into the orchard. Eventually the trees started to thin and a clearing started to appear. There were several gasps of wonder as the tall, white wall appeared before them.  
  
Harry led them around the wall until they reached the entrance. The doors had been open wide by the groundskeeper and his assistants.  
  
"Oh, my!"  
  
"This is wonderful!"  
  
"Oh, this is going to be great!"  
  
Many exclaimed as they walked into the Pitch. The hoop-poles gleamed in the sunshine, as if they had been recently cleaned and waxed. Around the walls were bleachers readied to seat up to a thousand spectators. A few guest's boxes were high on towers around the walls.  
  
The Pitch had been divided into five areas, where each group would train.  
  
"We're only working in basic flying techniques." Harry said. "Madam Hooch will go around each group with some advice and to keep order. For those of you who will be trying out for the team, there will be an advance training later in the afternoon."  
  
Everybody divided into groups and for two hours people were seen flying in circles or up and down or in an impromptu game of broom tag.  
  
Training finally ended when Roberts led his footmen and the house elves into the pitch carrying tables, casks of pumpkin juice and cider and platter full of fruits and sandwiches.  
  
"Time for lunch!" Yelled Fred.  
  
Roberts settled the tables and the platters were placed on top. He then conjured some blankets and pillows for those who wish to sit on the floor while they ate.  
  
The brooms were left forgotten as everybody lined up to get their food. Some sat on the bleachers talking and laughing with their friends while others chose to sit on the blankets and pillows on the lush grass.  
  
"Whew! I'm starving!" Said Ron as he threw himself next to Harry at one of the blankets.  
  
"We did good, I think." Harry said after emptying his glass of cider.  
  
"Oh, definitely." Ron replied. "Too bad Hermione chose not to join us, it would've been good for her."  
  
Harry laughed. "I don't think she plans to make flying her profession. She's that kind of person who prefers to keep her feet on the ground."  
  
"I suppose. I wonder what she was up to." Ron said between bites.  
  
"She said something about planning a trip to the village." Harry answered.  
  
"What the whole day?" Exclaimed Ron.  
  
"I think she meant for later today?" Harry explained.  
  
"Oh, but why plan the thing? It should take only a few minutes to do so, she could've come to join us for a bit." Ron said looking down to his food once more.  
  
"You know Hermione, she'll need to make a list of the places to visit, plan how long they can stay at each place, you know, make an itinerary." Harry said.  
  
"An itinerary for what?" Asked Ginny who had just arrived to join them. Harry and Ron smiled at her as she flopped down next to them.  
  
"Hermione's, for the visit to the village later." Ron explained.  
  
"Oh, she said something about it. I was hoping I could join them." She looked beseechingly at Harry.  
  
"Forget it. You know the afternoon training is purely for the team's benefit. You have to practice like the rest of us, no exceptions." Harry said.  
  
Ginny sighed dejectedly. "I thought you'd said that."  
  
"You can do that another time." Ron said agreeing with Harry. "Besides, you've already seen the place."  
  
"But it's not the same thing when you have your friends around you." Ginny pointed out.  
  
Harry and Ron shrugged, they really didn't care for the planned visit to the village.  
  
"How many do you think will show up the afternoon training?" Asked Ron changing the subject.  
  
"Don't know. Hope that enough will come though, we have the whole chaser section to fill. And I was hoping that we could find replacements for Jack and Andrew. Their flying didn't seem to get any better during the summer." Harry answered.  
  
"Yeah, but what will you do with them if there are better beaters to be found?" Asked Ginny.  
  
"Reserve beaters. In fact, I was thinking that if we have enough good players I could build a reserve team, with my luck, I could be in the hospital for one of our games." Harry looked resigned, it had happened in the past and with things getting worse in the magical world, he expected it could happen again.  
  
"Ginny could take your place if you can't play." Ron said.  
  
"She could, but I want to look around, there could be another good seeker among this lot." Harry said.  
  
"I doubt it." Ron exclaimed. Ginny flushed hotly, flattered at her brothers compliment.  
  
"We'll see." Harry said but he agreed with Ron and thought that it was unlikely that they could find anybody else good enough to beat Ginny as seeker.  
  
They saw Hermione hurrying toward them.  
  
"Where have you been? I thought you would join us for lunch." Ron said as Hermione stopped in front of them panting as she caught her breath.  
  
"Oh, I already ate." She said taking deep breaths.  
  
"Why?" Asked Ron surprised.  
  
"Why what?" Hermione looked confused.  
  
"Why did you eat without joining us?" Ron replied.  
  
"Because I was hungry, why else. Besides, you weren't done with your training and I couldn't wait any longer." Hermione sat beside Ginny to rest.  
  
Ron glared at her, but Harry cut in before they started on one of their famous arguments.  
  
"Everything ready for the visit to the village?" He asked.  
  
"Oh yes, I'm just waiting for everybody to finish their meal before I announce the proposed outing." She said.  
  
"What happens if some don't want to go?" Snapped Ron.  
  
"Why, they would stay here wouldn't they." Hermione snapped back.  
  
"Not if they're not planning to tryout." Ron said.  
  
"For your information, if they chose not to join in any of the plan activities, Lupin said he could stay with them and keep them in the game room." Hermione replied.  
  
"That would work." Said Harry before Ron could respond.  
  
"The game room has enough to keep them entertained." Said Ginny.  
  
"Well, you should go and tell everybody your plans, it looks like they're all finishing their meal." Said Harry pointing to the others as some seemed to look lost now that the training and the meal was over.  
  
"You're right." Said Hermione and hurried to stand among their guests calling for everybody to surround her.  
  
The team members joined Harry as Hermione talked to the others. By the end of her speech only ten people remained to tryout for the team, the Creevy Brothers, Dean and Seamus among them.  
  
"That's enough, I guess." Said Harry looking at the group that walked toward them.  
  
"Enough? That group is larger than I ever had for tryouts." Said Wood looking pleased.  
  
"There's enough to build a reserve team if we wanted." Said Katie.  
  
"That's the plan." Said Harry.  
  
"He thinks it would be a good idea in case he ends up in the hospital wing." Explained Ginny as the others looked at Harry with surprise.  
  
"I should've thought of that, it would've earned us the cup much earlier." Wood said softly. "Not that we could ever find anybody good enough to replace you, Harry."  
  
"I don't know, Ginny did well enough." Angelina exclaimed.  
  
"But I'm not in the same level as Harry." Said Ginny meekly, pleased that her former captain thought her a good enough player to replace Harry, who in her point of view was a much better seeker than she had ever been.  
  
"Let's see what we can do with them." Said Harry as they all walked toward the middle of the Pitch to start with their Quidditch training.  
  
It was three hours later when the Quidditch players made their way to the Manor. They were all tired but all felt they did well on their first day of training, Harry couldn't have been any happier.  
  
Hermione and the others were still out when they made their way to their rooms.  
  
"I'm taking a long bath." Moaned Ron. "There's still time until dinner isn't there?"  
  
"Two more hours." Ginny replied, dragging her feet up the staircase.  
  
"That was a good training session." Wood said contently. "Best we've ever had."  
  
"Thought so too." Harry agreed.  
  
"It helps that we have the best brooms." Angelina said.  
  
"Haven't been this tired after training in years." Complained Fred.  
  
"If we'd known how tired we were going to be, we'd stayed at the store." George said.  
  
"Too late now, you promised to be here." Ginny quickly added.  
  
"When have you ever known us to keep a promise?" Grumbled Fred.  
  
"You always do, especially if mum knows that you did." Ron replied.  
  
Fred and George moaned.  
  
"You sound like a pair of sick cows." Giggled Katie.  
  
Fred and George moaned again while the others laughed.  
  
They were standing at the upper landing of the main staircase.  
  
"We'll see you later." Said Harry to his guests.  
  
"See you." The others said and they went their own way. The Weasleys and Harry toward the family wing and the others toward the guest wing.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
By the time Harry had soaked in his bathtub and had dressed to wait for dinner in the formal parlor, Hermione and those who went with her to the village had returned.  
  
Harry walked into a parlor full of giggling girls and chuckling boys.  
  
"There you are, it took you long enough to make an appearance." Hermione exclaimed the moment she saw Harry enter the parlor.  
  
"I wanted to rest a little." He said as took a seat next to her by the door. "Where are Ron and the others?"  
  
"Don't know, maybe they wanted to rest a little too." Hermione said with a shrug.  
  
"They should be here soon then, I don't think they'll want to miss dinner." Harry said.  
  
"How was the training?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Good. I think we'll have enough players to make a reserve team." Harry said. "The Creevys are a little too energetic for my taste and their flying could be better, but if we work them hard enough they could be fair beaters. They remind me a bit of Fred and George on brooms." He laughed.  
  
"I never thought there could be another pair like them." Hermione replied.  
  
"Oh, they're not like them exactly, it's just that both have so much energy that they can compete with Fred and George in that respect. But they try too hard to please, and often loose their concentration, they would never be good beaters like Fred and George, even Jack and Andrew are better beaters than they are. But if we work had enough, I'm sure they could be good enough for reserve, we never know when we could need them to play." Harry explained.  
  
"Who would we need to play?" Ron asked, coming into the room.  
  
"The Creevys. I was just telling Hermione that if we worked more with them, they could become fair enough beaters for the reserve team." Harry said.  
  
Ron grunted. "Too bad there are no better beaters out there, Jack and Andrew still need a lot of work."  
  
"I have them working drills with Fred and George, maybe they'll get a little better if they work with the twins." Harry said.  
  
"Hope so, they could do better." Ron sighed.  
  
"You should talk, you need to work hard as well." Hermione said.  
  
"I did fine! At the end anyways, it was just nerves." Ron exclaimed.  
  
"And that stupid song didn't help." Harry said. "But enough of that, what are you planning for tomorrow while we train?"  
  
"The picnic near the lake." Hermione said.  
  
"What is so fun about a picnic?" Ron leered.  
  
"There are some that find it entertaining." Hermione snapped at him.  
  
Harry was saved from getting in the middle of yet another argument by Roberts' appearance at the door announcing dinner.  
  
Everybody trooped into the dining room, ready to eat as much as they could after a vigorous day. The room filled with the young people, only Lupin remained to keep an eye of them, the rest of the adults had their dinner in the family dining room, where they could talk about matters of the Order without worrying about the youngsters.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
The following days continued in the same manner. Every morning, all the inhabitants of the Manor met at the Pitch to do some flying practice. Broom tag became a favorite game of theirs and everybody took part while Madam Hooch, Lupin, Mrs. Weasley and Madam Pomfrey watched. Hagrid, Moody, Tonks and Kingsley continued in their posts making sure that nobody got past them into the Manor. After a light luncheon, the team stayed in the Pitch for practice while the rest went to the various activities Hermione had planned for their entertainment. The household met once more for dinner where the food created by Otty and the other elves was served happily by the footmen and the butler.  
  
Everybody was impressed by the way Harry, Ron and Hermione had prepared everything for this week, all they had left to look forward to was the activities planned for their last full day in the Manor before returning to King's Cross Station the next day.  
  
That last day had come at last, and everybody woke that morning full of excitement. As it was their last day in the Manor, there would not be any training for that day. The game room had been prepared for those who preferred to stay indoors that morning and the pool (which was a new addition to the Manor in the middle of the informal gardens) had been cleaned for those wanting to cool off before luncheon.  
  
The informal gardens had been trimmed and cleaned while long tables had been put under a large tent. Blankets and chairs were spread around the tent. Luncheon would take place among the gardens, the food would be housed under the tent.  
  
But the big event for the day was to take place in the afternoon. A Quidditch game had been scheduled to take place two hours after luncheon. The villagers and the tenants had been invited to come and watch; even the reporters, who had waited patiently by the main gate trying to find out about the party, had been allowed to attend, as long as they presented their press credentials and left their wands with Hagrid and Moody, who were in charge of security for this event. Gryffindor's new team would play against the old team.  
  
Harry had elected Seamus and Alexander Peters, a fourth year, as the new chasers along with Ginny, Jack and Andrew retained their positions as beaters, while the Creevy Brothers would be trained as reserve beaters, Harry and Ron completed the line up for the new Gryffindor Team. The old team, Wood, Angelina, Alicia, Katie, Fred and George were eager to get the new team through their paces, the village seeker had agreed to complete this team for the game.  
  
Everybody was eager to see the new Gryffindor team play together for the first time, Dumdbledore had even sent word that he would come and see the game and join them in the evening festivities.  
  
Hermione and Mrs. Weasley had planned a ball for that evening. A menu of several courses had been discussed, the village band hired to play, and the ballroom decorated with reams of lace and satin. Everybody attending would wear their formal robes, which made Ron happy that the twins had given him a new set the previous summer. It was thought to be the social event of their young lives, and they were all waiting for the moment for it to start.  
  
Harry joined Ron and Hermione by the pool, they were sitting around one of the umbrella tables that had been placed there along with some pool chairs, one of the footmen stood under a large umbrella with a cart where pitchers of cold lemonade waited for anyone wanting a cold drink. There were many who had chosen the pool to entertain themselves as Harry watched his classmates dive and swim into the large swimming pool.  
  
"It's cooler here." Ron said as Harry sat by him. "We tried sitting in the chairs, but the shade here is cooler."  
  
"It's horridly hot today, are you sure you should have the game?" Hermione said taking a sip from her glass of lemonade.  
  
"Of course, this will not stop us from having a good game." Ron said rather quickly.  
  
"Lupin said that there's a charm around the Pitch that can create some shade over the field, so we'll be cool enough, nobody will be too uncomfortable in the heat." Harry said.  
  
"Your family definitely knew how to live in comfort." Said Ron laying back on his chair with a content sigh.  
  
"Just wish I knew more about them." Harry sighed sadly. He loved being in the Manor, loved seeing the place where his father and his family had lived for many generations, but he couldn't feel as close to the history of his family without knowing more about them first hand. He knew that if he wanted, he could question the paintings in the family quarters, they certainly seemed eager enough to talk about themselves, but Harry had kept from asking any personal questions.  
  
He didn't know why, but he didn't want to know about his family from portraits, he would've preferred to have done so from a member of that family. He thought he wouldn't have minded if Sirius had told him about them, he had been adopted, in a way, by his father's family after he left his own behind. But Sirius was no longer able to tell him about them, he had been taken from him by the same group of people who took his father's family's life.  
  
But now was not the time to think about it as Ron and Hermione were still talking about the afternoon activities.  
  
"Lavender was thrilled about the ball." Hermione was saying. "She and Pavarti have gone to the village to buy a few accessories for their robes."  
  
"Girls, honestly! Who cares how much stuff you wear with your robes? Like you for example, you don't need all that extra fripperies to make you look pretty." Ron exclaimed.  
  
Hermione flushed with pleasure while Harry smiled slyly.  
  
"Come on Harry, join us." Dean yelled from the pool. Several girls giggled and whispered around him. Dean looked at them with disgust and rolled his eyes in exasperation while Harry and Ron chuckled.  
  
"Maybe later." Yelled Harry to Dean. The girls giggled again.  
  
"Honestly!" Hermione chided.  
  
"They're only second years." Ron said with a smile. "Still young enough to still be impressed by Harry's name."  
  
"And I suppose the Manor helps with that impression." Harry groaned.  
  
"Just as long as they don't get together and form a Harry Potter Club." Ron Chuckled.  
  
Harry groaned with exasperation while Hermione laughed.  
  
"At least there isn't a Lockhart to compete with you this time." Ron said.  
  
"The poor man. He seemed to be getting better when we last saw him." Hermione said.  
  
"You mean he's still the git he always was." Ron replied.  
  
"Really!" Hermione's reply was muffled by Harry's laugh.  
  
"I suppose I should feel sorry for him, but he did deserve it." Harry said.  
  
"He did! He tried to erase our memories. The coward." Ron exclaimed.  
  
"Lucky your wand didn't work." Harry laughed.  
  
"Humph! I do not think it funny. You all could've been hurt." Hermione sounded a little miffed.  
  
"Of course, but what were we supposed to do? Ginny was down there." Ron said.  
  
"And the basilisk." Harry reminded them.  
  
Hermione shuddered. "Don't remind me."  
  
The trio was silent for a minute allowing the squeals of laughter and the sound of splashing water to fill the air without paying any attention.  
  
"Luncheon should be served soon." Harry said looking down at his watch. "I should go and see if the Pitch is ready for our game."  
  
"I'll go with you." Ron said.  
  
Harry nodded and after they said "see you later" to Hermione, they walked through the gardens toward the orchard.  
  
"You know, she had never talked about what she saw that day." Ron said as they made their way through the gardens.  
  
"None of us have, until last winter Ginny hadn't mentioned it either." Harry said.  
  
"Why did she mention it then?" Ron frowned as if trying to remember that occasion.  
  
"Don't you remember, it was after your father was attacked and I was afraid that I was being possessed by Voldemort because I had seen the attack from the serpent's eyes." Harry said.  
  
"Well, I remember that. You stopped talking to us until Hermione returned to Grimmauld Place."  
  
"Ginny said that she knew what it felt like to be possessed by Voldermort." Harry said. "And I hadn't felt the same way."  
  
"Oh, yeah. That's when Dumbledore wanted you to start Occlumency with Snape." Ron said.  
  
"Yeah." Harry sighed.  
  
They had walked through the gardens and gone through the orchard, now they were before the entrance to the Pitch.  
  
"I asked Mr. Stuart to make sure there were lanterns from the edge of the orchard to the entrance to the Pitch so nobody would get lost." Harry said as they watched two young men in ladders placing colorful lamps among the trees and next to the entrance to the stadium.  
  
"Good idea. We're not going to be out here leading them through." Ron said, glancing others among the trees placing lamps through the orchard.  
  
"Let's go in. Mr. Stuart said that they decorated the Pitch with Gryffindor colors." Harry said and walked past the working men and into the field.  
  
The Pitch had been indeed decorated with gold and red flags, banners and to Harry's amusement, balloons.  
  
"It looks festive." Ron chuckled.  
  
"It certainly does." Harry replied.  
  
Mr. Stuart shouted Harry's name and the two boys watched as the older man ran toward them. "What do you think, Master Harry?" Asked Mr. Stuart looking excited to see Harry. "The workers have been working really hard the whole morning to prepare for this afternoon game. Everybody is looking forward to it."  
  
"It looks great Mr. Stuart. How long do you need to finish up? Luncheon should be served any time soon and the game is scheduled in two hours." Harry said looking around the Pitch as workers trimmed the field, waxed the poles and cleaned the bleachers.  
  
"It shouldn't take that long. We're just finishing up and this lot will go and take their luncheon before returning for the game." Mr. Stuart said.  
  
"Was the snack room cleaned? Otty was supposed to prepare snacks and sandwiches to sale during the game, and Roberts has chosen some casks of cider and butterbeer as well." Harry asked.  
  
"All it's ready, Sir. It is good of you to think of it, Sir, the money from the sales will be a great help to the village vicarage." Mr. Stuart smiled proudly.  
  
"I hope so. Well, I'll leave you to it, then." Harry said.  
  
"Good luck to your team, Sir." Mr. Stuart yelled as Harry and Ron walked back out of the Pitch.  
  
Harry waved to Mr. Stuart.  
  
"I'm nervous." Ron said.  
  
"Oh no, you don't. You're an awful player when you get nervous." Harry exclaimed.  
  
"I know, but I can't help it." Ron groaned.  
  
"You did well at the end of the Quidditch season, why are you getting nervous now? It's not like we're playing for the Cup." Harry said.  
  
"But there are going to be a lot of people here." Ron complained.  
  
"Not as many as there are in the school games. The village is not that big, you know, and there aren't many tenants." Harry explained trying to soothe his friend's jitters.  
  
"That isn't helping." Ron exclaimed.  
  
"Well, let's go eat, hopefully that will help." Harry sighed with exasperation.  
  
"I hope so, or it might only serve to make me sick." Ron said.  
  
"Ugh! That's not a picture I want to think of now." Harry exclaimed.  
  
"Sorry." Apologized Ron as the duo made their way through the gardens.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
The gardens were full of young people as they served themselves from the loaded tables underneath a large tent. Some were sitting in the chairs or blankets spread around the gardens, others had taken their plates and went into the mazes and tried to find their way to the middle among squeals and laughter. Dumbledore had arrived and was sitting with members of the Order in chairs close to the food tent.  
  
Harry and Ron joined Hermione and Ginny who were sitting in a blanket under the shade of a big tree.  
  
"Dumbledore arrived a few minutes ago." Hermione said as she noticed Harry looking to where their Headmaster was sitting among the adults.  
  
"So I noticed." Harry replied.  
  
"He's been talking closely with Lupin." Ginny reported. "What do you think they're talking about?"  
  
"Maybe he wants Lupin to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts, I bet it hasn't been easy to find somebody to take that vacancy." Ron said.  
  
"I hope he does. He'll be great help." Ginny said.  
  
"And with the start of Advanced Defense, we'll need somebody who has had a lot of experience with it." Hermione said.  
  
"And everybody knows he's a werewolf, so nobody can say they didn't know." Harry said. "Bet the Ministry won't be too happy about that."  
  
"Nah, they're too busy trying to save face to bother with it. They've pretty much agreed to leave Hogwarts to Dumbledore." Ron said. "Dad said that the Ministry is kind of afraid to get into Dumbledore's bad side, especially since they know he's the only one You-Know-Who is afraid of."  
  
Ginny nodded. "They allow him to do as he sees fit. Besides, now that everybody knows of You-Know-Who's return they'll want their children to be well prepared and I don't think it would matter if the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher is a werewolf, a vampire, or a wizard, as long as we're ready for anything if the time comes."  
  
Everybody agreed.  
  
Panic had began to spread through the land after the Ministry's announcement of Voldemort's return. Harry had received several letters in the last month asking for his help and even offering him money if he agreed to protect them. Needless to say, the letters had gone unanswered. Security around the estate had been heavy since he moved in. Harry was sure that he wasn't supposed to know about the Ministry Aurors posted around the perimeter of the estate nor about the spells and incantations that had been erected around the surrounding estates and villages. But Harry did know, and he didn't know whether to be exasperated by the amount security everybody thought he needed, or to feel relief that he would be safe.  
  
People started to walk toward the house. The time to prepare for the game had arrived.  
  
"We might as well go and get ready." Said Harry to Ron and Ginny.  
  
Both nodded.  
  
"I just want to greet Dumbledore, I'll see you at the game." Hermione said.  
  
"All right. See you." Ron said and followed Harry and Ginny into the Manor.  
  
The gardens were soon empty and the servants and elves worked quickly to clear the food and trash that had been left behind.  
  
An hour later, the two teams made their way to the Pitch.  
  
Harry could see Hagrid and Moody standing at either side of the main gate checking the credentials and putting away the wands of those reporters wanting to watch the game. Kingsley was standing a few feet away to make sure the reporters made their way to the Pitch and didn't wander around the Manor.  
  
The two groups walked purposely to the Pitch. The lamps had been lit and ropes tied around trees to create a lane leading to the entrance of the stadium.  
  
"Oh, wow." Katie sighed at the sight of the decorated stadium.  
  
"It looks great, doesn't it?" Said Ron looking around.  
  
"It does. Where do we go Harry, we must be ready soon." Wood said, his mind only in the game.  
  
"Go through that door on the west side of the field, we're taking the east side." Harry said pointing to the doors at either side of the field.  
  
"All right. Come on you lot, we have to change." Wood ordered his team and led them to the door that Harry had directed him to.  
  
"We have to change too. Come on." Said Harry and led his team to the changing room opposite from the one Wood's team had gone through.  
  
It didn't take them too long to change. Fifteen minutes later they had changed into the scarlet robes found in the lockers, their names embroidered brightly in golden letters at their backs. Wood's team would be wearing golden robes, their names embroidered in scarlet letters.  
  
"All right, I need not tell you how important this game is. We may not be playing against Slytherin, or playing for the Cup, but this is our chance to show Gryffindor House that our team is just as good, if not better, than our previous team." Harry said standing in the middle of the changing room as his teammates sat around him. "We have practiced hard and we have become better acquainted with each other during the last week, remember, we're a team nobody is better than the other, we're all good and we have to show them that."  
  
"Hear, hear." Shouted Ron.  
  
"We'll do good." Ginny said.  
  
"We sure will, we won't let them win without a fight." Said Seamus smiling brightly. Harry knew that that bright smile only masked the fear that he must be going through.  
  
"Ok, don't be nervous, you're only playing before Gryffindor and they'll support you no matter what, but don't let your nerves get the better of you. You must control them, don't let them control you." Said Harry. "Are you ready?"  
  
"Ready!" The team replied.  
  
Madam Hooch appeared at the door. "We're all ready, Mr. Stuart will begin the introductions in a minute." She walked out once more, her broom in her hand and the trunk with the balls hovering at her side.  
  
Harry took a deep sigh. "Ok, here we go."  
  
He led the team to the opening leading into the field. He could hear the crowd cheering and laughing in their seats waiting for the game to begin.  
  
"Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen." Mr. Stuart's voice was echoed around the Pitch. "Welcome to this special Gryffindor game." The crowd cheered. "The new Gryffindor House team will face the old Gryffindor House team in this special event. Here's the old team, wearing golden robes, Captained by their keeper, Wood!" The crowd cheered as Oliver zoomed out into the field. "The chasers, Bell, Johnson and Spinnet." Three golden blurs zoomed into the field. "The beaters, Weasley and Weasley." More cheering. "And the guest seeker, from Gryffindor village, Warren." Seven golden clad blurs zoomed around the Pitch as the crowd cheered.  
  
"Gryffindor House new team." Mr. Stuart announced.  
  
"Mount your brooms." Ordered Harry as mounted his.  
  
"Captained by their seeker, Potter!" Harry zoomed out of the opening into the field, he could hear the thunderous applause of the crowd as he flew around the Pitch. "The chasers, Weasley, Finnegan, and Peters." Three more scarlet blurs joined him. "The beaters, Slorper and Kirke." More applause and cheers. "And their keeper, Weasley!" Another roar from the crowd, there was even some chanting of "Weasley is our king, Weasley is our king."  
  
"Madam Hooch, from Hogwarts, will referee this game." Mr. Stuart announced as Madam Hooch walked into the Pitch with broom in hand and dragging the trunk of balls behind her. "The players take their places." Mr. Stuart commentated. "There's the whistle and the balls are released. Spinnet grabs the Quaffle, passes to Johnson, intercepted by Weasley. Ooh, that must've hurt. That was a nice hit by the beater Weasley. Bell with the Quaffle, passes to Johnson, Spinnet has the Quaffle, passes to Bell and shoots. Nice save by the keeper Weasley. A lot of Weasleys on the field, wouldn't you say? Chaser Weasley with the Quaffle, passes to Finnegan, another pass to Weasley. Seems this young Weasley learns fast as she ducks a bludger sent her way by her brother, passes to Peters, shoots. Saved by keeper Wood."  
  
Harry was flying high above the rest of the players, his eyes looking everywhere searching for the Snitch. He was hearing the commentary closely and was proud by the good show his team was putting. He was glad that he had thought to train during the Summer, it helped a lot to build the esteem as well as the stamina of the team.  
  
He wished that he had thought to confiscate cameras, as bright lights flashed from every corner of the field. He just hoped he wouldn't confuse any of those flashes with the glittering flash of the Snitch.  
  
"Spinnet in possession, passes to Johnson – ooh, that was good intersection by Peters, who passes to Chaser Weasley, Finnegan, Weasley again throws to Peters, bludger hits the Quaffle before it reaches Peters and Bell is now in possession. Throws to Spinnet, back to Bell, passes to Johnson. Keeper Weasley seemed to be ready for that shot as he saves once more."  
  
"Weasley is our king, Weasley is our king." Was heard throughout the crowd. Harry was happy to see that the chant didn't make Ron nervous anymore.  
  
" – another save from Wood! Wow, it seems that this game will be decided by the seekers, but the Snitch doesn't seem to be in sight yet. Spinnet with the Quaffle, passes to Johnson, back to Spinnet, Bell has possession, nice hit by Kirke, Chaser Weasley with the Quaffle now, passes to Peters, to Finnegan, Weasley again and shoots. Wood saves once more."  
  
The game had been going on for half an hour now and Harry hadn't caught sight of the Snitch yet, and he was glad to see that the other seeker was no closer to catching the Snitch either.  
  
Suddenly, his eye caught the glittering sight of the Snitch on the opposite side of the field. He zoomed toward it, feeling – without turning around to check – the presence of the rival seeker nearby.  
  
" – Bell with the Quaffle. I say! It seems that the Snitch has been sighted. Potter and Warren side by side zooming across the field. Keeper Weasley performs another spectacular save."  
  
Harry was following the Snitch, which zoomed away from him toward the ground.  
  
"Come on, come on." Harry was whispering as he urged his broom to fly faster toward the Snitch. "You can do it, you can do it."  
  
Harry could see the broom from the other seeker at his side.  
  
The snitch changes direction once more as it flies parallel to the ground ten feet from the surface.  
  
Harry changes direction promptly trying not to get hit by the flying bludgers and passing Quaffle. His opponent had misjudged directions and lost some of the ground he had kept at Harry's side. This gave Harry an advantage and he zoomed toward the Snitch.  
  
"Come on, come on, ...faster, faster." He urged his broom. The Snitch was just a few feet in front of him.  
  
" – and Keeper Weasley saves once again. The score continues 0 to 0 as the two seekers are zooming to get the Snitch. Bell with the Quaffle, passes to Spinnet, intersected by Finnegan, Peters now in possession - "  
  
Harry wasn't hearing the commentary any more, his attention was focused in the Snitch and on keeping away from the bludgers sent in his direction. The Snitch was changing direction once more as Harry saw it turning up. Harry flies diagonally toward it. He can feel his opponent getting closer.  
  
He sees a bludger pass a foot in front of him – close, but not close enough to hit him or the Snitch – He stretches across the broom handle and reaches toward the Snitch. He still needs to get closer.  
  
"Almost there." He whispers as he tries to urge his broom closer to the Snitch. "Almost, almost."  
  
His fingers stroke the soft, fluttering wings of the Snitch, but he didn't get close enough to wrap his fingers over the golden sphere. Harry urges his broom once more, "close, I'm close," and finally, he feels the solid sphere against the palm of his hand and wraps his fingers tightly against it. "Yes!" He sighs as he flies upward with Snitch clasped tightly in his hand.  
  
A whistle rends the air. " – and Potter catches the Snitch, Potter has caught the Snitch." Mr. Stuart's voice echoed around the Pitch. The crowd roared and the team flew excitedly toward him.  
  
"We won! We won!" Ginny screamed flying happily around Harry.  
  
Harry smiles and motions to his team to land.  
  
"The new Gryffindor House team has won the match, 150 to 0. Must say, this is the most exciting game this estate has ever seen." Mr. Stuart was saying. "Must remind our guests that a ball will begin in two hours. Thank you to those who have bought snacks and drinks, all proceeds will be turned to the village vicarage. Please leave the stadium in orderly fashion."  
  
The crowd was now dispersing and leaving toward the Manor, only the group of reporters remained as they hoped to get a few words with Harry, but he ran toward the changing rooms quickly with the rest of the team.  
  
"Oh, that was a good game." Exclaimed Ron as he sat on the bench in front of his locker. "I thought we would never be done with it."  
  
"I can't believe that not a single goal was scored at all." Ginny said as she took her clothes around a curtain, erected specifically for her use as she was the only girl in the team.  
  
"That was quite surprising." Seamus panted as he struggled to get his robes off.  
  
"It was, I had expected them to score at least one." Harry said, putting away his robes and pulling his shirt over his head.  
  
"Well, it means that Ron is getting better, isn't it." Andrew Kirke said looking at Harry for approval.  
  
"I should say so." Harry said smiling at his friend who had flushed red with pleasure and embarrassment.  
  
"I wish there was enough time for a little nap before the ball." Ginny said returning to her locker with her robes bundled in her arms.  
  
"There's still two hours left, you can sleep for an hour." Said Ron looking happy to know that he would have enough time to rest before the party.  
  
"There's no time! I have to get my robes ready and then fix my hair. Oh lord! If I want to take a bath I'll have to start as soon as possible." Ginny exclaimed and ran out of the changing room.  
  
Ron looked at Harry. "What's with girls and the need to spend hours getting ready?"  
  
Harry shrugged. "Dunno."  
  
The others had left before Harry and Ron were ready to return to the Manor.  
  
"Check to see if the reporters are still waiting." Said Harry as they neared the opening toward the field.  
  
Ron looked around the opening around the seats. "No, they're all gone." He said.  
  
Harry stepped into the open field happy to know that he wouldn't be accosted for an interview.  
  
"Bet Moody and Kingsley made sure to lead them out of the grounds while we changed." Ron said.  
  
"Hopefully. I think I'll ask Hagrid to make sure they don't bring any cameras into the ball. Those bright flashes were very distracting during the game." Harry complained as they made their way through the lit lane across the orchard toward the house.  
  
"Bet they're going to print about it in the papers." Ron said.  
  
"Nothing we can do about it now." Harry said. "At least we didn't make a fool of ourselves."  
  
"We did good. We're ready, you reckon?" Ron asked looking forward to their first game of the season, Gryffindor vs. Slytherin.  
  
"As good as we'll ever be." Harry replied. "There's no team at Hogwarts at the same level as our old team, if we did good against them, we'll do good against the others."  
  
"That's true, and we did get a head start with training this week." Ron said. Harry nodded.  
  
They had arrived at the house. The rooms seemed empty, but Harry knew that all his guest were busy in their own rooms getting ready for the evening.  
  
"Well, we should get ready. I think I'll have a short nap before I dress." Harry said looking forward to a little rest and a long bath.  
  
"So will I." Ron said eagerly.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Harry did indeed have a short nap before he started dressing. Lotty had a bath ready for him when he returned to his room. Harry had soaked happily in the warm water for a few minutes before retiring to his chamber to rest.  
  
Lotty woke him up an hour before the party was scheduled to start.  
  
"Master must dress," Lotty was saying. "Master must be ready to receive his guests."  
  
Harry groaned. "I wish we hadn't planned this ball now." He mumbled as he struggled with his tired body to move out of the bed.  
  
Lotty had spread his formal robes on a daybed. His shoes had been shined and several bottles of liquid and slime stood in a dressing table nearby.  
  
Harry looked at these bottles with curiosity. "What are these?" He asked Lotty picking one of the bottles. He opened it and smelled it. It was cologne.  
  
"Master James used to make use of them before preparing for a party." Lotty said straightening the sheets on the bed.  
  
Harry looked sharply at Lotty. "My father used these?" He asked surprised.  
  
Lotty nodded. "Cologne and products for his hair."  
  
Harry took one of the bottles that held what looked like slime. He opened the bottle and looked at the gel inside. "Did it work?"  
  
"Some." Answered Lotty.  
  
Harry smiled. He had always heard that he looked like his father – except for his eyes, he had his mother's eyes – and he was happy to know that he had the same problem he did with his hair.  
  
Fifteen minutes later Harry was dressed and combed. The gel allowed him to comb his hair in a more manageable way, but there were still some hairs that managed to stick out in odd places.  
  
"Oh, well." Sighed Harry as he looked at himself in front of a large gilded mirror. "I look well enough."  
  
"Master Harry looks more than well." Squeaked Lotty excitedly. "Master Harry will break some hearts."  
  
Harry chuckled. "I don't think so, but thank you for your compliments Lotty. Make sure you and the other elves rest while we're at the party. You have all worked extra hard on the last week."  
  
"Yes, Master Harry." Said Lotty.  
  
"Is Minnie happy working with Mrs. Weasley?" Asked Harry thinking about the small elf that had gone looking for him despite the long distance that separated them.  
  
"Oh, yes Master Harry." Lotty responded promptly.  
  
"All right, I'll go and wait for my guests in the parlor." Said Harry and walked out the door. He met Mr. and Mrs. Weasley out in the corridor, also leaving their room.  
  
"Oh, hello Harry, you look handsome in your dress robes." Mr. Weasley smiled down at him.  
  
"Thank you, Mr. Weasley. You two look well too." Harry responded.  
  
"Thank you, Harry dear, we're all looking forward to your party." Mrs. Weasley said and took Harry's arm leading down the corridor. "The ballroom has been decorated splendidly for this party, the staff has been in the greatest of spirits preparing for this week."  
  
"I think it's been a long time since the last time this house was opened for a party that they had started to miss it." Mr. Weasley chuckled.  
  
"I think you're right, dear." Mrs. Weasley smiled.  
  
They met others along the way. Ron and Hermione were also making their way to the parlor and they could hear Fred urging George to hurry in one of the rooms.  
  
Eventually they all made it to the parlor. None of their guests where yet down and they were the first there.  
  
"Dinner will be served as soon as everybody is here." Mrs. Weasley was saying. "Then we'll retire to the ballroom and await for the tenants and people from the village to come. Remember, Harry, you have to stand by the ballroom door for the first half hour to greet your guests, I'll stand by you, Harry dear, the rest of you mingle and entertain our guests."  
  
"All right, mum, but don't keep Harry by the door too long, there are a lot of people who want to talk to him about the game." Said Fred.  
  
"Yeah, never thought we would be beaten by a lot of youngsters, we must be loosing our touch." George shook his head sadly.  
  
"It was Harry that beat you." Said Ginny. "You would've won if he had played with you."  
  
"That's true." Conceded George. "We didn't play with our usual seeker."  
  
"It was a real treat, that game." Said Mr. Weasley. "Haven't seen one as exciting since the last Championship game."  
  
Others started to walk in. Professor McGonagall walked in with Dumbledore and Lupin. Madam Hooch soon followed with Hagrid and Tonks. Kingsley, Moody and other Aurors had decided to stay patrolling the estate instead of joining them in the party.  
  
Soon, the younger guests started to appear.  
  
"Oh, Harry, we've had the most wonderful time." Lavender Brown gushed the moment she could walked up to Harry as he sat in a sofa with Ron and Hermione.  
  
"I'm glad you've enjoyed yourselves." Said Harry as Ron grinned at him slyly.  
  
"Oh, yes. Your house is lovely. You should do this more often." Pavarti urged beside Lavender, looking at the golden frames on the walls and the china and crystal figurines around the room with envy.  
  
"Er...I'll think about it." Harry said looking at Hermione pleadingly.  
  
Hermione rolled her eyes exasperatedly. "Have you seen the lovely flowers the gardeners cut for this evening?" She said and led the two giggly girls to one corner of the room.  
  
"Phew!" Exclaimed Harry with relief.  
  
Ron began to laugh. "Those two are going to be after you from now on."  
  
"I hope not. I wouldn't know what to do with them." Said Harry. Ron laughed once more. "Oh, shut up!"  
  
Luckily, Roberts appear by the dining room door announcing dinner. Harry led his guest through the open door into the dining room.  
  
Dinner was a formal occasion as the first dinner had been. Roberts stood by Harry directing the footmen around the table serving the guests. Salads where brought in first; crab salad, lobster salad, green salad, spinach salad, bean salads. People chatted and whispered as the trays went around the table and guests were served. Fish followed the salads, fried salmon, grilled trout, marinated halibut, baked catfish. Poultry came in next, smoked duckling, stewed hen, stuffed pheasant, and roasted turkey. Beef was brought in next before the sweets and puddings were lastly served.  
  
"Oh, that was a good meal." Sighed Seamus with satisfaction a few chairs away from Harry.  
  
"You should think that, you ate from every single tray served." Snapped Lavender looking disgusted.  
  
"And you barely ate, how do you expect to keep your energy for the ball without eating, huh?" Snapped Seamus back.  
  
Cider, pumpking juice and butterbeer had been served to the youngsters during dinner, while an array of wine, port and other drinks were offered to the adults.  
  
Every plate had been taken when Mrs. Weasley stood up from her side of the table.  
  
"Well, if we're all ready, lets retire to the ballroom." She said.  
  
Everybody stood eagerly from the table and followed Harry and Mrs. Weasley up the stairs to the ballroom.  
  
Reams of satin curtains, scarlet and gold, hang from every window. The family coat of arms hung proudly in the middle of the room a few feet from the large chandelier hanging down the ceiling, on the other side of the chandelier stood the Gryffindor flag. Candles had been lit around the room, which glared brightly and shined against the waxed surface of the floor.  
  
The band from the village was sitting in the gallery tuning their instruments and preparing for the ball.  
  
The guests spread out through the ballroom. Soon, the doorbell started ringing and Roberts opened the door to the first tenants or villagers.  
  
The room eventually filled. The tenants and villagers arrived, also some of those reporters that had waited so long before the main gate trying to get in.  
  
Harry stood patiently by the door, beside Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, greeting those who came through the door.  
  
"The music should start soon, Harry dear, why don't you go and join your friends." Mrs. Weasley said after a while.  
  
"All right." Replied Harry and rapidly left his space by the door and went looking for Ron and Hermione.  
  
He didn't find them right away, people kept stopping him along the way congratulating him on the game or complimenting him on the ball.  
  
"Finally." He sighed as he joined Ron, Ginny and Hermione by the large windows. "It took me forever to get here."  
  
"People are impressed." Hermione said.  
  
Ginny giggled.  
  
"What?" Asked Harry frustrated.  
  
"Nothing." She chocked out trying to hold back her laughter. Harry glared at her. "Just that I think you'll find yourself flooded with dance partners tonight."  
  
"Says who?" Asked Ron.  
  
"Every girl I know, they've all whispering about Harry the whole day." Ginny reported.  
  
"Oh, lord." Exclaimed Harry.  
  
Ron chuckled. "We couldn't find a date for the Yule Ball a couple years ago, now you can have your pick."  
  
Harry just shook his head infuriated by his friends' teasing.  
  
The musicians started to play a short tune, declaring the beginning of the dancing, and everybody turned to look at Harry.  
  
"What?" Harry asked disconcerted to be the center of attention.  
  
"You're the host, you're supposed to open the dance." Hissed Hermione.  
  
"You should've told me that before, who am I supposed to dance with now?" Snapped Harry.  
  
"Dance with Ginny." Said Ron pushing his sister toward his friend.  
  
"Stop that, I don't want to open the dance!" Exclaimed Ginny.  
  
"He can't dance with her anyways, the host opens the ball with his hostess or the girl he's trying to impress, if he dances with Ginny everybody will thing they're a couple." Hermione explained.  
  
"You dance with him then." Said Ron. "Everybody knows he's not trying to impress you, you're friends."  
  
"That'll only make it seem that we're much closer than we are." Said Hermione. "There's only one person he can lead out without talk and speculation."  
  
"Who?" Asked Harry and Ron.  
  
"Mrs. Weasley of course." Said Hermione. "She's his hostess for the week, and she's married and rather older than he is, she's the perfect person to lead out."  
  
"But she's still at the door greeting guests." Harry said.  
  
"No, she isn't." Said Ginny motioning across the room. "She just left the door with dad."  
  
"All right." Said Harry with a sigh of resignation. "The things I do for the team." He mumbled.  
  
Ron laughed and Ginny giggled, even Hermione seemed to be amused by his grumbling.  
  
Harry crossed the room. He could hear girls giggling and whispering as he passed. "Probably guessing whom I am dancing with?" He muttered under his breath. He walked past the groups of giggling girls and strode purposely toward Mrs. Weasley.  
  
The music began and Harry asked Mrs. Weasley to dance with him. Mrs. Weasley smiled with pleasure as she accepted his arm and the two walked to the center of the room that had began to clear for the dancing.  
  
It was a short dance but long enough for Harry who was never comfortable in the dancing floor. When the dance ended, Mrs. Weasley thanked him and returned to her husband while Harry hurried back to his friends.  
  
"I'm glad that's over with." Said Harry as he joined Hermione. "Where are Ron and Ginny?"  
  
"Dancing. Ginny dragged him to dance as soon as the music started." Hermione said.  
  
"Why didn't you?" Harry asked.  
  
"Dragged him to the floor." Asked Hermione giggling.  
  
"No. I mean dancing." Harry said.  
  
"Because I didn't want to." Hermione said. "I think I ate a bit much at dinner, I feel rather full."  
  
Harry chuckled.  
  
Ron and Ginny returned as the song ended.  
  
"Phew! She's too energetic." Exclaimed Ron.  
  
"You say that because I know how to dance and you don't." Said Ginny taking a glass of butterbeer that was served by servants passing around the ballroom.  
  
"I know too how to dance." Ron exclaimed.  
  
Ginny's expression let them know what she thought about his dancing.  
  
"Come Harry, you dance with me." Ginny said grasping Harry's hand and pulling him toward the dance floor.  
  
"Er...all right, but I warn you, I know even less than Ron." Harry warned.  
  
"Nobody can be worse than Ron." Ginny said.  
  
"Hey!" They heard as Ginny dragged Harry into the crowd.  
  
Ginny wasn't the only one to drag Harry to the dance floor. After dancing a couple of songs with Ginny, she pushed him to dance with Hermione. Lavender was the next to drag him to dance followed by Pavarti. Others soon followed their example. Harry didn't have any free time to spend with his friends and from time to time he saw Ginny, Ron or Hermione dancing around the dance floor.  
  
Finally, snacks were served and Harry searched for his friends. He found Ron, Hermione, Neville and Ginny sitting around one of the round tables placed lining the walls.  
  
"That was tiring." He said as soon as he sat down next to Ron.  
  
"You've been dancing all night." Neville said, smiling at Harry.  
  
"Not my choice, I assure you." Said Harry. "Where are the adults, have you seen them. I noticed that only Roberts, Mrs. Nichols and the servants have been patrolling the room for quite a while. Most of the tenants have gone home and those who came from the village will be leaving soon."  
  
"Probably in the family parlor." Ginny said with a shrug.  
  
"I assume they're having a meeting. It would be the perfect time to have one." Whispered Hermione.  
  
"A meeting for what?" Asked Neville somewhat confused.  
  
Harry glared at Hermione to be quiet before replying to Neville.  
  
"You know, about school or something." He said.  
  
"Could be." Neville said thoughtfully, "or maybe they're talking about You- Know-Who. I don't think Dumbledore would stay with his arms crossed waiting for the Ministry to do something, he might be thinking of ways to get in You-Know-Who's way."  
  
Ron was about to respond but Hermione kicked him under the table.  
  
"You're right." She responded before trying to change the subject. "This was a good idea. The whole week has been really entertaining."  
  
"I didn't get much time to enjoy all the entertainments." Said Ginny. "I spent all my time in the Pitch. I've never trained so hard in my life."  
  
"If you want to stay in the team, you have to practice." Exclaimed Ron.  
  
"It has helped the team tremendously." Harry said quickly. "And we've had an advantage over the other teams. I don't know about you, but I want to keep the Cup in Gryffindor."  
  
"I suppose, but it's not fun being the only girl left in the team." Ginny complained.  
  
"It's not my fault that no girls tried out this time." Harry said.  
  
"I know, but it will feel different with only boys in the team." Said Ginny.  
  
"Nothing can be done about it, we'll have to do the best we can. Besides, we're not the only team to have only one girl in the team, Slytherin only has boys." Ron said.  
  
"It doesn't matter," Neville said. "As far as I'm concerned, Gryffindor has the best team."  
  
"We certainly have." Harry exclaimed.  
  
The party lasted until midnight. Mrs. Weasley stood in the middle of the ballroom and directed all the youngsters to make their way to their rooms.  
  
"You'll be woken by the servants early to get ready for our trip to King's Cross Station. Make sure you've packed everything. We'll be leaving at half past nine." She ordered as everybody started to walk out the door.  
  
Harry was among the last to leave the room. "Thank you." He said to Mrs. Weasley. "For helping me to plan this week."  
  
"It was nothing, Harry dear. You deserved to enjoy yourself." She smiled kindly.  
  
Harry made his way to his room in silence. He could hear everybody settling for the night. Whispers and giggles could be heard among the corridors, but he paid no attention to them. He was happy that the week was over and was looking forward to travel to Hogwarts the next day on the Hogwarts Express.  
  
Lotty had turned the covers for him. His pajamas were waiting at the foot of the bed and his trunk was packed and waiting by the side of the door.  
  
Minutes later, he was fast asleep.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
A/N: Phew! That's the end of it. What do you think? Should I edit the summer training out or should I keep it? It's up to you, let me know what you prefer. I've started on the next chapter so I'll have to know what you think before I update again so that it can go along with your choice. Hope to hear from you soon. : ) 


	55. Sixth Year Chapter 6

A/N: Thanks to all of you who reviewed, here's the next chapter for reviewing so promptly. It's not as long as most of my chapters are but I didn't want to drag it out and make it too boring, there is only so much Harry can do on his way to Hogwarts. My readers at HP.com enjoyed it (especially what happens at the end) and I hope you'll enjoy it as well.  
  
*~*~*~*~*  
  
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or anything related to it. Only this current fic (which just appeared on my brain one night and couldn't be dislodged until I wrote it) and some of the characters born from this fic belong to me.  
  
*~*~*~*~*  
  
Chapter 6 ~ On The Train to Hogwarts  
  
Harry woke up early the next day. His body was a little sore after all the exercise he had gone through on the last week.  
  
Lotty had prepared his bath and his muggle clothes waited in the dressing room. He took his time to dress, it was the last morning in the Manor and he wanted to spend as much time in it as he could.  
  
Eventually, he couldn't ignore the fact that he had guests in the house and they would all be waiting to find out how they were going to make their way to London.  
  
Only the adults were around the table when he entered the dining room.  
  
"Good morning." He said taking his seat at the head of the table.  
  
"Good morning, Harry dear." Said Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"Did you sleep well?" Asked Lupin looking at Harry closely.  
  
Harry nodded. "I think I was more tired than I thought."  
  
"Exercise is good for the body as it is to the soul." Said Mr. Weasley. "We all need a little of exercise from time to time."  
  
"Where are the professors?" Asked Harry noticing for the first time that those of his professors that had attended the night before where not around the table this morning.  
  
"Dumbledore and McGonagall have returned to Hogwarts." Said Lupin. "The others have eaten and have gone to London."  
  
"Why didn't they go to Hogwarts with Dumbledore and McGonagall?" Asked Harry full of curiosity. He couldn't understand why they would go to London when the students were due to arrive at Hogwarts that evening.  
  
"They'll be waiting for us at the station." Moody said walking into the room, it was obvious by his answer that he had heard Harry's question and understood his confusion.  
  
Harry was surprised. In the last five times he had traveled to Hogwarts, none of the teachers had waited for them at the station, and the only one to travel with them had been Lupin three years ago.  
  
"Why?" He asked.  
  
"Protection." Said Moodly simply, without bothering to explain.  
  
Lupin seemed to understand what he wanted to know. "Voldemort has been active on the last weeks." He said. "Dumbledore wants to make sure that all students get to Hogwarts safely."  
  
"Would Voldemort bother to attack?" Asked Harry, fearing the answer. "He would if he wants to." Mr. Weasley said. "Especially after what happened last June."  
  
Mrs. Weasley didn't seem too happy that Harry was learning about the several measures they had taken to protect the students, but she seemed resigned and was only thankful that Harry was the only one to be told and that the rest had not come down yet.  
  
Moments later the sound of footsteps were heard from the entrance hall and the young people started to enter in search of breakfast.  
  
Ron and Hermione were among the first to enter. They took their customary seats beside Harry.  
  
"I'm famished." Ron said as soon as his plate was placed before him.  
  
Hermione rolled her eyes but didn't bother to say what she thought as she buttered her toast. "How long have you been up?" She asked Harry instead.  
  
"A while now." Harry replied. "They were telling me their plans for today."  
  
"Whose?" Ron asked.  
  
"Dumbledore's." Harry promptly said.  
  
"Oh? What did they plan?" Hermione asked eager to learn what Harry had learned.  
  
"Dumbledore and McGonagall have returned to Hogwarts, but the others will be waiting in the station." Harry reported.  
  
"Why? They've never done that." Ron exclaimed.  
  
"It's obvious, isn't it?" Said Hermione. "They will be there for protection."  
  
"That's what Moody said." Nodded Harry. "Lupin said that Voldemort has been active lately."  
  
"Well, we did know that he wouldn't bother to hide now that everybody knows he's back." Hermione said.  
  
"But your scar hasn't pained you, has it?" Ron asked fearfully.  
  
Harry shrugged. "It has been bothered me for more than a year now. If there had been attacks, he hasn't been personally involved. I expect the Death Eaters have been the ones behind the latest trouble."  
  
"What is he waiting for then?" Ron asked.  
  
"He'll need to recoup after his attack on the Ministry last June." Hermione replied. "Several of his Death Eaters were captured, he'll need to get new recruits or try to help those in Azkaban to break out."  
  
"With the dementors on his side, it'll be easy." Ron said.  
  
"But I thought the Ministry had sacked them and had aurors patrolling the island." Said Harry.  
  
Ron snorted with derision. "Fudge's chosen men. I don't think they'll be enough to keep him out of Azkaban. They'll probably run if Death Eaters try to help those inside."  
  
"But why hasn't Voldemort done anything to help them? I expected to hear of their escape before now." Harry said.  
  
"So did I, perhaps he's waiting for security to settle down." Ron said thoughtfully.  
  
"And don't forget that new spells and enchantments have been placed around the island. They have obviously helped to keep the prisoners inside." Hermione reminded them.  
  
They would've continued with their discussion if Mrs. Weasley hadn't spoken just then. "Your luggage will be waiting in the entrance hall." She said. "We'll be flooing one by one to the Leaky Cauldron, cars will be waiting for us there to take us to the station. As soon as you're done start getting ready to go."  
  
Harry groaned. "If I had known we were traveling by Floo I wouldn't have eaten much."  
  
"I expect it's the fastest way to get us there." Hermione said. "And much safer if we travel in small groups."  
  
"I suspect they thought so too." Said Harry. "But that doesn't make me any less queasy about traveling by floo powder."  
  
"Just don't think about it." Ron said. "It's best not to think about your stomach when you're flooing."  
  
They were done with their meal and left the table to go in search of their luggage.  
  
Their trunks were in the parlor room instead of the entrance hall where the luggage belonging to their guests was found.  
  
Harry's trunk and Hedwig's cage waited for him beside the fireplace. Hedwig was standing proudly in her cage looking at Pig with scorn as Pig twittered and flew around his cage.  
  
"Honestly." Exclaimed Ron walking to Pig's cage. "I don't know why it doesn't stop doing that. I bet that if we let it go in the Pitch it's bound to beat the Snitch."  
  
Harry laughed but he knew that no matter how much Ron complained about Pig he was still attached to his pet.  
  
Crookshanks was settled in his wicker basket. Harry could hear it meowing plaintively from inside.  
  
The fire had been lit and a small canister full of floo powder waited in a stand beside the fireplace.  
  
"Well dears, are we ready?" Asked Mrs. Weasley coming into the room pulling Ginny along behind her.  
  
"Mum, let go." Mumbled Ginny pulling her arm from her mother's grasp.  
  
"Come along, Ginny, we have to leave or we'll be late." Mrs. Weasley said grabbing Ginny's trunk.  
  
Ginny grimaced but followed her mother to the grate.  
  
Harry pushed his trunk toward the fireplace and put Hedwig's cage under his arm.  
  
Mr. Weasley and Lupin were now in the room and the rest waited in line in the entrance hall.  
  
"I'll floo first and wait for you." Mrs. Weasley said pulling Ginny's trunk with her. She took a pinch of the powder and threw it into the fire. As the flames soared in the grate she stepped in, placing Ginny's trunk on its side beside her. "Leaky Cauldron." She yelled and she started spinning out of sight.  
  
Roberts stood by the fireplace and took a pinch of the powder for the next person.  
  
"Here, give me Hedwig and Pig." Ginny said taking the cages. She walked to the fireplace as Roberts threw the powder into the fire. "Leaky Cauldron." She said and was instantly gone.  
  
Harry followed. "Goodbye, Master Harry." He heard Roberts say as he threw the powder into the fire. "Goodbye Roberts, thank you for everything." He replied before stepping into the fire.  
  
He was spinning rapidly inside the grate. He closed his eyes and tried to keep from thinking about his stomach. Soon enough, he was standing in the grate of the Leaky Cauldron. Mrs. Weasly and Ginny were waiting before the fireplace for him. Sitting around a table were Kinsley Shacklebolt and Tonks.  
  
"Are you all right, dear?" Asked Mrs. Weasley as she tried to dust the ash from his clothes.  
  
"I'm fine." He said.  
  
Ron arrived next and Mrs. Weasley turned her attention to him.  
  
Harry walked toward Tonks and Kingsley.  
  
"Ready to return to Hogwarts?" Kingsley asked with a smile.  
  
Harry nodded. "Should be a better year with Umbridge gone."  
  
"Everything is better with her gone." Tonks said with a tone full of scorn.  
  
Hermione was the next one to arrive and Neville followed soon after.  
  
"Let's get you lot into the car." Kingsley said leading them out of the pub.  
  
A line of black cars waited in front of the building.  
  
"Get in dears, we have to get going." Ordered Mrs. Weasley.  
  
The luggage was stored and the young people settled in before the car turned on its engine and started down the street toward the station.  
  
"Where did you get that many cars?" Asked Ron of his mother as the car made its way through traffic.  
  
"The Ministry sent them, dear." Said Mrs. Weasley.  
  
"Why?" Harry asked. Since more than a year ago he was persona non grata with the Ministry and it was hard to believe that they bothered to send so many cars for his and his guests' use.  
  
"They're probably trying to change the public's opinion of the Ministry after all the reports that have come out of last June's attack." Said Ron.  
  
"It doesn't matter their reasons, dear." Mrs. Weasley said but her expression made it clear that she agreed with her son.  
  
It didn't take long for them to arrive to the station. Hestia Jones and Bill were waiting for them with carts for their luggage.  
  
"Everything all right, dear?" Asked Mrs. Weasley as Bill helped her out of the car.  
  
"No activity so far." He reported.  
  
Mrs. Weasley seemed glad to hear his report and led her group to the barrier between platforms 9 and 10 while Bill and his partner waited for the next group.  
  
Harry could've sworn that he was being watched as a slight tingle ran down his back. But nobody stopped them on their way to the barrier. Madam Hooch was waiting beside the barrier and nodded abruptly to Mrs. Weasley as they began to cross.  
  
Platform 9 ¾ was busy as always with the difference of Snape, Hagrid, Professor Flitwick and Professor Sprout's presence.  
  
Some parents seemed concerned at this change in tradition, others were glad to see them patrolling the platform.  
  
"Hurry up, now." Panted Mrs. Weasley as they hurried through the crowd, "I want you all in the train quickly."  
  
"Ron and I have to go to the Prefect's compartment." Hermione said.  
  
"Well, all right. Take care dears, and look after your sister, Ron, only you two are left now." Mrs. Weasley said kissing her son's cheek while Hermione waited for him to say goodbye.  
  
"All right. Not to worry, mum." Said Ron and quickly pushed his cart behind Hermione.  
  
"You three run along. Ginny, make sure you listen to your brother." Mrs. Weasley said hugging her daughter. "Be good. Harry, dear, take care." She hugged Harry tightly as she had done with each of her children.  
  
"I will, thank you for everything." Harry said as soon as Mrs. Weasley let him go.  
  
Neville had walked away from them as his grandmother came into view.  
  
Ginny was called by friends from other houses. "I'll see you inside." She said to Harry before hurrying to her friends who were curious about the well reported party in Gryffindor Manor.  
  
Harry hurried into the train as he ignored calls from others to join them. He didn't want to talk about the party, he just wanted to get a compartment and store away his luggage.  
  
The compartments all seemed to be filling quickly but Harry went straight to the back where he knew the compartments were still empty.  
  
He found one away from the crowds and stowed his trunk and Hedwig's cage in the racks above.  
  
Time seemed to pass and nobody had joined him yet. Part of him was happy to be alone, but another was restless.  
  
He felt the train vibrating as it prepared to leave the station. He knew Ron and Hermione would be busy with the first years, and he hoped that the teachers would be too busy patrolling the train to wish to join him.  
  
The train started to move when he heard footsteps in the corridor.  
  
The door of his compartment opened and Harry turned to look who it was.  
  
A witch stood on the door. She looked around and turned to whisper something to somebody behind her. The response was also whispered, after which, the witch turned back to look into the compartment.  
  
Harry looked at her with curiosity. She had never seen this witch before, she was dressed in white robes; the hood was up and kept her face in shadow, which made it difficult for Harry to see her features, but from the little he could see she seemed to be an older woman.  
  
"Excuse me young man," she said. "Would you mind sharing this compartment?"  
  
Harry shrugged. A minute ago he would have said he was waiting for others to join him, but his response was different. "I don't mind."  
  
The witch turned to look at whoever was behind her and stepped back into the corridor.  
  
Another witch came in, but unlike the first one, she was clearly a young woman. She was wearing a glittering blue robe, Harry could've sworn that it looked like the shining surface of a calm lake. Her hood was also up and her face was also shadowed but her mouth and chin were clearly visible.  
  
"Get comfortable, my Lady, I'll return to you if you want me." The old witch said in a respectful tone.  
  
The young witch nodded. "Thank you, Elspeth." She said with a husky voice.  
  
The old woman curtseyed and closed the door as she left.  
  
Harry looked at his companion with curiosity. My Lady? He asked himself, did she belong to the aristocracy? He had never met a witch or wizard who belonged to an aristocratic family, but he supposed there must be some. But this girl seemed to be older than eleven, if he could only see her face, he thought, he could make sure but he thought she looked much closer to his own age. If that was the case, how come he hadn't seen her around Hogwarts. He was sure that she would be somebody he'd remember.  
  
The young woman sat in silence by the window across from Harry. She was looking out and robes seemed to glitter more brightly in the sunshine.  
  
"Is this your first time at Hogwarts?" He asked curious about her.  
  
She turned to face him and Harry was sure that even though her hood hid her eyes she could see him very clearly.  
  
"No." She said before turning to look back out the window.  
  
Harry frowned in confusion. He was sure that he hadn't seen her around Hogwarts in the past years and he was sure that she would be somebody who would stand out among the student population.  
  
"What house are you in?" Harry asked, trying once more to make conversation with her.  
  
She turned back to look at him before answering. "I do not attend Hogwarts." She said before turning back to the window.  
  
Harry was more confused than ever. How could this not be her first time at Hogwarts if she doesn't attend?  
  
The train had passed the busy streets of London and was now crossing through the countryside.  
  
He was about to ask another question when the door opened once more.  
  
"I cannot believe he's still a prefect, I would've chucked him out after what happened last year." Ron was saying. "Sorry, mate, we - "  
  
He never finished as he glanced at Harry's companion. He turned to look at Harry questioningly but only received a shrug as a response.  
  
Ron stumbled into the compartment as Hermione pushed him in. "We were patrolling the train but the teachers prefer to do it instead." She finished Ron's sentence. She hadn't noticed that Harry wasn't alone yet until Ron sat beside Harry and she looked into the compartment.  
  
"Oh!" She exclaimed. "Hello."  
  
Their unknown companion turned to look at her and said "hello" in her husky voice before turning to look out the window again.  
  
Hermione looked at Harry and received another shrug as a response.  
  
The trio slid down near the door allowing them to whisper without fear that their companion could hear them.  
  
"Who is she?" Asked Ron.  
  
"Dunno. She hasn't spoken much." Harry said.  
  
"What did you learn so far?" Hermione asked.  
  
"Only that this is not her first time to Hogwarts but she's not a student?" Harry said.  
  
"That doesn't help much." Ron whispered.  
  
"I told you, she hasn't spoken much." Harry replied.  
  
"Was she here when you came in?" Hermione glanced at their companion but she seemed not to be paying them any attention.  
  
"No. I was sitting her when a witch opened the door and asked if I minded sharing the compartment, then she stepped back into the corridor and she came in," Harry nodded toward the window. "She just sat and the other witch left."  
  
"Did this other witch say anything? Maybe her name?" Hermione asked.  
  
"No name, she called her my Lady." Harry responded.  
  
"My Lady?" Asked Ron. "Does this mean she's an aristocrat?"  
  
Harry shrugged. "Dunno."  
  
"It could be an honorary title." Hermione said.  
  
"Wonder what she's doing here?" Mumbled Ron.  
  
"Beats me. She's very quiet though and she doesn't seem to pay much attention to anything besides what's outside the window." Said Harry.  
  
Their conversation was interrupted as the door opened once more.  
  
The three friends turned promptly to look at the door, but, Harry noticed, their companion did not.  
  
The older witch was back. She was pushing a cart before her.  
  
"My Lady," she said, "I thought you'll enjoy a cup of tea."  
  
The young witch turned toward her servant and for the first time since she came into the compartment, she smiled. "Thank you, Elspeth. Perhaps my companions would like to join me." She turned to look at them.  
  
"Yes, of course. Thank you." Said Hermione.  
  
The old witch had pushed her hood back and Harry could see her face clearly. Her skin was lined by the pass of time. Her eyes were a clear blue full of wisdom, and her hands were callused from hard work. She unfolded a small table and placed it before her mistress. A tray with a pot of tea and a plate of sandwiches were placed upon it.  
  
"Thank you." Said the young witch again. The older witch curtseyed once more and left them.  
  
Harry turned to look at Ron and Hermione and noticed that they were as curious as he had been since the moment their companion had come into the compartment.  
  
The young witch had pushed her hood back and finally, Harry could see her features clearly. Her tanned skin contrasted with the shine of her clear gray eyes, which were looking at him and his friends with a serene glance. Her long, black hair flowed down her back with a grace Harry had never seen.  
  
She smiled and started to pour the tea into the four teacups on the tray.  
  
Harry passed the teacups to Ron and Hermione after she finished pouring.  
  
"Thank you." He murmured as he took his.  
  
The girl nodded regally and sipped her tea carefully as she kept an eye on Harry.  
  
He saw her glance briefly at his scar, but unlike others who had met him over the years, she didn't remark on it.  
  
"Er..." He mumbled looking at his friends and their unknown companion not knowing what to say. He settled for introductions. "I'm Harry Potter, and these are my friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger."  
  
"Nice to meet you." Said Hermione while Ron nodded at her side.  
  
The girl nodded regally once more and continued sipping before she answered.  
  
"Brenna Alastrine." She replied.  
  
Well, Harry thought, now we know her name. It was a start.  
  
"Are you transferring to Hogwarts?" Asked Hermione, determined to know more about this girl.  
  
"No." Brenna said.  
  
"Are you visiting?" Ron asked not knowing what else to ask, she wasn't transferring, she had never attended Hogwarts before, but she had been there, what else could she be doing in the train?  
  
"Not exactly." Brenna said huskily.  
  
Hermione was about to ask another question but the door opened and a voice interrupted her.  
  
"Well, well, well, if it isn't the famous Harry Potter and his loyal followers." Said a sneering voice from the door.  
  
"What do you want, Malfoy?" Exclaimed Ron while Harry glared at the blond young man leaning against the door. He hadn't forgotten the last time he had come face to face with Draco Malfoy.  
  
"I see your mother found a way to turn you back. A pity really." Harry said.  
  
Malfoy's face turned into a grimace swift enough to have been missed if they hadn't been watching him closely.  
  
"You'll be sorry for that, Potter. You may be sure of it." Said Malfoy menacingly.  
  
There was a delicate cough from the corner against the window. Everybody turned to look at Brenna, who until now had stayed silent.  
  
Malfoy frowned at the sight of the new girl, but after glaring at Harry stepped out of the compartment and closed the door behind him with a snap.  
  
Brenna's eyebrows were raised questioningly.  
  
"Don't mind him, he's a git of the first order." Said Ron.  
  
"He's a bully." Hermione exclaimed.  
  
"He's angry because his father was sent to Azkaban." Harry replied.  
  
"I see." Brenna said quietly.  
  
The door was opened again, Harry turned quickly to see if Malfoy had returned, but instead Brenna's older companion stood in the opening.  
  
She quietly took the cups and the tray and efficiently took it away.  
  
Brenna had turned to look out the window.  
  
Harry sighed and whispered to Ron and Hermione. "Didn't learn much, did we?"  
  
"Nope." Said Ron as Hermione shook her head in exasperation.  
  
"I don't think she wants us to know more about her than we already do, not that it isn't much in the first place." She said looking at the slim figure looking out the window. "I don't' understand all this secrecy."  
  
"Let's leave her alone." Harry replied understanding why a person would like to keep things to him or herself. "We're bound to find out more as the year progresses."  
  
"You're right." Said Hermione knowing full well why Harry said what he did.  
  
Hermione and Ron left soon after that. "Patrolling, you know." Ron explained as they were leaving. But they returned several times during the trip. Ginny eventually made her way to the compartment chatting all the while about her friends and their eagerness to know how the house party had gone. She kept glancing to Brenna with curiosity but Harry knew nothing more than what he already knew. Neville also visited for a while and even Luna made a brief appearance. Luna surprised Harry when she curtsied before Brenna. Brenna looked amused but only nodded to Luna when Harry introduced her and didn't remark on her behavior.  
  
But for several hours he was left alone with his silent companion, and dark thoughts started to invade his mind. He tried to shake them off and turn his attention instead to trying to find the answer to the puzzle that was Brenna. What was she doing here?  
  
Darkness had fallen and Harry knew they were nearing the station at Hogsmeade.  
  
"It's time to get changed." Hermione stuck out her head around the door as she passed the compartment.  
  
Harry nodded and look apprehensively at his silent companion.  
  
The restroom was a few doors away and he decided to go there to change. He didn't feel comfortable changing before a stranger, even if he had only to don his robes.  
  
It didn't take him long to change into his school uniform, he returned to find Ginny, Ron and Hermione waiting for him by the door of his compartment.  
  
"Did you learn anything more?" Asked Ginny as soon as he joined them.  
  
"No, she hasn't spoken much." Harry said.  
  
Hermione and Ginny sighed in disappointment.  
  
"There's nothing more to it. We'll find out eventually." Said Ron. "C'mon, we'll be arriving at Hogwarts in a few moments."  
  
Ron and Hermione went to the prefect compartment ready to help with the first years while Harry returned to his compartment with Ginny.  
  
Ron had been right, it hadn't been more than half an hour later when the train stopped in the Hogsmeade Station.  
  
Harry walked out of his compartment with Ginny, with a last glance back toward Brenna, who continued sitting by the window as if waiting for someone to come to her.  
  
Harry and Ginny stepped out of the train. The teachers were around the platform guiding the students toward the carriages – except those who were walking toward Hagrid called by his roaring "firs' years 'ere!"  
  
Harry saw Snape glaring down at the students at one end of the platform while Professors McGonagall and Sprout waited by the entrance of the station hurrying the students.  
  
Harry and Ginny found Ron and Hermione. They were among the last group of students left in the station.  
  
"Did you see who else came on the train with us?" Asked Ron as they walked toward the remaining carriages.  
  
"Who?" Asked Ginny.  
  
"Lupin." Hermione replied.  
  
"What is he doing here?" Asked Harry, he had thought that only teachers, besides their new acquaintance and her servant, were traveling with them to school.  
  
"Seems he was hired to take the Defense Against the Dark Arts after all." Said Ron.  
  
"Great! I was hoping that it would be someone good." Ginny exclaimed. They all knew she had been rather nervous about her classes this year as she was just getting ready to pass her O.W.L.s and had been especially eager to know who would be the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher.  
  
Harry turned to look back at the train, he could see Brenna stepping down of the train, two women walking behind her. Both wore the same color robes, but Harry only recognized one, the older woman Brenna had called Elspeth, he had not seen the other woman in the train.  
  
Lupin was waiting by the carriages. Only Snape and Lupin remained, the rest of the teachers had taken a carriage back to the school.  
  
"Had a nice trip?" Asked Professor Lupin with a smile.  
  
"Well enough." Said Ron. "Professor? Do you by chance know who they are?" He asked nodding toward Brenna and her entourage walking a few yards behind them.  
  
Lupin turned to look at the small group and frowned. "I didn't know there was anybody else besides students and teachers on the train."  
  
"The youngest one sat in our compartment but didn't talk much." Ginny said.  
  
Lupin was still frowning as she looked at the group getting nearer and nearer. Then he shook his head slightly and looked back at the young people watching him closely. He smiled. "You better take a carriage or you'll be left to walk up to the castle." He said.  
  
"So you don't know about them either." Stated Hermione.  
  
Lupin turned to look at the nearing trio and frowned once more. "Dumbledore said nothing to me about it." He simply said.  
  
Hermione pulled them to one of the remaining carriages. As they climbed into the carriage, Harry noticed Brenna and her companions stop by Lupin, who opened the door to the last carriage for them.  
  
Harry climbed into the carriage and looked back through the window. He saw Brenna's other companion push back her hood.  
  
Professor Lupin gasped in surprise. "Emma!" He exclaimed.  
  
"Hello Remus!" Harry heard her say before the carriage pulled up and they started down the road to the castle.  
  
*~*~*~*~*  
  
A/N: There you go. Don't forget to review! : ) 


	56. Sixth Year Chapter 7

A/N: Helloooo! Thank you all for your reviews, I'm so glad that you all enjoyed it and I know it was mean of me to leave it that way but I thought it was the perfect way to do so. I hope you enjoy this chapter just as much.  
  
*~*~*~*~*  
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing, nothing I tell you! Well except some of the secondary characters, but that's all, everything else belongs to JKR.  
  
*~*~*~*~*  
  
Chapter 7 ~ Experimental Charms  
  
Harry was very curious about the scene he witnessed between Professor Lupin and Brenna's second companion. How could Lupin know the lady? And what were they doing at Hogwarts?  
  
Harry was rather thoughtful on their ride to the castle, his friends noticed his silence and after looking at each other doubtfully they left him to his own thoughts.  
  
The carriages stopped in front of the castle, students were queuing through the entrance making their way to the Great Hall.  
  
Ron, Ginny, Hermione and Harry pushed their way through the crowd toward the Gryffindor table. Ginny joined her friends while Ron, Hermione and Harry sat at the front end of the table.  
  
The teachers were sitting around the staff table. Harry noticed that Lupin wasn't in his place yet, and, to his surprise, neither was Dumbledore who had always been at his place ever since Harry's first night at Hogwarts.  
  
"Something wrong, Harry?" Asked Ron somewhat apprehensively.  
  
Harry shook his head. "No," he said, "just noticing that Professor Dumbledore is not at the staff table."  
  
"He isn't?" Asked Hermione looking promptly at the Headmaster's chair at the center of the table.  
  
"Wonder where he is?" Ron asked. "I hope he doesn't take long, I reckon they wouldn't begin the Sorting without him here, and I want the Feast to start sooner tonight. I'm famished."  
  
"Honestly Ron! Is your stomach the only thing you can think of?" Hermione exclaimed.  
  
"At the moment, yes." Ron replied.  
  
Harry laughed while Hermione went off into another tirade about the importance of the Sorting Ceremony and his duties as prefect.  
  
"Alright, alright!" Exclaimed Ron interrupting Hermione's speech. "I can wait."  
  
"Humph!" Scoffed Hermione turning to look back at the staff table. "There's Lupin." She said after a few seconds. "He looks rather pale, the full moon is still a couple of weeks away so it's not that."  
  
Harry had noticed Lupin's pale countenance as well and thought back to the scene he had witness a few minutes ago. "I think he's in shock." He finally said.  
  
"Shock! Why would he be in shock?" Asked Ron.  
  
Harry turned to look at his friends and whispered to them what he had seen at the station.  
  
"You say he was surprised to see her?" Hermione asked full of curiosity.  
  
"More than surprised, I don't think he was expecting to see her at all. He hadn't recognized her before. I asked him if he knew who Brenna and her companions were and he said he didn't know. But then, the witch had her hood up and he hadn't seen her well enough to recognize had he?" Harry said as the room buzzed with conversations as they waited for the Sorting to begin.  
  
"I wonder why he reacted like that." Said Hermione thoughtfully.  
  
"It's obvious isn't it?" Said Ron. "He knows her well enough to call her by her given name, he must have known her well in the past."  
  
"I know she wasn't in the Order." Harry said, "so he didn't know her from there."  
  
"How do you know that?" Asked Hermione.  
  
"Moody showed me a picture of the Order last year, everybody was there, but she wasn't in that picture." Harry replied.  
  
"Maybe they knew each other from school." Ron said.  
  
"That would make sense." Hermione agreed.  
  
Harry nodded. But if that was the case, he thought, she must have known his parents and Sirius as well.  
  
The sound of the doors opening pulled Harry from his thoughts. The Sorting was about to begin. He turned to look at the staff table and saw Dumbledore sitting happily in his customary chair. But Brenna and her companions were nowhere in sight.  
  
"Where do you think she is?" He asked as Professor McGonagall led the first years into the Great Hall.  
  
"Who?" Asked Ron as he looked at the young students going fearfully to the front of the room.  
  
"Brenna and the other women." Harry said looking at the new batch of students looking around the Hall in awe.  
  
"Dunno." Ron said eagerly waiting for the Sorting to begin.  
  
Professor McGonagall was placing the spindly chair before the staff table a frayed, old wizard hat was placed upon it.  
  
Harry looked at the Sorting Hat with a mixed feeling of eagerness and dread. The last song he had heard was full of warning of what may happen. He noticed by the murmurs that filled the Hall that he wasn't the only one to remember what had happened last year.  
  
"Wonder what will it have to say this time." Ron whispered.  
  
"Shh!" Hermione was eager to hear this year's song.  
  
Scores of years ago  
  
Four wizards had a dream  
  
A wish, a yearn, a hope to help  
  
Young wizards to prepare.  
  
Bold Gryffindor, the brave at heart  
  
The daring and chivalrous he set apart,  
  
Yet devious Slytherin, the purest of blood  
  
He wished to teach cunning to be their art  
  
Patient Hufflepuff, the workers she preferred  
  
Toil and a kind heart to be their wares  
  
Wise Ravenclaw for a ready mind she searched  
  
Wit and cleverness to pass life's tests  
  
Divide I must  
  
Though I advice  
  
Together we must be  
  
Lest Dark Forces  
  
Disadvantage seek  
  
In Hogwarts hallowed keep.  
  
Let them not be fed  
  
By our ambition and dread  
  
United the school began  
  
And united will survive  
  
I will divide  
  
That's my job  
  
But hear my song  
  
Heed my word  
  
And listen to my advice  
  
Before you to put me on  
  
And sorted into a home  
  
A scattering of applause was heard throughout the Hall and the small first years looked more scared than they had been before the song began.  
  
"It's stuck on this theme, it seems." Said Ron as he applauded softly.  
  
"It knows that things have become more severe than ever." Hermione said.  
  
McGonagall had unrolled her parchment and began to read the names off the list.  
  
"Monica Bloom!"  
  
A small black girl stepped fearfully toward the chair. She sat and the hat was placed upon her head. It didn't take long to hear the Hat's voice. "Ravenclaw!"  
  
The Ravenclaw table soared into applause as its newest member ran relieved toward it.  
  
"C'mon, hurry!" Murmured Ron looking longingly into his plate.  
  
"This is important Ron!" Exclaimed Hermione glaring at her friend.  
  
"I know, but I can't see why they can't do this while we're eating." Ron grumbled.  
  
Hermione turned abruptly to look at the rest of the sorting while Harry smiled amused at Ron's side.  
  
"Camille Dunn!" Became the first new Gryffindor.  
  
Half an hour later McGonagall was calling the last name on her list.  
  
"Deana Zulu!" She called before the hat's call of "Hufflepuff!" ended the Sorting.  
  
"Finally!" Exclaimed Ron who had become bored by the procedure minutes ago.  
  
But he was doomed to disappointment when Dumbledore stood up and waited for silence for his usual speech.  
  
"Welcome," Dumbledore said, "to a new year at Hogwarts. A reminder to all students, the Forbidden Forest is out of bounds. Some new items have been added to the list of forbidden objects inside the school, it now comprises of more than five hundred objects, for a view of the list, please visit Filch's office."  
  
Ron snorted with disdain. "Like anybody would go to his office just to look at some ruddy list."  
  
"Prefects," Dumbledore continued, "and Head students will meet with Professor McGonagall before retiring to obtain instructions and schedules for night duties."  
  
Ron looked confusedly at Hermione. "But we got those in the train." He said.  
  
Hermione was frowning thoughtfully and nodded. "They must have changed it."  
  
"But why?" Ron whispered.  
  
Hermione shook her head, she obviously was worried about what this change could mean.  
  
"To our sixth and seventh year students," Dumbledore was saying, "a new class will be offered. Experimental Magic will be a subdivision of Defense Against the Dark Arts, Transfiguration and Charms, and will be offered to only those who obtained an Exceed Expectation or Outstanding on their O.W.L. exams. You must sign up with Professor Lupin who will evaluate your past work and recommend you for this class."  
  
"That sounds like an interesting class." Hermione exclaimed. "I hope Professor Lupin recommends me, I'd love to take Experimental Magic."  
  
"Hermione," Ron said, "the one thing you may be sure of is Professor Lupin's recommendation."  
  
"I think we all could." Harry said thinking that Experimental Magic would certainly be useful.  
  
"I didn't know Lupin knew Experimental Magic." Ron said looking at their Defense teacher who had sat silently among the other teachers since he sat at the staff table.  
  
"He must, if Dumbledore asked him to teach the class." Harry said.  
  
"Why are you sure that he will teach it?" Asked Hermione. "For all we know, Snape would be teaching that class."  
  
"Never mind, then. I'm not taking that class." Ron quickly exclaimed.  
  
"...please see Madam Hooch for tryouts times." Dumbledore continued. "Now, Buen Provecho!"  
  
Food instantly appeared along the tables.  
  
"Finally!" Ron said as he started pile food into his plate.  
  
There was a slight sigh heard as Ron bit with gusto into a juicy piece of roast. Harry turned to look at Nearly-Headless Nick a few seats from him.  
  
"Why do you torture yourself Nick?" Asked Dean who was sitting by the ghost. "Why come to the feast if it makes you sad?"  
  
"The company, dear boy." Nick said with a ghostly smile. "Sometimes, I need human company."  
  
"Don't the elves keep you company?" Asked Neville sitting across from Nick.  
  
"No, they can't serve us, they're only happy when they are serving humans." Nick said with a shrug.  
  
The mention of Hogwarts' elves grabbed the attention of Hermione. "How many elves are left in the castle?" She asked thinking quickly trying to remember the number of hats and socks she had knitted the previous year.  
  
"Left? What do you mean? The elves haven't gone anywhere." Said Nick looking at Hermione as if she was out of her mind. "Not even Dobby, who's the only one with a free day. He usually doesn't take it."  
  
Hermione looked confused. "What do you mean the elves haven't gone anywhere?"  
  
Nick amused. "Why would they leave? They do what they love to do, there's no reason for them to wish for freedom and leave the castle."  
  
Hermione opened her mouth wordlessly and looked at Ron and Harry with consternation. "I don't understand." She finally said. "I made enough hats and socks for the elves. There should be less elves in the castle this year."  
  
Harry took pity of her and decided to tell her what he knew. "They didn't take your offerings Hermione."  
  
"But the hats and socks disappeared every morning." Hermione exclaimed.  
  
"Dobby took them. The elves were offended when the hats started to appear and they stopped coming to the tower to clean, Dobby cleaned the tower by himself and took the hats." Harry said.  
  
"They were offended?" Hermione asked in a small voice. Ron and Harry could see tears starting to form in her eyes.  
  
"Hermione, you can't expect them to believe the same things you do." Ron said gently. "They don't believe that they're slaved. They were made to serve and that's what they do and love it. Only a few are not happy and they're rare. This is the life they want, you will do them wrong if you take that away from them."  
  
Hermione sighed. "I suppose." She said sadly.  
  
Ron and Harry shared a worried glance.  
  
Harry agreed with Ron, but he knew that Hermione would only look for another way to change the elves' status. He was surprised she had not said much about the ones living in the Manor, but then again, they were the only elves he knew who were wealthy than most wizards and were relatively free compared to other elves.  
  
The meal was eventually over and it was time to retire to their common rooms.  
  
Hermione and Ron were preparing to leave with the first years.  
  
"What's the password?" Harry asked.  
  
"Twinkle Lights." Said Hermione before she hurried to collect the young students.  
  
"Twinkle Lights? What kind of a password is that?" Asked Harry.  
  
Ron shrugged with indifference. "Don't ask me, that's what we were told." And he hurried to join Hermione.  
  
Harry looked after them for a moment before leaving the Hall with the rest of his classmates. He could hear whispers as he passed, but after five years at Hogwarts he had learned not to pay much attention to them.  
  
Neville caught up with him a few minutes later. "The other houses are curious." He said. "They've been asking about our week at Gryffindor Manor."  
  
Harry grunted. He really didn't want to hear what the media had to say about his party.  
  
"An article appeared in the Prophet this morning." Neville said. "My Gran gave me a copy when she met me at the station."  
  
They were standing in front of the Fat Lady Portrait now. "Password?"  
  
"Twinkle Lights." Harry replied.  
  
Both climbed into the portrait hole and looked around. Most of the Gryffindors were already in the common room, only the first years were yet to arrive. But there was one thing that Harry noticed instantly.  
  
Most Gryffindors had a newspaper in hand and were whispering and laughing with their companions.  
  
Harry groaned. At least, Neville had prepared him, he thought.  
  
"Harry! Harry!" Called the Creevy brothers, who sat together at one corner of the common room waving to him to join them.  
  
Harry waved back but opted to go to his dormitory instead.  
  
The dormitory was empty, Neville, Dean and Seamus were still in the common room discussing the article and Ron was yet to arrive with the first years.  
  
His things had been arranged around his bed. The bed covers had been turned and his pajamas waited for him on the bed.  
  
"Master Harry." A squeaky voice said behind him.  
  
Harry turned around with surprise. "Lotty? What are you doing here?"  
  
The elf looked confused. "To serve Master Harry." He said simply.  
  
"I...I thought you would stay at the Manor." Harry said noticing for the first time that the elf had not just prepared his bed by that of the rest of his roommates as well.  
  
"Lotty goes with Master Harry wherever he goes." Said Lotty as he folded white towels in a rack next to the bathroom door.  
  
"Er..." Harry didn't know what to say. He opted to refrain from saying anything, he didn't want to send the elf home because he didn't want to hurt its feelings but he was also glad that he was there as he had become rather fond of finding his things in order.  
  
"Where - ?" Harry was interrupted by Neville.  
  
"There you are, Harry. People want to know what you think of the article." Neville said pleasantly.  
  
Harry sighed resigned. He had hoped to escape any mention of the article.  
  
"I haven't seen it yet." He replied.  
  
He saw Lotty bow and dissaparate from the room.  
  
"Oh, you got to." Exclaimed Neville pulling a rolled newspaper from his back pocket. "Here." He offered it to Harry.  
  
Harry took it slowly.  
  
"It's in the society page." Neville urged him.  
  
"The society page? Just great!" Mumbled Harry as he looked through the paper looking for the society section.  
  
SOCIETY NEWS ~ Gryffindor Manor Decked out for Festivities  
  
It read.  
  
Gryffindor Manor has been the center for the teen social event of the summer. Young Harry Potter, The Boy Who Lived, hosted a week of Quidditch training for his housemates (Harry Potter belongs to Gryffindor House at Hogwarts). The young Gryffindors took part of some intensive flying and Quidditch training led by Harry Potter and the rest of Gryffindor House Quidditch Team. The weeklong Quidditch party culminated with a game of great excitement followed by a Ball, where surrounding neighbors where invited to take part. Reporters from the Daily Prophet were on hand to attend and take pictures of the event.  
  
Harry looked below the paragraph and saw several pictures from the game and the ball. He shook his head disgustedly as he saw himself catching the snitch.  
  
Harry groaned and threw the paper to his bed. "That's all I need." He said.  
  
"What do you think?" Asked Neville, whose enthusiasm had cooled from Harry's reaction to the article.  
  
"I just wished they would leave me alone!" Exclaimed Harry throwing the paper aside. The pages fluttered around the room until they settled messily around the floor.  
  
Neville look anguished and nervous. He knew that Harry didn't like the attention his name prompted in the magical community, but the whole time Neville had spent at the Manor Harry had acted as any other sixteen year old boy that he had forgotten about all that had happened on their last week of school.  
  
Neville sighed with relief as the door opened and Ron entered followed by Seamus and Dean.  
  
"What happened?" Asked Ron as he noticed the thrown pages littering the floor.  
  
"Just leave me alone." Snapped Harry going to his bed and closing the curtains around it without bothering to change for the night.  
  
Ron looked at Neville with consternation. "What happened?" He whispered not wanting Harry to hear if he was in a temper. And Harry in a temper was something he didn't want to deal with.  
  
Neville pointed to the paper. "The article." He said simply.  
  
Ron groaned. "We didn't show it to him because Hermione thought that he wouldn't like it." He said running his fingers through his hair.  
  
"But what's in there to make him angry?" Asked Dean taking the pages from the floor and stopped only when he picked the one with the article and pictures showing the game and ball.  
  
"I don't think he's really angry about the article." Said Ron looking at the enclosed bed with trepidation. "He has been kept busy all summer that he hasn't really thought about what happened last June, but he has just spent hours on his own in the train with nothing to keep him company but his thoughts. It's starting to catch up with him. The article was just an annoyance but something that he could take his temper out on."  
  
"Is he going to sleep at all, do you think?" Asked Seamus as he walked to his own bed not getting anywhere near Harry's.  
  
"Don't know. Wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't sleep at all." Ron whispered.  
  
Harry was too bothered about his own thoughts to pay attention to what his roommates had to say about him.  
  
He knew he had overreacted to the article and had scared Neville as well. But he couldn't help it. Even though he had company during the trip to school there were times when he was relatively alone. Brenna had said nothing and kept to herself and Ron and Hermione only joined him from time to time as Neville and Ginny had done. There were times when all he had for company were his own thoughts and he didn't like where they had taken him. He had kept himself so busy during the summer that he hadn't thought about Sirius and Voldemort much until he was awaked in the middle of the night by a bad dream or by the pain on his scar that flared up now and then.  
  
Harry groaned with frustration. He wished he were back at the Manor where he could lose himself and keep his dark thoughts away by taking up some of the master's duties around the estate.  
  
But he was now at Hogwarts and he could clearly remember what had happened the last time he had been here.  
  
Memories started to run through his mind. He could see the vision Voldemort had tricked him with clearly before him. Sirius tortured and asked to do as he was bid. He could see himself walking through the forest in company of Hermione and Professor Umbridge. And he could see Sirius' expression as he was hit with Bellatrix Lestrange's spell and he fell through the veil.  
  
He groaned once more and turned face down on his bed. He took his pillow and placed it about his head. Darkness engulfed him and for a moment he felt better, but the images started once more.  
  
It's gonna drive me crazy, he thought, how am I supposed to survive all this with my sanity intact? It's not Voldemort who'll kill me, my own mind will.  
  
It was hours later when he fell asleep. The snores and soft breathing of his roommates serenaded around him as he finally let exhaustion to overtake him.  
  
*~*~*~*~*  
  
He was in a small room. It was dark and cold, the only source of light and warmth was a lit fireplace that wasn't big enough to heat and light the whole room, only the space before it. Next to the fireplace was a large chair. Harry could not see who was sitting in it but he could see the long, pale fingers tapping the armrest impatiently.  
  
Before the chair was a prostrated man as if he was worshipping a deity. His face was hidden and his arms outstretched on the floor.  
  
"Are you telling me that you have failed?" A cold voice came from the person sitting in the chair.  
  
"I'm sorry, my Lord. She wasn't where we were told she would be." The other man said.  
  
"Where is she?" The cold voice asked imperiously.  
  
"Hogwarts my Lord. She has gone to Hogwarts." The man said.  
  
There was a roar of anger and frustration.  
  
"Harry! Harry!" Ron's voice was heard from afar.  
  
Harry struggled to open his eyes but the pain on his scar urged him to keep his eyes close.  
  
"Harry! Are you alright?" Ron's worried voice came to him clearly.  
  
"What happened?" Harry heard Neville's question as the pain started to ebb and his breathing became easier.  
  
"My scar." He whispered.  
  
"Harry? What's wrong?" Asked Ron beside him.  
  
"My scar, it hurt." Harry said opening his eyes. Ron was right beside him, behind him were Neville, Seamus and Dean. All looked worried and in Neville's case, scared.  
  
Harry sighed shakily as he struggled to take deep breaths.  
  
"What did you see?" Asked Ron.  
  
"He's angry." Harry whispered.  
  
"About what?" Asked Dean with curiosity.  
  
Harry shook his head trying to remember what he had seen. "Somebody – somebody was supposed to have been brought to him. But they didn't succeed." He finally said.  
  
"Who?" Asked Neville scared.  
  
"I don't know. They didn't say." Harry said. His breathing was back to normal and the pain was gone, leaving only the familiar discomfort behind.  
  
Seamus yawned. "Well, nothing to be done about it I guess." He said. "Although you should tell Dumbledore I suppose."  
  
"It's too late to go looking for him. It will be morning soon, you can go see him before breakfast." Dean advised.  
  
Harry nodded and watched Neville, Seamus and Dean return to their beds.  
  
"That isn't all is it?" Asked Ron after the curtains in the other beds had been drawn around them.  
  
"He was angry, very angry. But there was something else. Fear, he was afraid." Harry said his brow frowning in thought.  
  
"Afraid? Afraid of what?" Ron asked with surprise.  
  
"Not what, who. Whoever this person is, it's important for him to have control over. I could feel that clearly enough. He was afraid that this person had slipped through his fingers and taken the power he needed with him. No that's not right, not a him, it's a her." Harry said trying to remember the details of his dream.  
  
"But what does he want with her?" Ron asked.  
  
"I don't know. But whoever she is, she's here, at Hogwarts. That's what made him angry and afraid. She's out of reach for now." Harry said.  
  
"Who do you think it is?" Asked Ron.  
  
"I don't know." Replied Harry.  
  
Dawn was arriving by the time Harry fell asleep once more.  
  
*~*~*~*~*  
  
Harry opened his eyes. He blinked a couple of times while trying to determine the time. "Ugh!" He moaned. It was barely an hour before that he had fallen asleep.  
  
Harry sighed and left his bed. "Might as well go down, if I can't sleep." He murmured as he started to gather his clothes, which were neatly folded in a chair at his bedside. There was a low humming at the feet of his bed. Harry frowned, he was not surprised to find Lotty folding his clothes and shining his shoes by his trunk.  
  
"Good morning, Master Harry." The small elf piped as he set his brush and closing the trunk.  
  
"Morning, Lotty." Harry yawned. "You might as well go to the kitchens. I don't need anything this morning."  
  
The elf nodded and disappeared a minute later.  
  
Harry shook his head. He hadn't minded having Lotty to help him in the mornings while he was at the Manor, but he didn't know if he liked the idea of having a personal elf at school.  
  
He stepped out of the bathroom a few minutes later. His hair was still wet and the collar of his shirt was a little damp but he knew it wouldn't last for long.  
  
It was still early and breakfast wouldn't be served yet. Lupin, he thought. Maybe I should tell him about my dream.  
  
Having decided on what to do next he put on his robes and walked out the room. The common room was still empty, and Harry was glad of this as there was nobody to question him. The portrait opened with ease.  
  
"To early for class isn't it?" He heard the Fat Lady say as he walked away.  
  
He walked through the silent corridors without encountering anybody else. No Filch, no Mrs. Norris, no teachers or students.  
  
He arrived to the familiar corridor where he knew Lupin's office to be. He saw that the door to his classroom was open and a dim light shined through the opening.  
  
Harry looked through it with curiosity. There was nobody in the classroom, but the door leading to his office was open and voices could be heard from it.  
  
"Why didn't Dumbledore tell me you were coming?" He heard Lupin ask.  
  
"He wasn't sure I would come." A woman's voice replied.  
  
"But he had planned for the class. He announced it last night. I know he didn't ask me to teach it and the only person in this school capable to teach it is you." Lupin said.  
  
The sound of a restrained chuckle reached Harry's ears. "I sometimes think that Dumbledore must have some Seer blood in him, he always seems to know everything." The woman responded. Harry couldn't help but agree with her.  
  
"Aren't you glad to see me?" The woman asked slowly.  
  
"I am." Protested Lupin. "But it's been almost eighteen years. So much has happened while you were gone."  
  
The woman spoke so low that Harry couldn't almost hear her. "I know." She said  
  
"We're the only ones left." Said Lupin sadly.  
  
"What? What do you mean?" Asked the woman surprised.  
  
"Lily and James were killed fifteen years ago, Sirius died just this past June," Harry could hear the woman's sudden gasp, "Peter must as well be."  
  
"And Katie, what about Katie?" She exclaimed.  
  
There was no response.  
  
"What about Katie, Remus? Where is Katie?" The woman urged him to respond.  
  
"I don't know. Sirius sent her away fifteen years ago, months before Lily and James were killed." Lupin replied.  
  
Harry could hear the low feminine sobs and imagined Professor Lupin's arms around her as he tried to console her.  
  
"I'm so sorry I wasn't here." Was her muffled response. "I shouldn't have left."  
  
"No, don't say that. There was nothing that you could've done. There was nothing we could've done. Dumbledore wanted you safe." Lupin's voice sounded rough and thick to Harry and he could easily imagine him trying to control the tears that gathered round his eyes.  
  
Harry didn't want to hear anymore. As he stepped back from the door, he could still hear their voices.  
  
"Harry?" He heard her ask.  
  
"You'll meet him soon." Lupin replied.  
  
Harry walked away. He walked through the corridors not paying attention to the students who were already roaming the halls.  
  
Who was the woman Professor Lupin was talking to? Was it the woman he saw at the station with Brenna and her companion? Emma, he had called her Emma. Professor Lupin had been very surprised to see her. And she had known his parents. "And Sirius." He whispered.  
  
"Harry!" He heard his name called.  
  
Harry looked behind him to find Ron and Hermione running toward him.  
  
"Didn't you hear us call?" Asked Ron, panting as he came to a stop before Harry.  
  
"No." Said Harry simply.  
  
Harry saw them share a worried glance before turning to look at him once more.  
  
"What happened?" Asked Hermione watching him closely.  
  
"Nothing. I just woke up too early and couldn't go back to sleep." Harry said with a shrug and continued walking. He could hear Ron and Hermione walking behind him.  
  
"Was it the dream?" Hermione asked trying to keep step with both boys.  
  
"Not really." Harry said.  
  
"Have you told Dumbledore yet?" Asked Ron, his strides long enough to catch up with Harry easily.  
  
"No. Haven't seen him yet." Harry replied.  
  
He could feel, rather than see, Ron and Hermione share another glance. He sighed silently. He loved his friends, but they got on his nerves when they worried about him. Especially for little things like a dream that didn't even make sense to him.  
  
Then he remembered what Lupin had told his female visitor when she said that she shouldn't have left when she did. "Dumbledore wanted you safe." Lupin had said. Did that mean that this was the woman Voldemort wanted? Voldemort had been angry and afraid that she was at Hogwarts, why? "Maybe because he knows that Dumbledore will be here to protect her." He mumbled.  
  
"I'm sorry, didn't hear that mate." Ron said beside him.  
  
"Oh, nothing, just thinking that maybe I should eat something before talking to Dumbledore." Said Harry. He didn't want to tell his friends about the conversation he had just heard between their Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher and the woman he had seen at the station. At least he thought it was she. Brenna was too young too have been talking about his parents and the woman who had served her in the train was too old. The voice had belonged to a young woman, which left Brenna's remaining companion.  
  
He wasn't listening to what Ron and Hermione were saying and it wasn't until they walked into the Great Hall that he noticed they were once again arguing.  
  
"Honestly, Ron. He needs to talk to Dumbledore right away, not wait until the end of classes." Hermione was saying. "I'm sure he would give Harry a note if he's late to class."  
  
"What if we get Potions first? I don't think Snape would care if Harry had a note from the Minister himself, he will still get points off Gryffindor." Ron exclaimed.  
  
Harry led them to the Gryffindor table. Some students were already there as were some of the teachers at the staff table.  
  
Harry quickly turned to look at the assembled teachers. Hagrid was there and waved to him as soon as he saw him. Professor McGonagall was talking quietly to Professor Flitwick and Professor Sprout seemed to be in a deep discussion with Professor Snape. But Lupin and Dumbledore were not present yet, nor was Brenna or any of her companions.  
  
"What's wrong?" Asked Ron as he sat beside him.  
  
"Nothing." Said Harry looking back at his friends. Both Hermione and Ron looked a little concerned. "Just looking at the Staff Table to see if Dumbledore was there."  
  
"Oh." Exclaimed Hemione looking toward the teachers. "He's not here yet."  
  
"I noticed that." Said Harry starting to pile some bacon and toast on his plate. "Neither is Lupin."  
  
"It's still early yet." Said Ron taking his attention from the still missing teachers and turned to his food instead.  
  
They didn't talk much while they ate, but sporadic conversations broke now and then. They were just finishing their meal when Professor McGonagall passed around the table with the class schedules.  
  
Ron sighed as he looked at his. "I wished Aurors didn't have to take Potions. I would've loved to chuck my Potion book out the window."  
  
Hermione exclaimed disapprovingly but said nothing as she knew that the boys dislike of the class derived from their dislike of Professor Snape and not from the subject itself.  
  
"Double Transfiguration first." Said Harry noting the lessons for that day. "And Double Charms this afternoon."  
  
"Well, at least we don't have to worry about Snape yet." Said Ron happily.  
  
"Not until tomorrow at any rate." Said Harry.  
  
"And Double Potions to boot." Groaned Ron.  
  
"Honestly." Exclaimed Hermione. "Potions it's important as you well know."  
  
"Not the way Snape teaches it." Murmured Harry.  
  
"At least we have Defense Against the Dark Arts and Charms to look forward to in the morning." Said Ron. "I want to talk to Lupin about that Experimental Charms class Dumbledore was talking about. I'm sure it would be something that I'll need to learn anyways for Auror training."  
  
Harry nodded his agreement he was also looking forward to taking that class but his thoughts turned once more to the unknown woman he knew would be teaching that class. Why did Dumbledore want her safe that she had been kept away for close to eighteen years? And why does Voldemort want her?  
  
Hermione's voice snapped him out of thoughts.  
  
"...and I'm sure it will be a great experience." She finished, she looked at him expectantly as if waiting for his opinion.  
  
"Er...yeah, I'm sure." He said cautiously. He sighed with relief when Hermioen smiled at him happily knowing that he had said the right thing.  
  
"What classes are you taking?" Asked Ron curious to see how many classes Hermione was taking this year.  
  
"Well, there's Potions, Charms, Herbology, Transfiguration, History of Magic and Defense Against the Dark Arts, of course. I kept Ancient Runes and Arithmancy, I had thought to drop Care of Magical Creatures but thought that maybe Hagrid would be hurt so I decided to keep it after all, and if I take this new class, that would make ten classes." She said looking down at her schedule.  
  
Harry and Ron shared an exasperated glance, only Hermione would keep taking more classes than she needed.  
  
"Let's get our things." Said Hermione pushing her plate aside and standing from the table. "We're still early but I want to make sure we get to class on time."  
  
"You go ahead." Said Harry, he had turned to look at the Staff table and noticed that Dumbledore and Lupin had joined the other professors.  
  
"But what about your books?" Asked Ron, he had followed the direction of Harry's gaze and knew that his friend wanted to talk to the Headmaster for a minute.  
  
"Bring them with you, I'll meet you in class." Harry said and started to walk toward the Staff table.  
  
He didn't bother to turn back and see whether Ron and Hermione followed him or decided to go on without him.  
  
Most of the teachers were still sitting, having hushed conversations with their neighbors, only a few had left to prepare for the day's lessons. Harry was glad to notice that Snape was no longer present.  
  
"Harry! 'ello there, 'ad a nice night?" Harry said as Harry walked by him.  
  
"Well enough." Smiled Harry.  
  
"Good. Come by me cabin at the end of classes, eh? Didn't get to talk much te yer this summer." Hagrid said.  
  
"Will do." Said Harry and continued down the table toward Dumbledore.  
  
"Something wrong, Harry?" Asked Lupin, who was sitting beside the Headmaster, as soon as he noticed Harry.  
  
"Er – I had a dream last night." Harry said looking at Dumbledore who had not said a thing but was aware of what had been said.  
  
"I see." Dumbledore said. "Go into the room at the end of the Hall, Harry, you know the way."  
  
Harry looked toward the room Dumbledore had pointed to. He did know the room well, it was the same one he had to go into when his name was called for the Triwizard Tournament.  
  
Harry nodded and hurried to the room.  
  
He didn't have to wait for long. Dumbledore came in a minute later with Professor Lupin and Professor McGonagall in tow.  
  
"Sit, Harry, no need to stand." Dumbledore said summoning four chairs toward them. Harry sat unhurriedly. He didn't know how to begin.  
  
"Well, you were saying Harry? You had a dream last night." Dumbledore said looking at Harry closely.  
  
"Yes." Said Harry softly. He cleared his throat abruptly before continuing. "It wasn't long, you see, it was just for a minute. There was a man lying before him and he was sitting in this large chair. Couldn't see the room well, it was too dark, they were near the fire so I could only see them."  
  
"What were they saying, Harry?" Urged Lupin gently.  
  
"Er – the man on the floor was telling him that somebody, a woman I think, wasn't where she was supposed to be." Harry said with a thoughtful frown as he tried to remember the details of the dream. "That she was here at Hogwarts. And then he got very angry. That's when I woke up." Harry said.  
  
"A woman? He's after a woman?" Asked Lupin looking at Dumbledore. "Is it Emma?" He asked in a whisper meant to be low enough for Harry not to hear, but he did.  
  
"Could be. But don't forget that she was one of three women who came to us." Dumbledore.  
  
McGonagall had remained silent but Harry could see that she was worried.  
  
"Was that all you saw, Harry?" Dumbledore said turning his attention back to Harry.  
  
"Yes, Professor." Harry replied.  
  
"What did you feel?" Dumbledore asked peering at Harry above his half-moon glasses.  
  
"Er – well, he was angry." Harry said, "but, there was something else, he was afraid."  
  
"Afraid? What was Voldermort afraid of?" Asked Lupin in surprise.  
  
Harry shrugged.  
  
"He's afraid of what she could teach Harry." Dumbledore said with a certainty that Harry could've sworn Dumbledore had known about the dream before he had said anything. "Very well, why don't you go down to class Harry."  
  
"Do you need a note for your teacher?" Asked Lupin.  
  
"That won't be necessary Remus. I have Mr. Potter in my first class." McGongall said. "Run along, Potter. Class will start in a few minutes."  
  
Harry nodded and hurried out the door, but not before he heard some of the conversation he was leaving behind.  
  
"What do you think, Albus? Should we sent her away?" Harry heard McGonagall say with trepidation.  
  
"No, he's looking for her and will try whatever means necessary to get her. She's safe here." Dumbledore replied.  
  
"Should Emma know?" Asked Lupin worriedly.  
  
"She and her companions knew of the risks when they left the isle and came to Hogwarts." Dumbledore replied.  
  
Harry didn't hear anymore. He hurried down the Great Hall, where some students still sat, and made his way toward Transfiguration class. His mind was churning with questions and conjectures but he didn't know figure out the puzzle of his dream.  
  
Ron and Hermione were waiting for him outside the classroom.  
  
"Well? What did he say?" Asked Ron as soon as Harry had joined them.  
  
"Not much." Harry said.  
  
"He's not going to say much about it, will he? Specially if it's Order business." Hermione said as they walked into the classroom.  
  
"I suppose." Harry said.  
  
They sat in their regular seats and Harry had begun telling them what he had heard after talking to Dumbledore when Professor McGonagall walked into the room.  
  
"All right, settle down." She said as students scrambled into their seats. "As sixth years I expect great things from you. You are here because you have shown through your O.W.L. exams that you can handle the load of Advanced Transfiguration. We'll be working with difficult transfiguration techniques and I expect all of you to do your best in this class, you only have one more year of training and will be expected to know it all by the time for N.E.W.T. exams. Take out your book and turn to chapter one. We'll start with a light review of what he have done in the past five years."  
  
"Does she expect us to remember everything we did in the past? I can't even remember what we did before we left for the summer." Whispered Ron to Harry.  
  
Harry nodded his agreement. He himself didn't remember what they had done last year except for the basics and by the looks of the other students he wasn't the only one. Only Hermione looked confident and Harry was sure that she had been the only one who had reviewed her notes before coming to class this morning.  
  
For the first time since he had come into class he noticed the diversity of the students. In the past, Transfiguration class had been taken with their own housemates. This time, he could see students from other houses. He was not happy to note that Malfoy was there, but was glad to see that his friends, Goyle and Crabbe, were not there. Probably didn't pass the O.W.L.s, he thought.  
  
McGonagall was talking once more and Harry turned to pay attention, it wouldn't do have been asked a question and have McGonagall reprimand him in front of everybody, especially Malfoy, for not paying attention.  
  
The review wasn't as bad as he had imagined. Surprisingly, he did remember most of what had been asked and was glad to know the answers of the questions McGonagall had made to him.  
  
The only one not happy about the class seemed to be Malfoy. It was the first time in five years that Harry saw him not flanked by Crabbe and Goyle and it seemed that in a sense, Malfoy missed them. There were other Slytherins in the class but Harry guessed none of them were very eager to seem too close to Malfoy after the news of his father's imprisonment last June, only one Slytherin sat near Malfoy and Harry recognized him as Nott, the kid who had tried to attack Harry along with Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle after the attack on the Ministry. And as his father was a Death Eater as well, it didn't surprise Harry that he was keeping close to Malfoy.  
  
The class ended and Harry hurried out the door with Ron and Hermione. He was not too keen to spend any more time than necessary with Malfoy.  
  
"Didn't seem too happy, did he?" Murmured Ron as if he had read Harry's mind. "Malfoy I mean."  
  
"I'm not surprised Crabbe and Goyle weren't in class." Said Hermione. "I believe their O.W.L. results were not sufficient to allow them to take the class."  
  
"No surprise there." Said Ron.  
  
"They're still going to be trouble." Harry said. "Them and Nott. All their fathers have been proved to be Death Eaters and they're not too happy about it."  
  
"But after what happened in the train at the end of term they would think twice about attacking you." Ron said.  
  
"I don't think so. Malfoy is smart enough to make plans and I'm not always going to be lucky enough to have members of the D.A. looking after me." Harry replied.  
  
"Then it's up to you, isn't it?" Said Hermione. "You'll have to be with somebody at all times and keep your eyes open."  
  
Harry groaned. He knew that Hermione was right and they were only trying to keep him safe, but he was sure that he could take care of himself and definitely didn't need a bodyguard detail at all times.  
  
Harry saw Ron shake his head at Hermione slowly as if trying to keep Harry from seeing him doing so. Hermione glared at him but didn't say anymore.  
  
"Is he still a Prefect?" Harry asked. He hadn't seen the Prefect badge on Malfoy's robes, but then again he didn't noticed much about him except for the fact that he was alone.  
  
"Technically, he still is." Said Ron.  
  
"What does that mean?" Asked Harry surprised to find out that Dumbledore had kept Malfoy as one of the Slytherin Prefects.  
  
"He is still a perfect for Slytherin but he has no power over any other house. He and Pansy are in probation, they are still in charge of the Slytherin first years and in keeping order in the common room, they'll do patrol duties, but only if they're accompanied by the Head Boy or Girl. He can't take points off any student that is not in Slytherin and if any of them don't follow the restrictions they will lose their badge." Hermione explained.  
  
"And if they lose the badge, Dumbledore will chose somebody else to be Prefects." Ron added.  
  
"But they will have the same restrictions as Malfoy and Pansy." Hermione replied.  
  
"It's like the whole house is on probation." Ron said.  
  
"Snape might not be too happy about this." Harry said worriedly.  
  
"Don't worry, he wouldn't dare make our lives more miserable than he already does." Ron said looking confident but his shaky voice showed clearly how worried he was.  
  
"I'm sure Dumbledore won't let him." Said Hermione trying to soothe their worries.  
  
They made their way down the corridors, blending with the other students, as they made their way to the Great Hall.  
  
The Hall slowly filled with students eager for a break from their studies.  
  
Hermione pulled out her notes as soon as she sat along the Gryffindor Table. Ron and Harry said nothing, they were too used to seeing Hermione with books and notes in her hands.  
  
There was a slight commotion at the staff table. Students turned their heads to get a better view of what was happening, Harry and Ron among them.  
  
"Who is she?" Asked Ron.  
  
A woman was walking beside Dumbledore, greeting the teachers present. Some were very happy to see and hugged her happily as she was reintroduced to them.  
  
"That's the woman I saw at the station. The one I told you about." Said Harry as he saw the woman sit beside Dumbledore with Lupin at her other side.  
  
"The one Lupin was surprised to see?" Hermione asked, pulling herself from her notes long enough to see what had caught the attention of everybody in the Hall.  
  
"Yeah." Replied Harry looking at the woman with curiosity.  
  
She looked young compared to the rest of the teachers around her, but Harry was sure that she was the same age as Lupin and Snape, who sat broodingly at the other end of the table.  
  
"I wonder what she's doing here." Murmured Ron.  
  
"Do you think she's the woman Voldemort wants, Harry?" Asked Hermione, her brow furrowed in thought.  
  
"I don't know, but it fits doesn't it?" Said Harry looking at the woman closely.  
  
She was a thin woman, not as tall as he had first suspected. Next to Professor Lupin she seemed short and he knew that Lupin wasn't too tall, she barely reached his shoulders. But Harry noticed the glances that Professor Lupin kept throwing her way, as if trying to make sure she was there at his side.  
  
*~*~*~*~*  
  
The rest of the day passed without incident. After Charms, Harry, along with Ron and Hermione, returned to Gryffindor Tower to return their books before making their way to Hagrid's cabin. They didn't spend much time with him, as it seemed that he was expecting visitors. But they did stay long enough to ask him a few questions.  
  
"Who was that woman with Dumbledore, Hagrid? You know the one that came in with Dumbledore." Hermione had asked.  
  
"Eh? Yer mean Emma?" Hagrid asked with confusion.  
  
"Is that her name?" Hermione urged Hagrid to say more.  
  
"Yeh, Emma Holmes." Hagrid said. "Dumbledore asked her to come to teach you lot a new class."  
  
"The Experimental Charm class?" Ron asked surprised. "I thought Lupin was going to teach that one."  
  
"No, Emma'll do it. Great at Charms, she was. Used to work for the Ministry at one time." Hagrid replied as he scratched Fang's ears. "Came to 'ogwats she did."  
  
"When? When was she here?" Asked Harry abruptly.  
  
Hagrid looked worriedly at him. "Er...long time ago, she did. C'mon ye lot, ye need to go, lots to do, lots to do." Hagrid hurried them out the door. "Com' anytime." He waved them goodbye and closed the door with a snap.  
  
"Well." Exclaimed Hermione feeling somewhat confused and angry at the same time.  
  
"In a hurry, wasn't he?" Ron said shaking his head as they started off back to the castle.  
  
"He didn't want to tell us when she came to Hogwarts." Harry said.  
  
"He must have thought you shouldn't know that she was here the same time your parents were." Hermione said.  
  
"I suppose." Harry said.  
  
Students were walking around the grounds, eager to leave the castle after a full day of classes. The weather was nice and sunny and many were happy to take advantage of such a day.  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione choose to go to the Gryffindor tower. "We have work to do." Hermione had said.  
  
Harry and Ron agreed to return to the tower and start with the work left to them that morning. They knew that if they didn't Hermione would only complain no matter what else they chose to do. At least, if they worked with her, they had the guarantee that their work would be correct.  
  
After a couple of hours of reading through their notes and scratching sentences off their parchment, Harry pushed his quill and books aside and sighed tiredly.  
  
Ron saw him and stopped writing while Hermione did the same.  
  
"Anything wrong?" She asked looking at Harry worriedly.  
  
"No." Said Harry. "I just don't feel like writing anymore."  
  
Ron pushed his parchment aside as well. "I know what you mean, mate."  
  
Hermione seemed to struggle with herself. She was happily finishing her paper but she wanted to keep an eye on Harry. Since they returned to Hogwarts the night before, his emotional dam seemed to be cracking. While they had been at the Manor they had kept him so busy with estate matters and then the planning of the Quidditch training that they hadn't given him time to think about what had happened last June. He hadn't even bothered to ask for the Daily Prophet to see what was happening in the Wizarding World, but Hogwarts seemed to have brought it all back to him. Ron had told her that morning what had happened the night before in their dormitory and that ridiculous article in the paper. At least he hasn't lost his temper, she thought. She still shuddered at the memory of Harry's loss of control the summer after Voldemort's return. She hadn't known how to deal with an angry Harry, not then and she certainly didn't know how to now.  
  
"I think I'll go and see Professor Lupin." Harry said as he put his books into his bag. "I want to talk to him about this new class."  
  
"Oh, if you are going to see him - " Hermione was interrupted by Ron.  
  
"We'll wait for you here, Hermione and I need to discuss some Prefect business anyway." Ron said.  
  
Harry nodded and started toward the portrait hole.  
  
"What - ?" Hermione snapped.  
  
"Later." Ron said silencing her instantly.  
  
Harry didn't seem to notice them. He climbed out of the portrait hole and made his way to Lupin's office.  
  
He didn't know why he wanted to talk to Lupin, it certainly wasn't because of the new class, he just knew that he needed to. He was the only connection he had left with his parents. Sirius had been the personification of his father, at least in his eyes. He had been James Potter's closest friend and because of that close relationship he had been Harry's godfather. But now that connection was gone and the only one left was Lupin.  
  
He hadn't noticed that he had arrived at Lupin's office until he stood before the closed door. Harry hesitated for a minute before lifting his arm and knocking sharply on the door.  
  
"Come in." Lupin called from within.  
  
Harry sighed and grasping the knob, twisted it and opened the door.  
  
"Professor?" Harry said coming into the room. Lupin was alone. Several pages of parchment were scattered around his desk and he was sitting scrabbling unhurriedly across the parchments.  
  
"Oh, hello Harry." Lupin smiled. "Come in, I'm just making some notes for my next class." Harry nodded and entered the room, he thought for a minute before closing the door behind him.  
  
"Anything I can do for you, Harry?" Lupin asked looking up from his notes and crossing his arms across his chest.  
  
"Er...just...just wanted to talk to you about the new class." Harry said hurriedly before he changed his mind and decided to leave.  
  
"I see. I was expecting you to come to me about it." Lupin said with a smile. "Why don't you take a seat?" He nodded to the chair across from him before the desk.  
  
Harry sat in the chair Lupin had motioned to him and glanced across the parchments on the desk.  
  
"I see no problem with you taking the class, I'll just need you to get Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick to sign this form and I'll get your name on the list of students." Lupin said pulling a parchment from one of the piles on the desk. "The class will require great knowledge of both transfiguration and charms, that's why the professors' signatures are needed." He explained.  
  
"Why is it a part of Defense Against the Dark Arts then if it's based on transfiguration and charms?" Harry asked curiously, the dark thoughts that had accompanied him on his way from the Gryffindor common room seemed to have dissipated.  
  
"The things you'll learn in this class were first researched twenty years ago when Voldemort first started to make an appearance." Lupin replied.  
  
"I see." Said Harry. "So these charms are relatively new."  
  
"In a way. They were tested and researched but were never used. Dumbledore and some members of the Ministry thought it would be a good idea to bring them out once more and experiment with them. You'll be working mainly with forms of protection and stealth." Lupin continued.  
  
"That would be useful." Said Harry, looking forward to learning new methods that had never been used before.  
  
"We think so." Smiled Lupin.  
  
"Who'll teach it?" Harry finally asked.  
  
Lupin looked hesitant for a minute before answering. "Professor Holmes will."  
  
Harry looked up curiously. "Who's that?"  
  
"A new member of our staff." Lupin replied. "You'll meet her soon enough. She'll be looking forward to meeting you." He added with a sad smile.  
  
"Why?" Asked Harry, hoping that Lupin would tell him more about this mysterious woman.  
  
Lupin looked sharply at him as trying to make up his mind. "She was a Gryffindor at the same time we attended Hogwarts." Harry knew perfectly well who the "we" were.  
  
"She knew mum and dad?" Harry asked softly.  
  
Lupin sighed deeply before he replied. "She was a close friend of Lily's."  
  
Harry looked down at the form in his hands. A wave of emotion swelled within him. He didn't know whether to be happy or sad about the prospect of meeting a new friend of his parents.  
  
"Why haven't I met her before?" Harry finally spoke.  
  
Lupin seemed to have been waiting for his question as he responded promptly. "She has been in hiding for many years, Harry. She didn't know about the events that followed her retirement from our world."  
  
"How could she not know?" Asked Harry surprised. "I thought everybody knew, I have been haunted by those events since I first stepped into Hogwarts."  
  
"She was in a place that had elected to be shielded from the outside world, muggle and magical alike. No news of our worlds is transmitted to its inhabitants under any circumstances. Only its leaders and guardians know of what happens around the world and are aware of the dangers that have plagued our world in the last couple of decades." Lupin explained. "Dumbledore sent her there after Voldemort tried to kidnapped her after the Ministry was attacked." Lupin continued, his eyes were sad and Harry could've sworn that he wasn't seeing what was around him but images of what had happened in the past. "Voldemort didn't succeed but Emma needed to be hidden. This place was the perfect place and she was sent there. Until she arrived last night, nobody knew that she had returned to our world and was to continue with her unfinished work."  
  
"What was her work?" Harry asked curiously.  
  
Lupin looked at Harry as if surprised he was still there. "I don't really know, all we knew was that it was secret and that the work was meant to be a weapon against Voldemort. After the attack on the Ministry, most of the people working on the project died or disappeared, Emma is the only survivor." He said.  
  
"And she's going to teach it to us now?" Harry was excited about the prospect of learning from a woman who had made it her career to find a way to defeat Voldemort. Wasn't it his destiny to defeat him? It was Voldemort or Harry, wasn't it? He needed all the help he could get.  
  
"Not everything." Laughed Lupin in the face of Harry's eagerness. "She and Dumbledore will probably set the proper curriculum."  
  
"Well, it'll be good I suppose." Harry replied.  
  
Lupin smiled at his young friend. "There was something Dumbledore wanted me to speak to you about." He suddenly said.  
  
Harry looked abruptly up to his professor. Was he about to start Occlumency lessons once more?  
  
"Dumbledore is interested in this Army of yours." Lupin said.  
  
Harry blushed. "It's not my army, it's just a name." He mumbled.  
  
Lupin smiled. "We know. But Dumbledore thinks it's a good idea to continue it." Harry looked at him with surprise.  
  
"He does?"  
  
"Yes. There must be some changes of course, to make it into an official club." Lupin continued.  
  
"Like what?" Asked Harry eagerly. He had enjoyed teaching the DA last year, he felt that because of it, they survived the events in the Department of Mysteries last June.  
  
"Well, for one, you need a member of the faculty to be your sponsor. You'll still be in charge, the sponsor is just there to chaperone, to make sure that there's no problems and to help if needed." Lupin explained the moment he noticed the bewildered expression on Harry's face.  
  
"Can it be anybody?" Harry asked.  
  
"Of course, whoever you want." Lupin replied.  
  
"Would you be ours?" Harry asked promptly.  
  
Lupin smiled. "Are you sure? I might not be able to attend during the full moon."  
  
"That doesn't matter, we can schedule the meetings around it." Harry responded.  
  
"Well, in that case, I'll be glad to be the sponsor to the DA." Lupin smiled.  
  
Harry grinned happily. "What else do we need to make it an official club?"  
  
"One thing Dumbledore was concerned about was the lack of attendance from a certain house." Lupin said.  
  
Harry groaned. He knew that Slytherin had not taken part of the DA the previous year, and they had all been happy about it. He didn't know how the others would take this piece of news.  
  
"In order for the DA to be official, it needs to be open to all students, and I mean All, Harry, no matter in what house they might reside." Lupin said staring kindly at Harry as if commiserating with him, knowing how deep rivalries ran between Gryffindor and Slytherin.  
  
Harry sighed resignedly. "I'll call a meeting and tell the others about this. I don't know how they'll take it."  
  
"Very well. You can use my classroom if you wish." Offered Lupin.  
  
"That's all right, we have a room already." Harry said.  
  
"As you wish. It's getting late, you should get to bed." Said Lupin noticing the darkness through his open window.  
  
"Alright." Sighed Harry. "I'll tell you what the group decided." He said as he turned toward the door.  
  
Lupin nodded.  
  
Harry walked back to the Gryffindor tower in better spirits than he had been before. The idea of calling back a meeting for the DA had raised his plunging morale. He knew the others would be happy to meet once more, but he didn't know about opening it to Slytherins.  
  
"Malfoy would make trouble." He murmured.  
  
He was standing before the Fat Lady portrait.  
  
"Password?" She asked.  
  
"Twinkle Lights." Replied Harry and hurried through the portrait hole.  
  
Ron and Hermione were still sitting at the table he had left them at.  
  
"How did it go?" Asked Ron the moment he saw Harry.  
  
"Fine. He gave me a form for McGonagall and Flitwick to sign." Harry replied sitting in the couch nearby.  
  
The common room was mostly empty only a few students remained working in silence.  
  
"Why?" Asked Ron putting away his parchment and quills.  
  
"Lupin said that we must have good notes on Transfiguration and Charms to attend this new class." Harry responded.  
  
"Why?" Asked Ron again.  
  
Hermione glared at him to be silent, Harry only smiled.  
  
"We'll be learning some experimental charms and the new professor and Dumbledore want to be sure we can handle it, I guess." Harry replied.  
  
"New professor? I thought Lupin was going to teach it." Exclaimed Ron.  
  
"Obviously he doesn't have the experience necessary to teach that class." Said Hermione. "I wonder who'll it be."  
  
"Professor Holmes." Said Harry. "Emma Holmes."  
  
"That woman we saw today?" Ron seemed curious about this new person joining the staff. Harry nodded. "Lupin said she was a good friend of my mother when they attended Hogwarts."  
  
"Well, we had guessed that. Hagrid didn't want to talk much about her, remember." Hermione said thoughtfully. "What else did he say?"  
  
"She used to work for the Ministry. She and others were trying to find a way to defeat Voldemort. That's were most of the experimental charms we'll be working on came from, but they were never used. I gathered there was an attack on the Ministry and Voldemort tried to kidnap her. Dumbledore sent her away to hide and hasn't been back since then. Almost eighteen years ago." Harry explained, his brow furrowed in thought as he tried to remember everything Lupin had told him about their new professor.  
  
"She has been gone for eighteen years?" Exclaimed Hermione.  
  
Harry nodded slowly, his eyes vague and his expression thoughtful.  
  
"Why is she back now? I would think that if she was in danger then, when You-Know-Who was still in power then it stands to reason that she will be in more danger now that he's back." Said Ron.  
  
"Lupin said that she still has a job to finish." Harry said quietly.  
  
"And what better time to use those experimental charms they had created to fight him." Said Hermione. "The Order will need all the help it can get."  
  
Harry nodded in agreement. "And I wager she'll be of great help. She'll be teaching us new forms of protection and stealth."  
  
"That sounds like something we should be learning in Auror training." Ron sounded surprised, and Harry couldn't blame him.  
  
"Dumbledore obviously wants us to learn it. He wouldn't have brought her out of hiding if he didn't think it was important." Hermione said.  
  
"You're right." Said Harry. "With my luck, I'll probably be needing it."  
  
Harry didn't notice the worried glance that Ron and Hermione shared.  
  
Harry took a deep sigh. "There was something else." He said suddenly.  
  
"What?" Asked both Ron and Hermione looking worried.  
  
"He said Dumbledore is interested in making the DA an official club." Harry said smiling.  
  
Hermione looked relieved.  
  
"That's great." Exclaimed Ron happily.  
  
"But there are some regulations we should follow if we do so." Harry warned.  
  
"I don't see any problems with our current group, of course there will be no need for concealment so we won't have need of the original signed list." Hermione said thoughtfully.  
  
Ron snorted with mirth. "I don't know, I liked that list. Marietta Edgecombe will think twice before she spills any secrets any time soon."  
  
Harry chuckled. He had noticed their former DA member in the feast and although there were no more spots on her face there were still some markings marring her skin and she had tried to hide them with heavy makeup.  
  
"There's no need for it anymore, now is there? But we can create a new one, where each member makes an oath not to use our knowledge against each other and only for defense purposes." Hermione said as she started to make notes on a new parchment. Harry was sure she had started to make a new manifest for the DA.  
  
"We'll need it." Said Harry. "Considering what Dumbledore wants us to do to make it official."  
  
"What does he want?" Asked Ron cautiously.  
  
"Well, first, we need a sponsor. A professor to be there to chaperon us and help if we need it." Harry said. "I asked Lupin and he agreed to be our sponsor."  
  
"That wasn't too bad and Lupin will be of great help there." Hermione said still making notes in her parchment.  
  
"And second," said Harry slowly, "he wants the DA to be available to all students, including Slytherins."  
  
"What?" Exclaimed Ron. "We can't do that, they'll only make trouble."  
  
Even Hermione looked a little worried. "I suppose I understand that, an official club should be open to all." She sighed resignedly. "I don't see how we can keep it only between our current members."  
  
"I was thinking of calling a meeting of the current members and talk about this. They all should have a say in this." Harry said.  
  
Hermione nodded. "You're right. They do. And if we choose to open it to Slytherin we'll need to discuss how we can keep peace within the group."  
  
"Well, that new parchment is an idea." Ron said nodded to parchment Hermione had been writing on. "I don't mind seeing the Slytherin's faces breaking out in spots."  
  
Harry chuckled but he couldn't help but agreeing with Ron. He yawned and suddenly he felt very tired. "I think I'll go to bed now." He said. "I'll call a meeting for the end of this week. Are the coins still working?" He asked looking at Hermione.  
  
"They should." Hermione said with a frown. "I see no reason for them to stop working, even if it has been some time since we've used them."  
  
Harry nodded. "I'll see you tomorrow then." He said and started up the stairs to the boys' dormitory.  
  
"Good night!" Hermione called behind him.  
  
Harry walked silently up to the fifth year boy dormitories. All the other rooms were silent and dark.  
  
He found Seamus, Dean and Neville already in bed. Lotty was standing beside Harry's bed turning down the sheets. His pajamas were set neatly at the foot of his bed and on the chair next to his bed were his spare set of school robes and uniform ready for the next day.  
  
"Thank you Lotty." Harry said. "Why don't you go and turn in for the night."  
  
"If Master Harry is sure." Whispered Lotty looking a little disappointed by Harry's dismissal.  
  
"I'm sure." Smiled Harry. He knew that Lotty expected to help him with every little thing, but for fifteen years Harry had done on his own and he wasn't used to having a personal elf to help him with all his every need.  
  
Lotty's shoulders dropped slightly before disappearing with a pop.  
  
Minutes later Harry tucked himself safely into his bed. Neville's soft snoring lulling him to sleep. His last thought before falling asleep was about the DA and the new professor he hoped to meet face to face soon.  
  
*~*~*~*~*  
  
A/N: There you go. Harry has learned a little about Emma and about the new class that Dumbledore has in mind for the 6th and 7th years. Next Chapter: the return to the D.A. Don't forget to review!!!! 


	57. Sixth Year Chapter 8

A/N: I am so sorry for not updating sooner, I really am. But several things just made it impossible for me to prepare a chapter before now. I've had exams, writer's block and several other things that just kept me from editing as I finished the chapters. Hopefully, with the approach of Summer, I'll have more free time. Summer usually is a busy time for me but things look to be much slower this year. Well, I'll continue with the story; I'm not sure if I'm completely happy with the next two chapters, but I'll leave to you to decide.  
  
Disclaimer: This story is not meant to be distributed for monetary gain as most characters, places and things belong to JK Rowling, only a few characters and plot belong to me.  


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Chapter 8 Dumbledore's Army Returns  
  
By the end of that first week every former member of the D.A. were aware of the meeting on Friday night. Some seemed eager to attend others were seemed to vacillate, but Harry was sure they would all attend if only out of curiosity.  
  
Friday arrived and Harry was glad their first week of classes was over. Harry had turned in his form to Lupin (as had Ron and Hermione) and was now waiting eagerly for the new class to begin the following week.  
  
Most inhabitants of Hogwarts were now sitting in the Great Hall for dinner. But Harry noticed Dumbledore was not present and neither was Hagrid.  
  
"Something wrong, Harry?" Asked Hermione when she noticed that Harry wasn't eating.  
  
Harry turned to look at her in surprise. "I'm sorry, what?"  
  
"I asked if there was something wrong." Hermione repeated looking worried that Harry had not paid attention.  
  
Ron had stopped eating as he glanced up to look at his two friends.  
  
"No, why do you ask?" Said Harry looking confused.  
  
"You're not eating." Said Hermione simply.  
  
"Oh, I was just looking at the staff table." Said Harry nodding to the front of the Hall.  
  
Ron and Hermione turned to look in the direction Harry had motioned at.  
  
"What about it?" Asked Ron as he looked back to his own food.  
  
"Just wondering where Dumbledore and Hagrid were." Said Harry finally turning his attention to his plate and started choosing from the platters in the center of the table.  
  
Neville, (who sat beside Ron across from Harry beside Ron) heard Harry's concern. "I heard Dumbledore is worried." He said.  
  
"About what?" Asked Ron at his side.  
  
"About the latest reports of course. The Ministry has tried all summer to get the Giants on our side, but so far they haven't had much success. I heard some of those they sent to meet the Giants never made it back." He added with a whisper.  
  
Hermione looked skeptical, but Ron and Harry were worried. Both remembered well what had happened to Hagrid on his trip to the Giants, he had no success either but returned home with a Giant brother instead.  
  
"What does that have to do with Dumbledore and Hagrid not being at the table tonight?" Asked Hermione looking bored.  
  
"Well, it's obvious isn't it?" Said Ron. "Dumbledore may want Hagrid to go and see the Giants again."  
  
"What do you mean again?" Asked Neville.  
  
"Er..." Harry had kicked Ron under the table.  
  
"He means that Dumbledore probably wanted Hagrid to go for the Ministry and they didn't wanted him." Hermione said glaring at Ron.  
  
"Oh, that makes more sense, doesn't it, Hagrid is a half giant, maybe they'll listen to him." Neville said.  
  
They didn't respond. Hermione was frowning into her plate and Ron and Harry were looking intently to the staff table as if willing Dumbledore and Hagrid to appear.  
  
"Did you read the article in the Prophet this morning?" Neville asked not noticing that they weren't paying much attention to him.  
  
"Which one?" Asked Hermione. She had stopped her subscription this week as she didn't want Harry to become obsessed with it, but she had glanced through it when she found a copy from one of her roommates.  
  
"The one about the Minister." Neville said.  
  
"What happened to him?" Asked Ron turning his attention back to the conversation.  
  
"Well, there is this petition going around." Neville started.  
  
"But they have been talking about it all summer." Ron exclaimed.  
  
Harry grunted his agreement. He had heard about the petition and thought it wouldn't do much good.  
  
"That's just it, until yesterday it was just talk." Neville said.  
  
"What do you mean?" Asked Harry.  
  
"Yesterday the petition was turned in to the Ministry with more than 150,000 signatures on it. Today, the Wizengamot called a special hearing and will decide whether to ask for Fudge's resignation or not." Neville reported.  
  
Ron whistled in surprise.  
  
Harry didn't know whether to believe it or not. He remembered clearly how chummy Fudge had been with the members of the Wizengamot the last year when he went in for his own hearing.  
  
"Will he resign do you think?" Asked Hermione.  
  
"Don't know, but it doesn't look good for him." Ron replied.  
  
"I don't know. He has a lot of friends in high places." Said Harry.  
  
"And among the Death Eaters. There are a lot of people not happy about that." Said Neville.  
  
Harry nodded. Malfoy's known association with the Minister could not be hidden from the public and his capture among the Death Eaters last June didn't help.  
  
"What do you think will happen if the Wizengamot asks for his resignation?" Asked Ron.  
  
"He will have a two weeks to respond." Said Hermione. When the others looked at her curiously she sighed with exasperation. "Honestly, don't you lot pay any attention in History of Magic. We learned about this in fourth year, when we were doing historical background on the Wizengamot and the Ministry."  
  
"Hermione, in fourth year I was too busy thinking how I was going to survive the Triwizard Tournament to pay any attention to the history of the Ministry." Harry scoffed.  
  
"Besides, you're the only one to pay any attention to Binns, the rest just fall asleep by his droning on and on." Ron said.  
  
"Never mind that, what will happen then?" Asked Neville.  
  
Hermione glared at Harry and Ron but turned to Neville to explain. "Fudge will have two weeks to respond. He will either resign or not. If he decides not to resign, then a special election will be called and the public will decide whether to keep him as Minister or not."  
  
"I think Fudge will resign, it's the more honorable way." Ron said.  
  
"Perhaps, but he's too in love with his position to let it go so easily." Said Harry.  
  
"It would be less embarrassing if he resigns than if the special election is called and he loses." Said Neville.  
  
"He might not lose." Hermione replied.  
  
"Come off it, Hermione. Of course, he'll lose. The public is not happy with him right now. They might accept that one of his greatest supporters is a Death Eater, they might think that Fudge was under the Imperius Curse, even Umbridge's actions under his command and the attack on Harry could be explained by it. But the thing that they won't accept is the fact that he refused to believe Dumbledore and Harry about You-Know-Who's return. Hell, Hermione, even the story of how Crouch escaped Azkaban and that it was he who helped You-Know-Who get his dirty hands on Harry has come out. And so did the fact that instead of carrying Crouch to be questioned, Fudge allowed a dementor to kiss him killing the chance to know the whole story." Ron exclaimed. "No, I don't think Fudge has any chance of retaining his position as Minister of Magic."  
  
Harry nodded his agreement as he had more to be angry with the Minister than anybody else. "He allowed Voldemort to regain power Hermione. We don't know much of what he and the Death Eaters did during the past year. We only know a little of what he planned to do and that's only because of the Order and let's face it, there aren't a lot of members to go around. If the Minister had only listened instead of maligning my character, not to mention Dumbledore's, maybe then there had been no need to run off to the Ministry only to stumble into a trap." The sound of his food exploding off his plate stopped him from saying anything more. His voice had been increasing in volume as he continued with his tirade. By the time he stopped everybody in the Great Hall was looking at him.  
  
Harry groaned and pushed his empty plate away. "I'm going to prepare for the meeting." He growled and stormed off the table.  
  
He heard the explosion of buzzing conversations the moment he left the Great Hall. He knew everybody was discussing what had just happened and he couldn't blame them. How could he had lost his temper and forgotten where he was? He asked himself. There was no answer, of course. The fact was that the memory of what had happened that night in the Ministry was still fresh in his mind. He couldn't forget that because of him his godfather had lost his life and his friends had almost lost theirs. He chuckled with bitter amusement at the thought that if he had been as angry as he was at the moment he was sure that the Cruciatus Curse he tried on Bellatrix Lestrange would've lasted longer than it did.  
  
Everybody seemed to still be at dinner as Harry walked through the deserted corridors to the Room of Requirement. Slowly, he put aside the dark thoughts that had invaded his mind as he reached the seventh floor and noticed the door in front the tapestry.  
  
Harry frowned. How could there be a door if he hadn't even walked three times before it thinking about what he needed?  
  
He grasped the knob and twisted. The door opened easily before him.  
  
The room was darker than when they used it for their meetings. He stood at the threshold as he waited for his eyes to adjust to the dim light. He couldn't see the walls, no candles or lamps were anywhere, the light just seemed to radiate from the middle of the room.  
  
He stepped slowly toward the light. It was just as he reached the center that he noticed he was not alone.  
  
A young woman was standing in the middle of the room, it was from her that the dim light was coming from. Harry readily recognized her as the girl who shared his compartment on the trip from London. Brenna.  
  
He looked in silence, not wanting to startle her in any way.  
  
She stood rigidly in silence, her eyes were closed and if it hadn't been for slow movement of her chest as she breathed he would've thought she was a statue instead of a real person.  
  
Suddenly, her eyes opened and the room burst into light. He saw the familiar walls with torches lighting the room. The sneakoscopes, secrecy sensors and the large, cracked Foe-Glass stood where they had been the last time he had seen them. The walls were once more lined with wooden bookcases and the silk cushions littered the room.  
  
Brenna was looking at him in silence, her silvery robes flowing effortlessly down her body and her dark hair was gathered neatly in a lose bun at the nape of her head.  
  
"Sorry, didn't mean to disturb you." Said Harry flushing with embarrassment. He knew he should have waited until the room was unoccupied, instead, he let his curiosity get the better of him.  
  
Brenna nodded abruptly. "That's all right." She said. "I should be going." She started walking to the door.  
  
"Wait." Called Harry.  
  
Brenna stopped by the door and looked back at him.  
  
"Er...I just...I just wanted to know how your first week was." He said slowly.  
  
Brenna looked at him for a moment before responding. "Well enough." She finally replied.  
  
"Er...I'll see you around then." Said Harry not knowing what else to say.  
  
Brenna nodded and walked out of the room.  
  
Harry stood in silence. Minutes later, the door opened and he stopped thinking about what he had seen. Ron and Hermione entered, followed by Ginny and Neville.  
  
"Are you alright, Harry?" Asked Ron.  
  
"Hmmm? Oh yeah." Harry exclaimed and started to look around. He had been so preoccupied trying to figure out what Brenna had been doing instead of planning what he needed to tell the group.  
  
The others watched him warily but as he said no more they seemed relieved after a few seconds.  
  
The remaining members of the group started to come in.  
  
"Hello Harry!"  
  
"What's to do, Harry, why are we here?" Several asked as they entered.  
  
"I'll tell once everybody is sitting." Harry replied.  
  
It took fifteen minutes for everybody to settle down. Finally, the room fell silent and every member present turned to look at Harry.  
  
Harry looked them over and noticed that although Cho was there, she did not look comfortable being there, the only person not there, besides those who had left Hogwarts the previous year, was Marietta Edgecomb.  
  
"It seems that we're all here." He said. "The reason I called you for this meeting is simple. Dumbledore is interested for this group to become an official school club."  
  
There was an eruption of noise as everybody started to exclaim and shout out their thoughts at this news.  
  
Harry raised his hand and motioned them to silence. "But..." He yelled as he waited for their silence. "But there are a few things that we'll have to do in order to do so."  
  
"Like what?" Neville asked.  
  
"Well, one – we need a sponsor." Harry said.  
  
"A sponsor? What for?" Ginny exclaimed.  
  
"To chaperone us." Harry said.  
  
The room exploded with indignant exclamations.  
  
"I know, I know." Yelled Harry. "But every school club has one and if we want to become one we need one too."  
  
There were a few grumbles but others nodded with understanding.  
  
"The sponsor will also help us with our training and give us some advise, he'll have no say on how we run our meetings." Harry continued explaining.  
  
"That's something." Somebody said but Harry couldn't say who.  
  
"I've asked Professor Lupin and he has accepted." Harry said.  
  
There were many nods of agreement and few relieved expressions.  
  
"That isn't bad." Said Ginny, smiling.  
  
"Well, there is one more thing." Harry said with a grimace.  
  
"Why do I have the feeling we won't like it." Said Dean.  
  
"Because you won't." Said Ron.  
  
Harry glared them into silence. "As an official school club we cannot close our doors to any house, which means that Slytherin will be able to take part in our training."  
  
"What?" Several exclaimed.  
  
"Why would we want those slimy gits in here?"  
  
"After what they tried to do last year."  
  
"We can't let them disturb our training."  
  
"I have O.W.L.s to train for this year."  
  
"We can't let them in."  
  
"It's not fair."  
  
Harry let them rage, wasn't he unhappy about this proposition too?  
  
It took several minutes for everybody to calm down once more.  
  
"What do you think, Harry." Asked Ernie Macmillan.  
  
Harry seemed thoughtful for a second before responding. "I'm not too happy about it, but I agree with Dumbledore that we need this group to be official. With Lupin here maybe the Slytherins will comport themselves, who knows? It might help. I think Dumbledore is just trying to bring all the houses together, and we can't really keep the Slytherins from taking part."  
  
His audience listened carefully, some seemed resigned, others were clearly still unsure.  
  
"Who knows, they might not want to take part. But in any event we need a few rules. If we set them up now and anybody breaks them, we can chuck them out of the group." The others nodded in agreement. "Maybe a new manifest. One thing is for sure, we won't need our old signed parchment anymore, as there is no need for us to remain secret from the rest of the school." Many eyes turned to look at Cho in anger and Cho herself lowered her eyes, Harry could see her flush red, whether in anger, shame or embarrassment, he didn't know. "Hermione?"  
  
Hermione stood and turned to look at the rest of the group. She cleared her throat. "Yes, well...we thought it would be a good idea to create a new manifest. You know one, where we could list our rules and promise to help and support each other in our hour of need. Every member should sign it of course, accepting the rules and making an oath to follow them."  
  
"Are you going to put a hex on it, like you did the last time?" Asked Zacharias Smith.  
  
"I think there should be." Exclaimed Justin Finch-Fletchley glowering at Cho once more. "When we say we'll help each other and never betray any member of the club we should mean it."  
  
There were many assents and a few doubting glances, only Cho remained silent. Harry could see her biting her lower lip, as if trying to keep quiet.  
  
"We can vote on all this." Harry said calling the attention of every member. "But when we say that we are going to support each other we should mean it. No more blame over what happened on our last meeting." He said looking at everybody closely. Some lowered their heads in order to evade his eyes, some fidgeted in their seats. "Cho brought somebody she thought was a friend. She had no notion that she would betray us anymore than the rest of us. But that is all in the past, and all we can do is start anew. We can't let our personal feelings for each other take away from what we have to do. In a battle you can't let your enemy take advantage over you, and believe me, personal feelings can get in the way."  
  
The room was silent for a moment as Harry took a deep breath before continuing. "If we are voting on this, we should do so, otherwise we can meet again another time."  
  
"We'll do it now, better sooner than later." Said Ron calling everybody's attention to what was at hand.  
  
"All right. Raise your hand if you agree to make the D.A. an official club." Said Harry raising his hand. Everybody followed his example.  
  
Harry nodded with a small smile. "We're an official school club." He said. The others cheered. "On with the rules." Harry continued.  
  
Hermione promptly pulled out parchment and quills.  
  
"How should we phrase this?" Asked Harry thoughfully.  
  
"With the oath, of course." Said Luna. Everybody looked at her in surprise, but she didn't seem to pay any attention as she looked dreamily on.  
  
"Better place to start." Said Ron.  
  
Hermione was writing swiftly over the parchment. "What about this?" She asked after a few minutes. "We, as members of Dumbledore's Army (the D.A.), take an oath to follow the club's rules, to be faithful to our fellow members and follow our leaders." She read. "We can write the list of rules here." She added.  
  
"That sounds good enough." Said Harry. "Let's see. The first rule should be that members should support and help each other in any way possible."  
  
The others nodded and Hermione wrote.  
  
"No attacking each other in or out of training." Said Ron.  
  
"We'll need that one with Slytherins in the group." Terry Boot said.  
  
The others seemed to agree.  
  
"Members will not betray the trust of another in any way." Said Cho softly.  
  
A few looked at her with surprise but Harry smiled and nodded. "Very important." He said. "Members will listen to advice and leadership of sponsor and leaders." Harry said. "We don't have to follow them, but we can listen." He explained with a smile.  
  
Others chuckled and smiled.  
  
Other rules were thought up and discussed, some made it into the list, others were thrown out in laughter. Finally the list was finished, and the parchment passed around to sign. Everybody present signed the parchment. Hermione conjured a copy and enlarged it.  
  
"We should place this copy here." She said placing the parchment on a wall.  
  
The others nodded and smiled.  
  
"That's done." Declared Harry. "I will talk with Dumbledore and probably place an announcement in the Hall. When there are enough people interested in joining I'll call another meeting so we can all have a say on who will be allowed to stay."  
  
The others assented.  
  
"It's getting late. Keep your coins with you and refer anybody wanting to join us to me. Good night." Said Harry.  
  
"Good night, Harry." Several called as they left the room.  
  
A few minutes later, only Harry, Ron, and Hermione remained. Ginny had been sent glowering by a scowling Ron, Neville walked behind her to the common room.  
  
"That went well." Said Ron once the door had been closed behind the last departing member of the D.A.  
  
Harry nodded as he started to push the cushions toward the walls. He pushed one against the frame of the Foe-Glass. He looked up and glanced at the moving shadows in the cracked surface.  
  
"We should be getting back to the common room." Said Hermione. "It's almost nine."  
  
They made they way out of the room and walked down the almost deserted corridors toward the Gryffindor common room.  
  
Nobody said anything, each lost in their own thoughts.  
  
The common room was almost empty when they reached it; only a few people were up working on the tables scattered around the room.  
  
Ron sighed tiredly and threw himself on one of the couches. "We have patrol duties tonight, don't we?" He asked making a face.  
  
"You know we do, so don't you dare fall asleep because it will take me a while to wake you up when the time comes." Warned Hermione.  
  
"Yeah, yeah." Said Ron lying on the couch.  
  
"I'm going to bed." Said Harry. He felt tired and he really didn't feel like working in any of his papers or waiting up with Ron and Hermione until it was time for them to leave to their patrolling.  
  
"All right, good night." Said Hermione giving Harry a worried glance.  
  
"Good night, Harry." Called Ron from his comfortable perch.  
  
Harry knew that Hermione wanted to talk about what had happened that evening at dinner, but he really didn't want to discuss it. He had lost control and was sorry for it but didn't want to talk about it.  
  
Seamus was already in bed, the curtains drawn around the four-poster bed and the sound of soft snores coming from within. Neville was still up, watering his mimbulus mimbletonia that was placed against the nearest window by his bed. Dean was not in sight, and Harry assumed he was in the bathroom.  
  
"Good night, Harry." Said Neville as he climbed into bed.  
  
"Night." Replied Harry.  
  
He climbed into bed, not bothering to change into his pajamas. He lay on his back, looking up at the canopy above him. Brenna's image came to mind and Harry wondered how she had managed to emit that light from her body. He had never seen anybody do that before, not even Dumbledore, then again, he hadn't seen much of Dumbledore unless it was something important or he got into his usual trouble.  
  
"I wonder if she'd teach me." He whispered.  
  
It wasn't long until he fell asleep.  


-------  
He was sitting in a darkened room, the only light came from the lit fireplace nearby. He was alone for the moment, but he was waiting for somebody. He was becoming impatient, he didn't like being cooped up in this room, but he knew he had no choice. He had a lot to do, and only incompetents to help him along.  
  
He heard the sound of a door opening and closing in another room. He glanced quickly to the door in front of him at the other side of the room.  
  
There was a quick knock before the door opened and a tall man with dark robes entered. He bowed deeply before standing warily before him.  
  
"Well?" Harry heard himself say.  
  
"I'm sorry, my lord, we don't know where to look." He man before him said with a slight tremble in his voice.  
  
Harry knew the man before him was scared, and he was glad of that fact.  
  
"We've looked everywhere, my lord, but we haven't found it." The man said shaking a little.  
  
"We need her, we'll only get to it if she leads us there." Harry felt his mouth move but he knew the voice didn't belong to him.  
  
"But she's at Hogwarts, my lord. We can't get to her." The other man said.  
  
"Then we'll have to find a way to do so, don't you think?" Harry now knew that he was inside Voldemort's body.  
  
"But how, my lord?" The Death Eater exclaimed.  
  
"We'll find a way." Voldemort hissed.  
  
Harry awoke abruptly. He heard Ron on the bed beside him as he readied for bed, and knew that Ron's movements had awoken him.  
  
Harry groaned and nestled among the blankets.  
  
"Harry?" Ron's voice spoke from the other side of his curtains.  
  
"Yeah?" Replied Harry.  
  
"I thought you were asleep." Ron whispered.  
  
"I was." Harry whispered back.  
  
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you." Ron sounded contrite and even though Harry knew more about Voldemort's plans, he was also glad that he wasn't inside of Voldemort's mind any longer.  
  
"Doesn't matter." He said. "I should change, I fell asleep before I did." He yawned and thought for a second that he should stay in his uniform, but soon changed his mind.  
  
"Good night." Ron said and Harry heard him draw the curtains rustle around the bed.  
  
"Good night." Harry whispered. He climbed down from bed and grasped his pajamas from the foot of the bed. He had asked Lotty not to wait for him but it was obvious that the elf had been there and prepared his bed for the night before he arrived after the meeting. He changed hurriedly and dropped his uniform on top of his trunk. He climbed up into bed and moments later he fell asleep once more.  
  
He was walking down the corridor to the Department of Mysteries, he had seen it so often during the past year that he could easily recognized it. He entered into the circular room, the doors around it were closed. Some had the marks they had left behind on their visit last June. The doors suddenly opened and Harry could see every room they had been in through their fight with the Death Eaters. Only one door remained closed and Harry knew it was the one they couldn't open when they had been there.  
  
He saw his hand push against it and the door opened slowly before him.  
  
He was immediately surrounded by mist. He looked around him, but couldn't see beyond a foot in front of him. He couldn't even see the door he had just come through.  
  
He continued looking around and noticed a dim light a few feet away from him.  
  
"Hello?" He called. There was no response, but the light started to move away from him.  
  
"Wait!" He yelled and started running toward the light.  
  
He couldn't see where the light was coming from, but it kept accelerating as he ran after it. Suddenly the mist cleared and he saw himself standing in a middle of a piece of land, no bigger than ten feet in diameter. He was surrounded in water and the light he had followed was gone.  
  
He noticed something shining brightly a few feet away from where he stood, as he got closer to the source he noticed that it was a plain sword, a scepter and a staff embedded in the sand.  
  
There were other things hidden beneath the sand, some which looked like jewelry.  
  
Harry was curious and reached for the scepter. A bright light shone into his eyes and Harry woke abruptly from his dream.  
  
A sliver of sunlight hit his eyes through a corner of the window. The curtains around his bed had been drawn back and he could see Seamus and Dean were still in bed, while Ron and Neville were up.  
  
He groaned sleepily and yawned as he started kicking the blankets from his feet.  
  
"Good morning, Master Harry." Lotty chirped beside the bed.  
  
Harry was startled awake by the high-pitched voice and looked to Lotty in surprise. "Oh, good morning Lotty." He said.  
  
"Should Lotty bring a tray up, Master Harry? Or is Master Harry wanting to go down to the Great Hall?" The elf asked as he placed a pair of jeans and clean shirt and socks at the foot of the table.  
  
Harry was tempted to stay in bed and ask for a tray, he really didn't want to remember what happened the last time he was in the Great Hall, but knew that he couldn't hide away from it. "I'll go down." He said with a sigh. "Make sure my Quidditch robes are ready, I scheduled training for this afternoon." He said as he left his bed.  
  
His bathrobe and a couple of towels were waiting for him beside the bathroom door. Harry left Lotty to his duties and turned toward the bathroom.  
  
"Oh, good morning, Harry." Exclaimed Neville as he left the bathroom as Harry made to open the door.  
  
"Mornin' Neville." Harry yawned.  
  
"Ron's in there." Neville motioned to the closed bathroom door.  
  
Harry nodded and went in the bathroom without any more interruptions.  
  
Hermione was waiting for them in the common room when Harry and Ron went down to breakfast.  
  
"I thought you were in the Great Hall already." Ron said as Hermione stood before them as they reached the landing.  
  
"I decided to wait for you." Said Hermione looking at Harry closely.  
  
"I'm fine." Snapped Harry. He knew his friends were worried but that didn't mean he liked them keeping an eye on him at all times.  
  
Hermione raised her eyebrows in surprise, but didn't say anything.  
  
"Er...yeah, let's go to the Great Hall, I'm hungry." Said Ron giving Hermione a warning glance and led them out the common room.  
  
Many turned to look at Harry as they made their way to the Gryffindor table, but Harry ignored them.  
  
They found some spaces across from Ginny.  
  
"Good morning." Ginny greeted them with a smile.  
  
"Morning." Mumbled Harry.  
  
Ginny glanced at him before turning to look at Hermione. "Hermione, I hoped that you could help me with something."  
  
"Of course, Ginny. What can I help you with?" Asked Hermione as she started to pile toast and bacon on her plate.  
  
"Well, I was wondering if I could see at your notes from last year. I need help with mine on Transfiguration and Charms, you're tidier than I am." Ginny said quickly.  
  
"Oh, yeah, you can see them." Hermione said. "I bet you're a little worried about your O.W.L.s this year."  
  
"Yeah. I don't think I'll do as well on Charms as I could wish. So far it seems to be Acceptable, but I want a higher note." Ginny confessed.  
  
"Acceptable is good." Said Ron who had followed the conversation closely.  
  
"For you maybe, but not for me. I want to do better." Ginny snapped.  
  
"I did better than Acceptable." Ron exclaimed. "Just because you're not doing as well as you'd hope doesn't mean you can snap on me."  
  
"I'm sorry, it's just that we've barely began and my work load is heavier than I had imagined." Ginny apologized.  
  
"Alright, I guess." Ron said grudgingly. "Maybe Quidditch will help you relax."  
  
Ginny groaned. "I had forgotten about Quidditch."  
  
"What?" Both Ron and Harry exclaimed in surprise.  
  
"How could you forget about Quidditch?" Ron asked.  
  
"You're a chaser, you tried out for that position, it's a little too late for you to go changing your mind." Harry said. "We have practice this afternoon. And you better be there."  
  
"Don't do that! She should be worried about her O.W.L.s you know how important they are." Hermione chided them. "You can play Quidditch any time, whether you pass your O.W.L.s or not, but your future depends on those tests."  
  
"You're right, I'm sorry Ginny." Said Harry looking down at his plate. "I guess I overreacted."  
  
"So did I, sorry." Mumbled Ron at his side.  
  
"That's alright. I'm not going to leave the Quidditch team, you're right Ron, Quidditch will help me relax." Ginny said.  
  
"Harry?" Neville asked at his side.  
  
"Yeah?" Said Harry looking at his roommate.  
  
"Would it be all right if I watch the practice?" Neville asked.  
  
"As long as you don't distract us." Harry said. "You can be there as long as you want."  
  
"Thanks, I'm not a good flyer, but I like Quidditch." Said Neville.  
  
Harry chuckled. "I haven't met a wizard yet who said he didn't like it."  
  
"There are a few," Neville smiled, "but not many."  
  
Harry turned to look at the staff table. He noticed that most of the teachers were present, even the old Headmaster, only Hagrid was missing.  
  
"I should speak with Dumbledore." Said Harry. "I need to speak with him about the D.A."  
  
"Are you posting the announcement about it soon?" Asked Ginny.  
  
"I want to speak with him first, then I'll know how to word the announcement." Harry replied.  
  
"I'm still not happy about having Slytherins in the group." Said Ron. "It won't be as productive as it used to be."  
  
"We have the parchment, they have to sign it when they get in, and we'll know when they break any of the rules." Ginny said.  
  
"What charm did you put on the parchment this time?" Asked Ron looking questioningly at Hermione.  
  
"You'll see. You'll find out if anybody breaks any of the rules." Smiled Hermione.  
  
"Oh, C'mon Hermione, you can tell us." Urged Ginny with a smile. "Is it as fitting as the other one?"  
  
"You'll see." Hermione replied.  
  
Harry laughed. He could remember well what had happened to the last person who broke their most important rule. He only wished that the new charm would be enough to keep the members of the D.A. from making any problems during meetings.  
  
"Doesn't matter what the charm is as long as the Slytherins don't make any problems." Said Neville.  
  
"We'll see what happens once we have the new members in the group." Ron said.  
  
"I'll meet you lot later." Said Harry pushing his plate away from him. "I should speak with Dumbledore now that I have time."  
  
Harry walked up to the staff table. Some students saw him and whispered behind their hands, but Harry only frowned and tried to ignore them.  
  
He reached the staff table in a hurry, some of the teachers turned to look at him with curiosity and others didn't bother to look at him.  
  
"Yes, Harry, something I can do for you?" Asked the Headmaster as Harry came to a stop in front of him.  
  
"Er...I was wondering, Sir, if I could have a word with you." Harry said looking nervously as Professor McGonagall and Professor Lupin looked at him questioningly.  
  
"Of course, meet me in my office in half an hour." Said Dumbledore after he peered at Harry closely behind his half-moon glasses for a few seconds.  
  
Harry nodded and started to back away. He stopped for a moment and turned to look back at Dumbledore.  
  
"Er...Sir?" He said softly.  
  
"Yes, Harry?" Dumbledore said with a small smile as if he knew what Harry was about to say and it amused him.  
  
"What's the password to your office?" Asked Harry.  
  
Dumbledore chuckled softly. "I wondered if you had forgotten to ask. It's Skiving Snackboxes."  
  
Harry looked at Dumbledore with surprise. "Skiving Snackboxes?"  
  
Dumbledore nodded, his eyes twinkling with amusement.  
  
Harry smiled and started down out of the Hall. He noticed that Ron and Hermione awaited him by the door.  
  
"Everything okay?" Asked Ron as soon as he had joined him.  
  
"Fine." Said Harry watching the two closely as they stood looking at him with worry. "I'm fine, you know. There's no need for you two to keep a close eye on me all the time." He said as they started to walk down the stairs out the main entrance.  
  
The day was sunny and many students were taking advantage of the nice weather.  
  
Harry, Ron, and Hermione walked slowly toward the lake.  
  
"We know you're fine, Harry." Hermione said sheepishly. "But we can't help but worry."  
  
"I know you worry, but there are some things that I have to deal on my own. You can't help me with every little thing that happens in my life." Harry replied.  
  
"But you know, don't you, that we'll help you whenever you want us to." Ron said looking at his friend closely.  
  
"And even when I don't want you to?" Said Harry.  
  
"Well, sometimes." Smiled Ron.  
  
"Are you going to tell Dumbledore about your dreams?" Asked Hermione.  
  
Harry looked at Hermione abruptly and frowned. What did they know about his dreams? He hadn't told them anything about the dreams he had last night and he wasn't sure whether he wanted to tell Dumbledore about them, especially since he couldn't really understand what his last dream was about. True, the first dream was about Voldemort and he supposed Dumbledore should know of it. But the second dream had been different. It had nothing to do with Voldemort and it seemed more like a fantasy than anything based on truth. Then again, it had started like the dream that had bothered him all of last year, with him walking into the Department of Mysteries. But his friends didn't know about it. He hadn't talked much about his dreams except for those that happened to have been true.  
  
"Not much to tell." He finally said with a shrug. "Voldemort seem to be more careful not to show me much of what he does or wants."  
  
"Except for the fact that he wants Lupin's friend." Ron said.  
  
"Dumbledore already knows that." Harry said.  
  
"No new dreams since the one you had at the beginning of the week?" Asked Hermione as they reached the lakeshore.  
  
There were students sitting and playing around the lake. A couple of students were trying to tickle the tentacles of the giant squid that had surfaced for a little sunbathing.  
  
"When do you meet Dumbledore?" Asked Ron as he started throwing rocks into the lake.  
  
"In a few minutes." Said Harry with a shrug.  
  
"Perhaps we should walk back to the castle then." Said Hermione watching the ripples the rocks made on the surface of the lake.  
  
"You don't need to return to the castle." Harry said.  
  
"I know. But there are papers to finish and I want to start researching that paper for Snape." Hermione said.  
  
"But we have two weeks to work on it." Ron exclaimed.  
  
"What better time to start on it?" Hermione said quickly. "I, unlike you, like to present a proper paper with the research to support it."  
  
Ron glared at her before turning back to the lake with a shake of his head.  
  
Harry smiled but said nothing.  
  
A few moments later they turned back to the castle.  


---------  
Harry left Ron and Hermione in the entrance hall. They turned toward the seventh floor to the Gryffindor Tower while he made his way along the deserted hallways to Dumbledore's office.  
  
He saw nobody as he hurried for his meeting with the Headmaster. Finally, he reached the gargoyle that guarded the entrance to Dumbledore's office.  
  
"Skiving Snackboxes." Said Harry and the gargoyle sprang aside.  
  
Harry hurried inside and stepped up the spiral staircase.  
  
He was about to knock on the Headmaster's door but voices at the other side stopped him. The Headmaster had visitors.  
  
He stood unsure, not knowing what to do, when the door opened and he saw a Minister official standing on the door.  
  
"Ah, Harry. Glad you could make it on time." Dumbledore's cheerful voice called him from within.  
  
"Uh...You did say half an hour, sir, did you not?" Asked Harry looking at the young man standing between himself and the Headmaster's office.  
  
"Mr. Weasley, Mr. Potter needs to enter." Dumbledore said.  
  
Harry saw Percy flush and stand aside.  
  
"Sorry." Percy mumbled.  
  
Harry looked at him curiously. The last time he had seen Percy Weasley was not a happy memory. He was still unhappy about the way that Percy had treated his family for the last year and was happy that Ron and Hermione had decided to go to the Gryffindor common room instead of accompanying him to his meeting with Dumbledore. He knew Ron wouldn't be happy to see his older brother again.  
  
Harry stepped inside the office. Saw Percy say goodbye to Dumbledore and leave hurriedly out the door.  
  
"What is he doing here?" Asked Harry abruptly, frowning at the closed door behind him.  
  
At Dumbledore's silence Harry turned to look at the Headmaster.  
  
Dumbledore seemed pensive, as if trying to come to a decision.  
  
"No need to worry." Dumbledore said. "You'll find out as things come to light."  
  
Harry's frown returned, but decided to keep quiet on the subject.  
  
"Was there anything I could do for you, Harry?" Urged Dumbledore.  
  
"I wanted to speak to you about the D.A., Sir." Harry said, remembering the reason why he wanted to speak to the Headmaster.  
  
"Ah, yes. Your Dark Arts Defense Club." Dumbledore smiled kindly. "Remus said he had talked to you about it."  
  
"Yes, sir. I called a meeting and talked to the others about it." Harry explained.  
  
"I see. And have you come to a decision?" Dumbledore asked.  
  
"Yes. We discussed it and decided to make it official." Harry replied.  
  
"Good. I'm confident this group will become useful in the future." Dumbledore smiled. "This means you cannot close the door to anybody." He said looking at Harry closely. "The club must be open to all."  
  
"We know. That's why we came up with a set of rules that everybody should follow." Harry said.  
  
"Indeed. Better to be prepared, hmm?"  
  
Harry nodded. "And...er...I wanted to ask something else, sir."  
  
Dumbledore looked at him questioningly.  
  
"I wanted to do some practice with dueling." Harry said. "And I wanted to know if we could do it. With Lupin's help of course, he has accepted to be our sponsor."  
  
"I see no problem if you do." Dumbledore said thoughtfully. "In fact, I think it would be the best thing to do."  
  
Harry seemed happy to have permission to take the meetings of the D.A. a step further. Dueling was something that they had done before under the auspices of Professor Lockhart, but Harry wanted a more practical lesson on the subject, as he was eager to become more practiced in the art.  
  
"It will be helpful." Harry said.  
  
"I'm sure it will." Said Dumbledore softly.  
  
"There was something else, Sir." Said Harry with some hesitation. "I had another dream last night."  
  
Dumbledore became alert. "Did you. What did you see, Harry."  
  
"Nothing much, Sir. He was in the same room as before and a Death Eater reported that they couldn't find something. Voldemort just said that they needed someone to take them to it." Harry said.  
  
"I see. Did they say what they were looking for?" Dumbledore asked.  
  
"No, Sir. They made no mention of names or places." Harry said thoughtfully.  
  
"Did your scar hurt?"  
  
Dumbledore's question surprised Harry. And he became more surprised as he remembered that his scar hadn't hurt at all after the dream.  
  
"No, sir." Harry shook his head. "What could it mean?"  
  
"I'm sure there's nothing for you to worry about." Said Dumbledore. "It might be that your connection with him is getting stronger than it had been in the past."  
  
"But that doesn't make sense, my scar has always hurt, especially when I sense or see something from him." Harry said with a frown.  
  
"I don't know what to tell you, Harry. Your connection to Voldemort is a mysterious thing, we know nothing about it, how or why it happened, nor how it affects you. We have only theories, but theories can be so easily disproved or never confirmed." Dumbledore said. "In the past you have been able to see what he does when there's some type of emotion involved, whether it was anger or pleasure. This last vision didn't involve any emotion at all. We can only guess that your connection to him is getting stronger and allows you to see things through his eyes at any given time."  
  
Harry was not so sure. He didn't like the idea of being able to see more of Voldemort than they had previously thought he could. It could only mean that Voldemort had more power over the images that Harry could see.  
  
"Don't worry yourself over it, Harry, just make sure that you tell me or any member of the Order what you see." Dumbledore admonished Harry.  
  
Harry nodded and decided to leave his thoughts about what had been said to be thought over at a later time.  
  
"Now, I'm sure you have plans for your afternoon. I seem to remember that Gryffindor has scheduled practice for today." Dumbledore said with a smile.  
  
"Yes, sir." Harry sprang from the chair, he knew when he was being dismissed.  
  
"I'll make an announcement about your club at dinner, I want to make sure everybody knows about this. Remember, Harry, enjoy yourself, no need to worry for the moment." Dumbledore said before Harry left the office.  
  
"If you say so, Sir." Harry didn't sound so sure.  
  
Harry made his way slowly down the corridor toward the Gryffindor Tower. His mind was busily running over what had been said in the Headmaster's office.  
  
Presently, he entered the common room. After a quick search he found that Ron and Hermione were not present.  
  
He frowned for a moment before thinking about the library. If research was needed, Hermione was bound to have pulled Ron toward the school library. Harry went up to his dormitory in search for his book bag before making his way out of the tower.  
  
He reached the library and instantly saw Ron and Hermione sharing a table covered with books of various sizes.  
  
He silently walked toward the table, Madam Pince watched him warily, Harry smiled at her and continued on his way.  
  
"I thought I would find you here." He said the moment he reached his friends.  
  
"How did it go?" Asked Ron full of curiosity.  
  
"Well enough, I suppose. He's going to make an announcement about the D.A. at dinner, he says he wants to make sure that everybody knows about it." Harry took a seat next to Ron, which was the only one not occupied by piles of books.  
  
"He's afraid that not many will read the announcements if they're posted." Hermione said as she continued writing on her parchment after checking quickly on the book in front of her.  
  
"Maybe, it won't matter, I don't think many Slytherins will show up to the meetings." Harry said.  
  
"Do you think so? I think they will, if only to try to make trouble." Ron replied.  
  
"Now, Ron." Hermione admonished. "I'm sure they behave themselves as long as Lupin is present."  
  
"They've never done so before." Barked Ron.  
  
"That's why the rules were established. They must sign it and promise to abide by it if they want to participate with us." Harry reminded Ron.  
  
"Well," Ron sounded doubtful, "if you think it will be enough."  
  
"Of course it will." Hermione said.  
  
"And I'm sure Dumbledore will have something to say if they get out of control." Harry said with finality.  
  
"When are we going to start?" Asked Ron turning his attention back to his parchment while Harry took out his notes.  
  
"As soon as we get enough new members, I don't think we should accept more than we can handle. Ten new member sounds good." Harry said.  
  
"You're probably right. We don't want things to be out of control. The current members can help with the new." Hermione said with confidently. "Are you planning a review?"  
  
"It's where we should begin. Just to make sure everybody remembers and to help the new members to catch up." Harry responded. "Dumbledore has agreed to allow me to practice dueling as well."  
  
Both Hermione and Ron lost interest in their work at that moment.  
  
"You're joking." Exclaimed Ron.  
  
"No joke. He said it would be useful." Harry said.  
  
"After what happened the last time?" Ron asked wearily.  
  
"Everybody knows that I'm parseltongue." Harry sounded a little angry. "I don't see what else can be worrying you."  
  
"And Lupin will be there." Interrupted Hermione quickly, knowing that Harry was a little sore about his ability to talk to snakes. It was one of his talents that the Daily Prophet had used against him, and there were still people who were wary of him because of it. "I'm sure he could teach us what he knows."  
  
"Which should be a lot more than what Lockhart tried to do." Ron sneered.  
  
"Really, Ron, the poor man is at St. Mungo's." Chided Hermione. "He did the best he could."  
  
"If that was his best, I don't want to know what his worst was." Ron said.  
  
Hermione glared but Harry and Ron glanced at each other with amusement.  
  
There was no more talk after that. They worked silently on their papers, once in a while rummaging among the books and notes for what they needed. It was only when time for lunch arrived that they put aside their parchment and quills and took the books they needed to take with them to Gryffindor Tower.  
  
Lotty was waiting for Harry with an unexpected surprise.  


---------  
The Great Hall was nearly full by the time they left the Tower after leaving their things behind.  
  
Chatter and laughter filled the Great Hall during the meal while the teachers looked closely at each table.  
  
"Harry, is it true that the team has new brooms?" Asked Dean as he took a seat nearby.  
  
Harry shrugged. "A neighbor from the Manor donated Firebolts for the team." He finally replied. "Just got word a few minutes ago."  
  
"Lotty was waiting with the note when we returned to the dormitory a while ago." Said Ron excitedly.  
  
"Oh, wow." Seamus exclaimed. "Got to owl mum not to bother sending me a new broom then."  
  
"You can use your own broom if you want." Harry said quickly. "They're only alternate brooms if we need them."  
  
"Are you mad!" Ron, Dean and Seamus exclaimed as one.  
  
"Who will prefer to use their own broom when we can use Firebolts instead." Said Ron.  
  
"I for one. I don't want to replace my broom." Replied Harry.  
  
Seamus scoffed. "That's because you have a Firebolt of your own. I'm not passing the chance of playing with a Firebolt."  
  
"How many did he donate?" Asked Dean curiously.  
  
"The note said 10." Harry said.  
  
"Where are they?" Asked Seamus.  
  
"Madam Hooch's office. He sent them to her to care for them for us." Harry explained.  
  
"Slytherin will turn green with envy." Chuckled Ron with anticipation.  
  
"We will practice with them, won't we Harry." Seamus turned to Harry expectantly.  
  
Harry nodded. "We'll need to get used to them. We still have weeks until our first game, but everybody needs to get control of their brooms before then."  
  
"This will be our best season." Dean exclaimed.  
  
Harry grinned at the high spirits his companions evoked.  
  
"You don't mind if I sit to watch practice, do you Harry?" Asked Dean after a few minutes.  
  
"I don't mind. I already told Neville he could." Harry said.  
  
"You can watch for Slytherins." Said Seamus to Dean. "They might try something funny."  
  
Ron snorted with derision. "It will be the only way they'll win the Cup."  
  
Hermione had been silent during the whole conversation. But Harry was sure she wasn't too happy about the gift just presented to Gryffindor Team.  
  
"You don't approve, Hermione." Said Harry to Hermione.  
  
"Well, it's not fair, is it?" She said. "The rest of the houses don't have brooms of that caliber."  
  
"It's not our fault." Said Ron.  
  
"I know it's not, but it doesn't seem fair, is all." Hermione replied.  
  
Ron glanced angrily at her while Seamus looked incredulous.  
  
"Why would you say a thing like that?" Exclaimed Dean.  
  
"Yeah, don't you want Gryffindor to win?" Glared Seamus.  
  
"That's not what I mean!" Retorted Hermione. "I'm just saying that the other teams won't have much chance to catch up."  
  
"Damn straight they won't!" Exclaimed Ron. "And that's the whole point of the game, Hermione, for one team to take control of the match and leave the other behind. Do you know what we can do with these brooms? International standard brooms, that's what they are."  
  
Hermione knew she had lost the argument, there was no way she could make the others see things the way they were, but by Harry's frown, she knew that Harry understood how she felt about this unexpected threat.  
  
"Does anybody else know about the brooms?" She asked abruptly.  
  
"I don't know. Who told you about the brooms?" Harry turned to look at Seamus and Dean.  
  
"Neville did, when we went up to leave our things to the dormitory." Dean said.  
  
"How did he know?" Harry asked.  
  
"Er, that was my fault." Said Ron, flushing pink with embarrassment. "I mentioned it when we were leaving the room. He was just coming in then."  
  
"Well, as long as it's just the team and Dean and Neville who knows. I would think there would be others who would try to tamper with those brooms." Hermione said thoughtfully.  
  
"Oh, surely not! Who would try to damage Firebolts?" Asked Seamus, as if the thought of damaging Firebolts was a mortal sin.  
  
Ron and Dean seemed to feel the same way, but Harry knew that Hermione was right.  
  
"Once word of this gets out, there will be some who will feel that Gryffindor has a huge advantage over the other houses and will try to make things even." Harry said. "I think I better go and see Madam Hooch and discuss safe storage of those brooms." He pushed his plate from him.  
  
"We'll go with you." Said Hermione as she hauled Ron from his seat along with her.  
  
"We'll go and find Neville, see who else he told." Said Dean.  
  
"Do that. Practice begins in an hour." Harry said and led Ron and Hermione out of the Great Hall.  
  
Nobody else had spoken to him about the brooms and he was fairly sure that would've been stopped by others if it was known. He could safely assume that Neville hadn't spoken to others yet, but that wouldn't last for long. This was a surprising gift, one that had only happened once when Lucius Malfoy bought Nimbus 2001s for Slytherin a few years ago. But even though the Nimbus series was among the most popular racing brooms and flew well around the Pitch, the Firebolt was better, being a professional racing broom, used by professional and international Quidditch teams. This was certain to be the talk of the school by the end of the day.  


----------  
The team had begun to congregate in the changing rooms, an hour later. Harry had spent half an hour with Madam Hooch searching for a place to hide the brooms when not in use. Finally, they opted for a small closet Professor McGonagall knew of in the Gryffindor Tower. The key to the door was presented to Harry, who would make sure the brooms were stored and taken care of after every practice and game. But this afternoon, Madam Hooch would keep them safely stowed under her desk until practice started, when she would present them to Harry.  
  
Fortunately, Seamus and Dean got to Neville before he told anybody else about the brooms.  
  
The team and the reserve players stood chatting placidly without knowledge of what awaited them.  
  
Neville sat on the bleachers with Dean and a couple of third years who were waiting patiently for Harry.  
  
Presently, Harry led the team into the Pitch. Madam Hooch was waiting in the sidelines with a large crate and the trunk where the balls were stored at her feet.  
  
"Alright, listen up." Said Harry as the team surrounded them. "We have much to do, but I want to start with the reserve players first." Harry looked around and waved to they young Gryffindors on the stands next to Dean. They scrambled down in a hurry and ran toward the team.  
  
"These are Damian Stuart and Michelle Carlisle." Said Harry motioning to the panting couple to come closer. "They weren't able to attend our summer training but are interested in trying out for our chaser reserve section."  
  
The team looked at the young hopefuls with reserve while they waited nervously to know what they would do.  
  
"I want to see how they do with the team. Ginny, you play seeker while Seamus, you and Alexander will play against them. Damian and Michelle will take your places among the team. Andrew and Jack, I want you to play with Seamus and Alexander, Dennis and Colin will play with Damian and Michelle. You all try to score on Ron, Ginny, try to catch the Snitch. We'll stop when she does." Harry directed, as he spoke those called took their places among their teammembers.  
  
Damian and Michelle clutched their brooms expectantly as they waited for practice to begin.  
  
"Mount your brooms," ordered Harry, "we're about to release the balls."  
  
Ten brooms soared into the air while Harry summed the large trunk to the middle of the field.  
  
Harry was too busy with the practice to notice that Dean and Neville were not the only ones watching in the stands.  
  
Professor McGonagall and Hagrid were sitting with Hermione watching as the team waited for Harry to release the balls. By the time Harry had joined the team up on the air as they and balls zoomed across the pitch, Lavender and Parvati had joined the spectators and were surprised to see Professor Dumbledore join Professor McGonagall and Hagrid a few minutes later.  
  
Harry was flying above the zooming players watching the new members closely. He was pleasantly surprised to see that Damian and Michelle were doing quite well with the rest of the team. Ron was having a hard time trying to cover four chasers instead of three and let the Quaffle score a couple of times before he got used to the rhythm of the game and started stopping the Quaffle every time it was thrown his way. Ginny flew slowly above the other players watching for the Snitch. The practice lasted twenty minutes, ending when Ginny wrapped her fingers tightly against the struggling Snitch.  
  
The team landed softly on the grass, Harry waited for all to join him.  
  
"That was good." He said smiling. "We certainly have good talent with us this year."  
  
The team stood proudly at his praise.  
  
"You did well Damian, Michelle." He said looking at the young Gryffindors watching him expectantly. "Team, what do you think?"  
  
"Definitely."  
  
"They would do great."  
  
"You never know when we might need to replace a chaser."  
  
Harry saw Michelle flush with pleasure while Damian looked nervously at the others.  
  
"It's official then." Said Harry. "Damian and Michelle will be our new reserve chasers."  
  
The team cheered while Damian and Michelle stood pleased with themselves as the others surrounded them with congratulations.  
  
"You did good." Said Harry. The team quieted down turned their attention back to him. "And I have a surprise for you."  
  
Madam Hooch was walking toward them with the large crate hovering behind them. Seamus and Ron grinned excitedly to each other while the rest looked curiously at the approaching crate.  
  
"As you may remember, several of the tenants and neighbors attended the game we played at the end of our training at the Manor." Harry was saying. "Well, one of my neighbors was really impressed by what he saw that he bought a little present for the Gryffindor Quidditch team."  
  
The crate had come to rest beside Harry. Madam Hooch stood behind the crate unlocking the large lock. The lid sprung open and ten, neatly stacked, new Firebolts gleamed in the sunshine.  
  
Gasps of appreciation were heard as Harry took one from the crate and held it before him.  
  
"There are ten brooms, and we have ten members. Each of you grab one. This gift is made to the team, not to each individual member, which means that after we leave our replacements will use them. Take care of them, keep them clean and trim them. We will store them in a closet in the Gryffindor Tower after every use." Harry said as he started to pass a broom to each member.  
  
The brooms were exclaimed and gushed over, soon, those who had watched the practice patiently on the stands came to see what had happened and joined the team in celebration.  
  
Eventually, the brooms where placed back on the crate and taken to the castle under guard of the Gryffindor team.  
  
Many students stopped and looked at the group with curiosity as they crossed the grounds to the castle. By the time the team had reached the Gryffindor Tower word had begun to spread of the marvelous gift made to the team.  


---------------------------  
Harry took his time getting clean after the brooms had been stored. He heard the excited chatter as his roommates changed and waited for him.  
  
"They'll definitely give us an edge this season." Seamus said happily. "Slytherin vs. Gryffindor, in a couple of weeks. We'll sweep the floor with them." He laughed.  
  
The others chuckled at his enthusiasm but it was clear that they all felt the same way he did. Harry shrugged into his shirt in silence. He was gladdened to see how much they looked forward to the Quidditch season to commence, but personally, he thought there were other things more important. Like the D.A. for example. He needed the practice, he needed to hone his skills and prepare himself, even if he had to do it on his own.  
  
"Harry?" Dean called. "What do you think the odds are of Slytherin winning the Cup from Gryffindor?"  
  
Ron and Seamus laughed, even Harry smiled. "A million to one." He replied. The others cheered.  
  
Minutes later, they walked down into the common room. Those still there cheered and applauded their captain and team members. Ron and Seamus smiled and strutted behind Harry. Harry was pleased but wished they could turn their attention elsewhere.  
  
Hermione was waiting for them. "Everybody knows." She said as they crossed to the portrait hole.  
  
"I gathered." Harry mumbled.  
  
"Malfoy must be gnashing his teeth with envy." Snickered Ron.  
  
Dean and Seamus stayed behind as Lavender and Parvati crowded around them asking about practice.  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione walked quickly through the corridors as people tried repeatedly to stop them and talk about the brooms, Harry tried to ignore them and continue on his way but Ron seemed to like the attention and was repeatedly left behind to assuage the curiosity of others.  
  
Their arrival to the Great Hall was noticed by all, and Harry knew that he couldn't escape the speculation from his peers.  
  
They took their seats in the middle of the table and were instantly surrounded by their fellow Gryffindors.  
  
"Is it true, Harry? Did somebody gifted Gryffindor with Firebolts?" A seventh year asked. Harry nodded as he tried to eat his dinner.  
  
"Wow! The team will do great this season, won't it Harry?" A small third year asked as he tried to squeeze through the crowd to reach Harry's side.  
  
"Of course, we will." Exclaimed Ron, basking in the attention of their housemates. "We have the best people in our team and now we have the best brooms."  
  
"Hear! Hear!" Several around them chanted.  
  
"You think you're so great, do you Potter?" A sneering voice said behind the group surrounding Harry.  
  
A small path opened between Malfoy and Harry. Harry sighed and dropped the piece of chicken he had been about to bite into to his plate.  
  
"What do you want, Malfoy?" Harry snapped.  
  
"I suppose you thought your team needed a little help and that's why you bought Firebolts for them." Said Malfoy, smiling derisively at Ron who had flushed with anger.  
  
"My team doesn't need those brooms to be better than you, Malfoy." Harry said proudly.  
  
"I'm sure you think that, Potter. But I seem to remember a pair of bumbling idiot beaters and a clumsy keeper." Malfoy snickered.  
  
"You take that back!"  
  
"We got the Cup didn't we?"  
  
"Why you little - "  
  
"We'll beat Slytherin any time."  
  
"You're just jealous."  
  
An explosion of angry cries gave way among the assembled Gryffindors. Crabbe and Goyle flanked Malfoy looking at the others menacingly.  
  
"Is there a problem?" The abrupt voice of Professor McGonagall stopped the clamor around the Gryffindor Table.  
  
"Malfoy started it Professor." Several voices said at once.  
  
Harry remained silent, trying to control his temper as he remembered it had been Professor McGonagall who had urged him to do so the previous year. Perhaps things would've been different if I had listened to her, he thought.  
  
"Aren't you in the wrong table, Mr. Malfoy?" Professor McGonagall turned her stern glance to Malfoy.  
  
Malfoy turned around and led Crabbe and Goyle to the Slytherin table.  
  
"I recommend that you all take a seat. You're blocking the way around the table." She said to her house.  
  
Everybody scrambled to take seats near Harry. Only a few succeeded in their effort.  
  
Professor McGonagall nodded abruptly and walked to the staff table.  
  
"That Malfoy! We'll see how cocky he is after we beat them in a couple of weeks." Ron exclaimed turning back to his dinner.  
  
"You know this only helped in making the rivalries between Gryffindor and Slythering much stronger, don't you." Said Hermione looking sternly at the two young men sitting across the table from her.  
  
"So?" Answered Ron angrily.  
  
"We're supposed to establish a better inter-house relationship." Hermione said unrelenting. "And you're a prefect, Ron, you're supposed to make an example for the younger crowd. I think it would be best if you send the brooms back, Harry. They're only going to make things worse."  
  
"Are you mad!" Exclaimed Ron.  
  
"It won't do a thing, Hermione, only make the others angry. The rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin is too strong and had been going on for hundreds of years. My sending back the brooms will not stop it." Harry said pushing his plate aside.  
  
"But we should try." Said Hermione. "This is the time to make things better. We cannot be divided."  
  
"I agree, but is not only Gryffindor who had to put things aside, Slytherin must as well, and you know that would never happen. You saw how the news of allowing Slytherin into the D.A. was taken by the others. We had to make rules because of it, we had no need for them before, we had only one, and that was to keep the group secret. The other houses also have strong feelings against Slytherin. So it won't matter what we do or think, because it's not only Gryffidor feelings that have to change, but the whole school. And I don't see how you can make Slytherin be more friendly to everybody." Harry argued.  
  
"Yeah, look at Snape. He's Head of Slytherin House and he's as big a prat as the rest of them." Said Ron.  
  
Hermione shook her head in resignation. But Harry knew that deep inside, she agreed with them.  
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione hurried out the Great Hall as soon as they were done. Calls and cheers from the remaining members of Gryffindor followed them out.  
  
Harry was tired of the attention he was getting and wished for the relative peace he had achieved before the Triwizard Tournament had come to Hogwarts.  
  
At last, they arrived before the portrait of the Fat Lady. "Twinkle Lights." The password was uttered and they promptly made their way into the common room after the entrance was revealed.  
  
"I'm going to bed." Harry said and hurried to the fifth year boys' dormitory without taking notice of the shared glance between Ron and Hermione.  
  
Harry just wished he could forget about it all and desired only to make plans for the D.A. A group he found helped him more than Quidditch ever could.  
  
Lotty helped him out of his clothes and took them with him after Harry had dismissed him. Just as his body relaxed and he snuggled in his bed did he remember that Dumbledore had not announced a thing about the D.A.  


* * *

  
  
A/N: There you are, I'll have the next chapter ready as soon as I can. It's done, I just need to edit it and maybe do some changes. I haven't decided yet. I'm writing another story so that keeps me away sometimes when I can't think of anything else to write for this one, it helps me to come up with new things, even though that story is completely different from this one. Don't ask me why it happens, don't know really. When I'm writing this story I come up with things for the other story and when I write the other story I come up with things for this one. Writing is a complicated process sometimes.  
  
There were a few of you who were concerned about some things. So I'll try to answer some of them.  
  
titoubreizh: the reason you can't find the part about Lily and James defying Voldemort three times is because I wrote Lily and James' story before OotP came out last June and by the time I had read it I decided to leave it as it is (after I asked readers their thoughts and they said it would be for the best).  
  
Exodus: I thought it would be best for Harry to continue leading the D.A. because it would help him to practice Defense. He's not alone, Lupin, Hermione and Ron will help, he doesn't have to shoulder the weight of the training on his own.  
  
Siriusforeva: You'll find out more about Emma in the next couple of chapters, there's a little recap for those of you who may have forgotten.  
  
That's all the time I have for today, I'll try to have the next chapter for you as soon as I can. I promise not to take this long if I can help it. 


	58. Sixth Year Chapter 9

A/N: I'm sorry I didn't post earlier, I meant to, really, but my mom came to visit and I couldn't complete editing the chapter before she arrived and then I got sick so I didn't feel like sitting in front of the comp until now. Thank you all for reviewing and welcome to those who are new to the story, I'm glad you're enjoying the story so far. Let's continue, shall we?

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Disclaimer: I own nothing, nothing I tell you : ( well, maybe just the plot and some of the secondary characters, everything else belongs to the wonderful JK Rowling.

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**_Chapter 9 Professor Holmes  
_**  
The rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin seemed much stronger than it had ever been and Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff couldn't help but show their support to Gryffindor.  
  
Harry had found himself under attack on several occasions, only his quick wits and the help of passing members of the D.A. allowed him to continue on his way unscathed. His attackers were not as lucky.  
  
Snape had become more callous than Harry had remembered him being and Malfoy seemed to enjoy it.  
  
"Evil, that's what he is." Ron had mumbled as they left the Potions classroom.  
  
"You always say that." Hermione said as they walked toward the Gryffindor Tower to leave their books before going to the Great Hall for dinner.  
  
"Well, it's true. We got three times the homework he gave to the Slytherins, I call that favoritism." Ron complained.  
  
"Not all Gryffindors got that much homework." Hermione said.  
  
"No, only the ones that are in the Gryffindor Team and some others he felt like." Ron exclaimed. "We should go to McGonagall." He said turning to Harry. "Maybe she can do something about this."  
  
"It's a thought." Harry replied. "Melin knows I won't be able to do a third of what he wants us to do."  
  
Hermione tutted behind them.  
  
"What now?" Ron asked annoyed.  
  
"You should at least try to do it first." Hermione responded.  
  
"Why am I going to lose my time doing work that I don't need to do?" Ron said.  
  
"Oh, I give up." Exclaimed Hermione and hurried down the corridor to Gryffindor Tower.  
  
Harry and Ron continued in her wake at a slower rate.  
  
"When are you going to speak with McGonagall?" Asked Ron as they stopped in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady.  
  
"Tonight. After dinner." Harry replied as the Fat Lady asked her usual "password?"  
  
Minutes later they were climbing the stairs to the boys' dormitory. Hermione had not been in the common room when they entered.

----------------------

The Great Hall was full of the usual whispers, chatter and laughter as Harry and Ron walked through the large doors.  
  
"There she is." Said Ron pointing to the Gryffindor Table.  
  
Hermione had not waited for them in the common room and was at that moment talking quietly with Ginny at the Gryffindor table.  
  
Ron and Harry hurried to the table, hoping that Hermione wasn't annoyed with them any more.  
  
"Why didn't you wait?" Ron asked as they sat across from Hermione and Ginny.  
  
"Didn't know how long it would take you two to come down." Ginny replied angrily. "We don't have to wait for you all the time."  
  
Ron was about to reply that it wasn't to her he was talking to, but Harry and Hermione kicked his shins under the table. He glared at his two friends but said nothing more.  
  
"I wished I was in sixth year." Sighed Ginny moving her food around her plate.  
  
"Why?" Asked Harry barely paying attention to the conversation as he had noticed that their new Experimental Charms Professor had decided to take dinner with the rest of the faculty.  
  
"No O.W.L.s that's why." Ginny wailed. "I don't know how I'm supposed to get through this year with all that work."  
  
"That's nothing compared to what we have to do." Ron snapped. "Wished I was back in fifth year, work was much easier then."  
  
Ginny looked horrified at the thought of what awaited her next year.  
  
"Don't pay any attention to your brother. He just doesn't pay attention to what he needs to do. That's why he complains about the work." Hermione said.  
  
"Have you seen the amount of work we have to do?" Ron exclaimed. "Hermione, we're never going to finish it all on time."  
  
"You'll have time for everything if you only budget your time accordingly." Hermione replied.  
  
"Budget your time, you can't make a budget of your time, there's simply not enough hours in the day to that." Ron cried.  
  
"With a little planning, there's always time." Hermione said.  
  
Ron groaned in exasperation, Ginny giggled and Harry continued eating not wanting to get in the middle of their new argument.  
  
"What do you think we'll do at Experimental Charms?" Asked Harry after a few minutes of listening to his friends bicker.  
  
"What?" Asked Ron confused.  
  
"I tried to research a little of what we might learn, but without knowing what the curriculum entails it was hard to find much of anything." Hermione said.  
  
"But if some of the things we'll learn have never been used, you'll not find it in any book, will you." Said Ron.  
  
"That's true, but not all of it will be new, I think. Some of it must just be obscure." Hermione replied.  
  
"Well, we won't really know until we start the class." Harry said.  
  
"When is the class again?" Asked Ron looking down at his food.  
  
"Friday afternoon." Hermione said.  
  
Ron nodded. "Harry, have you decided when we're going to have another D.A. meeting?"  
  
"Sunday." Harry replied. "Since Dumbledore made the announcement I've heard from many students interested in taking part."  
  
"How many Slytherins?" Asked Ginny looking back at the silent table at the other end of the Hall.  
  
"Not as many as Dumbledore would like." Harry said. "Most are younger students, second and third years, a few are fifth and seventh years."  
  
"Probably want the practice for their O.W.L. and N.E.W.T exams." Hermione replied.  
  
"None from Malfoy's crew?" Asked Ron.  
  
"No. None have come near me if it isn't to hex me." Harry said.  
  
"Did you report them to a teacher?" Ginny sounded a little worried.  
  
"No need to, the last time they tried McGonagall was passing by." Harry laughed.  
  
Ron chuckled. "Served them right!"  
  
"Did they get detention?" Frowned Hermione, not liking the idea of Slytherins hiding to ambush Harry.  
  
"I think so, and she talked to Snape and Dumbledore about it as well." Harry reported.  
  
"Good!" Ginny exclaimed. "They're cowards to try to hex you when you're alone."  
  
"They won't try it any time soon." Hermione said sounding absolutely sure of that statement.  
  
"I don't know, Hermione, they're desperate." Said Ron.  
  
"What do you mean Ron?" Ginny turned to her brother.  
  
"Well, think about it." Explained Ron. "They'll know that the Firebolts will help us get ahead of the game and we could easily break their defenses and score goals. With the firebolts we can easily score more goals that we need to win and with Harry catching the Snitch it will be an easy win. So, they'll put most of their attention to defense to try to keep us from scoring and their hope is that Malfoy will catch the snitch before Harry does, as long as we can score sixteen goals more than Slythering, we'll be fine, but their hope is in Malfoy and the Snitch."  
  
"So Harry is the one who's in their way." Ginny said.  
  
"Even if we score enough goals not to need the Snitch to win, they'll still want Malfoy to catch it. If we win because of goals scored and they catch the Snitch, we would've won with a small margin, they still would be in the run for the cup. But, if we score enough goals and I catch the Snitch, they'll need to defeat Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw soundly for them to win the Cup from us." Harry said.  
  
"You won't be on your own from now on, will you Harry?" Asked Hermione sounding a little concerned for the well being of her friend.  
  
"I won't." Harry promised.  
  
His friends sighed with relief, things could get a little dangerous when the Quidditch Cup was in contention.

--------------------

Their second week of classes continued without further attacks on Harry. McGonagall had been complained to about the Potions Master and Dumbledore had to step in to make things better.  
  
As Friday arrived, students sluggishly left their bed looking forward to the weekend.  
  
Hermione led Harry and Ron to breakfast that morning. Ron walked slowly and kept rubbing his sleepy eyes trying to stay awake.  
  
"I don't know why classes have to begin so early." He complained.  
  
"If you would go to bed earlier than you usually do, you wouldn't have any problem waking up in the morning." Hermione said.  
  
"I had to finish my paper for Lupin." Snapped Ron.  
  
"Should've done it earlier instead of leaving it for the last minute." Hermione snapped back.  
  
Ron grumbled but said nothing more. Harry was too busy thinking about the upcoming class to bother with the bickering pair.  
  
Their first Experimental Charms lessons would take place later that day, and he was looking forward to it. But first, they had to attend two hours of Defense Against the Dark Arts and another two of Charms before breaking for lunch and then going into their four-hour lesson on Experimental Charms.  
  
They got through breakfast without any further arguments.  
  
The halls were crowded as students hurried through the corridors on their way to their respective classes.  
  
The morning classes passed fast for Harry. His Disillusionment Charm needed work. Hermione was the only one not assigned extra work by Professor Flitwick. He had no trouble in Defense Against the Dark Arts, in fact he and the other members of the D.A. were ahead of the rest of the class as the curriculum called for them to learn the Patronus Charm.  
  
Harry didn't eat much at lunch.  
  
"You should eat some of this ham, Harry." Urged Ron as he piled his plate with a little from every platter. "You'll like it."  
  
"I'm not too hungry." Said Harry barely eating the little he had placed on his plate.  
  
"Are you sure you don't want some, Harry?" Asked Hermione. "Some vegetables at least."  
  
Harry glanced exasperated at her. "I don't want vegetables. I'm not hungry." He said once more.  
  
Ron and Hermione shared a quick glance before turning their attention back to their own plates.  
  
Harry pushed the plate away from him. "I think I'll take a little walk." He said.  
  
"If you wait a moment, we'll go with you." Offered Hermione.  
  
Ron glanced quickly at her before turning to Harry. "If you want us to go, of course." He added.  
  
"That's fine. I just want to walk a little before lessons. I'll see you in class." Harry said and hurried out the Great Hall.  
  
The corridors were mostly empty as most students were still in the Great Hall eating their midday meal.  
  
Harry walked slowly through the corridors. He wanted some time to think.  
  
Lessons had been more difficult to endure this year and he knew it was because he was not as eager to learn as he had been before. He knew that what he was to learn the next two years would help him in his final battle against Voldemort and he should be pleased about it. But he couldn't help but feel that it was all a waste of time.  
  
True, he had escaped Voldemort four times now, but it was more due to luck than his skills. Voldemort possessed powers and knowledge more advanced than he could ever hope to posses. Unless he wished to immerse himself into the same sort of studies that had attracted a younger Tom Riddle. But Harry had no wish to immerse himself in that sort of magic. He had seen first hand the damage and pain that kind of magic had brought to others and he had no wish to be like Voldemort. It was enough that many believed he was destined to be the next Dark Lord, he didn't want them to be proven right.  
  
He didn't want to be like Voldemort, he wanted to be Harry Potter, a sixteen-year old boy whose only concern should be which Quidditch player to emulate, or which girl he finds more attractive.  
  
Without noticing, he had walked into an empty hall in the West Tower. By the time he looked around he noticed that he had walked to the corridor where the new class was located.  
  
He looked at the doors. Now that he was here he might as well wait in the classroom for the rest of the class to appear.  
  
He saw an open door at the end of the corridor, light shone through the doorway and beckoned to him to enter.  
  
Harry walked slowly to the room. He stood by the doorway as he looked around the classroom.  
  
It looked like any other classroom. Large windows opened toward the grounds, light streamed through the clear glass and lit the room. The walls where covered by large cabinets where he could see pillows, glass orbs, candle holder and other things stored within their spacious drawers. There was a large chandelier hanging from the center of the ceiling where dozens of candles waited to give light once it got dark. The desks were placed in a horseshoe shape around the sides of the room, leaving the front and the middle of the room with enough space for practice or presentation.  
  
In front of the classroom, right before the blackboard, was a large desk. And behind the desk sat the woman Harry had seen with Professor Lupin. He had seen her at the staff table but it seemed that she had decided to leave early to prepare for class.  
  
She seemed to have sensed his presence as she looked up and turned to watch him.  
  
"Er..." Began Harry not knowing what to say to the woman he knew had been a close friend of his mother.  
  
"Hello, Harry. Come in." She said softly.  
  
Harry walked into the room.  
  
"Professor Lupin has told me much about you." She said with a sad smile.  
  
Harry said nothing as he looked at the woman before him. "Er...I suppose." He mumbled the moment he caught himself staring at her.  
  
He blushed with embarrassment when he noticed her studying him. "Remus was right." She murmured. "Just like James, but with Lily's eyes." She sighed sadly. "I always thought James was first enamored of her eyes before he fell in love with her." She commented as she abruptly looked away from Harry and returned her glance to the parchments on the desk.  
  
Harry looked at her. He hadn't heard anybody talk much of his parents. Sirius and Remus had only mentioned them a few times, and only because he asked them to. His Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon never said a thing about them, not intentionally at least. And his professors at Hogwarts only compared his looks to those of his father and the things he found out from them only happened when he eavesdropped.  
  
"I've been told they didn't get along, at first." Harry said thinking about the scene he witnessed in the pensive some months ago.  
  
Professor Holmes chuckled. "It was James' fault, in a way." She said. "From the moment we all met in the Hogwarts Express we knew that James and Sirius would create havoc anywhere they went." She smiled at the memory. "They set off a chain of exploding sap bombs along the corridor of the train."  
  
"Sap bombs?" Harry listened eagerly.  
  
"At the time, they were very popular. A set of spherical orbs with stinksap that could be triggered to explode by a timer. They were discontinued when it was found that the fermented sap could become acidic and do some serious injury." She explained.  
  
"Did they get in trouble?" Harry asked imagining the scene.  
  
Professor Holmes shook her head. "No." She said. "School had not officially begun and they had not been sorted into a house yet. They did receive detention and warning from McGonagall. But it didn't hold them back from doing more pranks, and after Remus and Peter had joined them, their pranks became more elaborate. I think James and Sirius must hold the record for the most time in detention in Hogwarts History."  
  
"Fred and George would say otherwise." Harry exclaimed.  
  
She glanced at him a silent question in her eyes.  
  
"Fred and George Weasley. They're twins that left this past year. My friend Ron is their youngest brother." He explained. "They have become quite legendary because of their pranks."  
  
"I see." She said. "I'm sure Sirius was entertained by them."  
  
Harry looked sadly away. "He didn't get to know them for long." He whispered.  
  
He heard Professor Holmes sigh softly.  
  
"Professor Lupin said you were a close friend of my mother." He said putting aside the familiar pain that memory of Sirius usually brought.  
  
She smiled reminiscently. "We were. I often thought of her when I was away, wondering if she and James had married, if they had any children. If they were safe." She ended quietly.  
  
"You went away before they married?" Harry asked curiously.  
  
"I did. They had just found each other after three years of separation. But I always thought they would be perfect for each other. Lily's quiet ways were a perfect foil to James' exuberance. Their characters were so opposite from each other and it was that that made them a perfect couple."  
  
"What do you mean by three years of separation?" Harry had never heard that his parents had been separated and was eager to know more about them.  
  
"They first became a couple after Halloween of our seventh year, but they didn't last for long. A series of circumstances kept them away from each other. Lily was injured and had to leave Hogwarts returning only until a week before graduation, and James had to leave for a month after his father was killed. It wasn't until three years later that they met once more." Professor Holmes said.  
  
"Was mum, alright? How was she injured?" Harry asked curiously, he knew that she recuperated, as she looked fine in the pictures he had seen.  
  
"It took some time for her to recuperate completely, but she had to spend months in a wheelchair." Professor Holmes said. "By graduation, she was better, still had to do some therapy but she was strong enough to walk once more."  
  
Harry nodded. But he couldn't help notice that she hadn't said how his mother had been injured, and he wondered.  
  
Professor Holmes took a deep breath. "You better take a seat." She said abruptly. "The rest of your classmates should be here soon."  
  
Harry looked at the ornate clock hanging above the door. Lunch would be over soon and he knew that Ron and Hermione would hurry to see if he was here.  
  
Harry looked around to the desks and took one near the front. He hadn't been sitting for more than ten minutes when Ron and Hermione hurried into the room.  
  
"Oh, here you are!" Exclaimed Hermione as she struggled to take deeper breaths. It was obvious that both had run from the Great Hall, as Ron stood panting against the door.  
  
"Told you he would be." He managed to say.  
  
Professor Holmes looked amused. "Your friends, I assume, Harry." She spoke.  
  
Harry nodded.  
  
Ron and Hermione turned to look at her and Harry was sure they hadn't noticed she was there until she spoke.  
  
"Nice to meet you, please take your seats." Proffessor Holmes said.  
  
Ron and Hermione hurried to take a seat at either side of Harry.  
  
"Well?" Whispered Ron to Harry.  
  
"What?" Harry asked.  
  
"What is she like?" Ron said.  
  
"She's nice." Harry said.  
  
"Did she talk about your parents?" Asked Hermione as she pulled out her parchment, ink, and quill.  
  
"A little." Said Harry.  
  
Others students were starting to file in. Some looked at the seat arrangement with surprise but took their seats in a hurry as they noticed their new teacher standing in front looking at them closely.  
  
Harry looked around to the other students. He was not happy to note that Malfoy was in the class, but he was happy to see many of the D.A. members attend.  
  
As soon as every seat was filled, Professor Holmes stepped down from beside her desk and walked into the middle of the room, where every student sitting in the horseshoe-arranged desks could see her.  
  
"Good Afternoon. I'm Professor Holmes and welcome to Experimental Charms." She said to the silent students.  
  
"In this class you will practice some charms that every Hogwarts student should know by the end of their seventh year. These you will learn more about in the next year or two in your Charms, Transfiguration and Defense Against the Dark Arts classes. I will teach you some charms used to prepare Aurors in training as well as some spells rarely used in the magical world. But most importantly, I will teach you charms and spells never used in Ministry history." At these some students looked at each other full of eager anticipation. "They have been created, researched and tested but never used. The Ministry and the Headmaster thinks it's time to bring them out and put them to use."  
  
Professor Holmes was pacing, looking at each student closely as she walked.  
  
"As you may have noticed, you were not assigned a book for this class. The reason for it is that there isn't one book in existence that will cover every spell we'll be using in this class. A series of books will be required, some of which you may already have and some which can be found at the Hogwarts Library."  
  
Professor Holms walked toward the blackboard, with a sharp flick of her wand letters began to appear in the black surface.  
  
"You will need this books:  
  
"Advance Book of Spells, by Miranda Goshawk  
  
"Advance Guide to Transfiguration, by Emeric Switch  
  
"The Dark Arts: An Advance Guide for Defense, by Quentin Trimble  
  
"This books should be in your possession as they are required texts for both sixth and seventh years." Professor Holmes said as students scribbled the list in their notes. "As I have said before, we'll be doing some spells that you may have already learned or are about to learn in your other classes. The magic we'll be using in this class requires a large amount of concentration and a great deal of talent. Some of you may never master some of the advance spells we'll be learning, but don't discourage, it will come in useful if you find yourself in a situation were you need to defend yourself against the Dark Forces."  
  
Professor Holmes took a pile of parchments from her desk and started distributing them to the students. "These are special permission slips, allowing you the use of certain books found only in the Restricted Section of the school Library." She said. "You'll note that each contains a list of the books you will be using in this class. Madam Pince has in her possession a list of names of every student allowed to receive this class as well as a copy of the books you're allowed to use for the research you'll be doing. That means that you may not use this parchment to ask for book that is not on the list. This slip is also non-transferable, the moment you touched the parchment a spell has been activated. If you give this slip to another person, even if he or she is part of this class, you and the other person will find yourselves under a spell that may only be removed by me." She said. The students looked down at the slip in horror. Some dropped it on their desks with nervousness, while others looked at it curiously.  
  
"You'll be using these books when the time comes to move on to the rarely used spells as well as some ancient enchantments we'll be learning." Professor Holmes continued as if she hadn't noticed the scared expressions from some of her students. "We will progress to the Experimental Charms until after the winter holidays and we'll be using research parchments and notebooks to study those." She said coming to a stop in the middle of the room. "I have in my possession a collection of books that may come in useful," she pointed to the back of the room. Every student turned to look at a large bookcase, full of heavy-looking volumes. "You've only to ask if you want to look through them." She said.  
  
"You'll be assigned papers, that I expect will be well-researched and well- written. I do not condone copying, which means I expect every single one of you to work on your own paper. Each report will be more than five feet long, some will be expected to be over ten feet." Ron looked at Harry with consternation. Both knew that the time to ask Hermione to let them copy from her work had come to an end. They didn't dare do so for this class, a teacher who had the foresight to jinx their permission slips would surely have a way to find out if they had copied or not. "Professor Dumbledore has made me aware of a Defense Club formed by some students to practice Defense Spells. The Headmaster has cleared this group to use the spells we're about to use in this class for practice in their meetings. If you are part of that group, make sure you only practice those spells you learn in this class among those belonging to this class only, nobody else. The rest of you, you may use this sort of magic only in this class. Some of the magic I will teach you is of a very sensitive nature and the Ministry wishes to keep tabs on those learning from this class. You may not use this magic outside of the school, unless you have been cleared by me and the Ministry at the end of your education here at Hogwarts."  
  
Professor Holmes started pacing once more. "Unlike the rest of your lessons, this class will not be tested during N.E.W.T. Exams. You will be required to pass a practical and oral exam taken by an elite group of Auror agents. Some of the magic mastered in this class has been charmed to be easily detected by Ministry officials. If you use any of the magic learned in this class without clearance or used in any situation other than in self defense, the Ministry will be made aware of its use and you will be taken into custody. The punishment for the use of this kind of magic without clearance is ten years at Azkaban."  
  
Gasps of horror escaped some of the students. Harry noted that Malfoy looked curious. And Harry could understand why. What kind of magic will they be learning that requires this kind of security? Ten years at Azkaban? One would think they were about to learn how to use the Unforgivable Curses.  
  
The memory of what happened the past June at the Ministry came quickly to mind. He had used one of the Unforgivable Curses, that it had not been as strong as it could've been didn't matter. But he wasn't sorry that he had used it, and wondered if anybody other than himself and Bellatrix Lestrange knew about it.  
  
Professor Holmes was still talking. "We will begin with the spells you are already acquainted with. For the remaining of the lesson, I want you to write a list of every incantation you know, the effects it has and an example of a defensive situation in which it can be used. You will place it on my desk as you leave."  
  
There was a hurried scramble as all students pulled their parchments and quills and started to write their lists.  
  
Every spell I know, thought Harry. He chewed on the end of his quill and wondered where to begin.  
  
Unexpectedly, the image of a large troll came to mind and the memory of their surprising defeat of the troll on Halloween during their his first year played through his mind.  
  
Harry smiled and wrote on his parchment:  
  
Wimgardium Leviosa – Effect: Ability to make things fly. Defensive Situation: Fighting a troll, use Wingardium Leviosa to unarm it and use its own club to knock him out.  
  
Harry laughed silently. Hermione and Ron looked at him with a question in his eyes. He shook his head and continued writing. He certainly had a vast experience in defensive situations.

-------------------------

Three hours and a half later, Harry had covered ten feet of parchment with different sorts of spells and hexes.  
  
"Start putting your things away, please." Ordered Professor Holmes. "Make sure to bring your textbooks with you for our next class and don't forget to leave your parchment on my desk as you leave. I will not give remedial lessons or papers, if you lose one lesson and don't turn in your work, you will be penalized for it."  
  
The bell rang, and students hurried out the door as it was the last lesson of the day and they all were eager for dinner and the beginning of their weekend.  
  
"I thought you said she was nice." Grumbled Ron as the three friends made their way to the Gryffindor Tower to leave their notebooks.  
  
"She was before class began." Harry said.  
  
"That class will be brutal. Can you imagine, going to Azkaban for using some of the spells we'll learn about in class?" Ron exclaimed.  
  
"I'm sure they have their reasons. She did say some of the spells were rare and a few never used before. The Ministry must be afraid the Death Eaters would try to use them." Hermione said.  
  
"Then why teach it at all?" Asked Harry. "Malfoy is in that class. I'll bet he'll tell his friends as soon as he can."  
  
"But you heard Professor Holmes. We're not allowed to use it outside of the classroom and even after graduation we can only use it after being cleared by the Ministry. He wouldn't want to break the rules and go to Azkaban." Hermione said.  
  
"I don't think he'll care." Ron said. "His father is a Death Eater, one of those closest to You-Know-Who. He'll want to stay in their good books."  
  
"And don't forget, the spells are being monitored, if he uses them, the Ministry will know." Hermione reminded them. "It was kind of them to allow us to practice them in the D.A. meetings." She continued. "Of course, we must make sure the others not taking the class are not there when we do so."  
  
"Wonder how Dumbledore got the Ministry to allow us to use it." Ron said thoughtfully.  
  
"Especially when Fudge is so afraid that Dumbledore is making us into his own private army." Harry said.  
  
They were near the Gryffindor Tower, other students walked beside them as they made their way to their common room. But Harry was too busy with his own thoughts to notice anybody around him. He barely noticed when they arrived in front of the portrait, snapping out of his thoughts only when Ron pushed him to get in through the portrait hole.  
  
"When are we having the next D.A. meeting?" Asked Ron as they left Hermione at the bottom of the stairs and made their way up to the fifth year boys' dormitories.  
  
"Sunday night." Said Harry. "I asked the other houses to give me a schedule of their training days so I can schedule the meetings around them. Slytherin is the only one who refused to do so."  
  
Ron sniffed with disapproval. "Well, it'll be their own fault if the meetings conflict with their training."  
  
"Don't have many Slytherins coming to tell me they want to join, even though Dumbledore has announced the club at every dinner announcement." Harry said.  
  
"Their loss. Dumbledore has made the announcements and we are allowing them to take part, if they don't want to, it's up to them. Dumbledore can't say we tried." Ron said.  
  
Harry shrugged. If he was honest with himself, he would admit he wasn't bothered that the Slytherins weren't eager to take part in the D.A. meetings, they had all been dreading their inclusion into their group. But at the same time, he knew Dumbledore will be disappointed by the lack of enthusiasm Slytherin was showing in his effort to bring harmony between houses.  
  
It didn't take them long to leave their book bags and return to the common room. Hermione was waiting for them, and together, they made their way to the Great Hall.  
  
Most of the castle's inhabitants were congregated around their respective tables. Harry looked at the staff table and watched as Professor Holmes conferred with Professor Lupin at one end of the table; and by the frown on Lupin's face and the worried expression on Professor Holmes', he could only assume they were talking about him.  
  
"What's wrong?" Asked Ron when he noticed his friend was not eating.  
  
"Nothing." Said Harry, turning his attention to the platters full of lavish food in front of him.  
  
He noticed Hermione's glance on him, but he chose his food without looking at her. He should've known she wasn't going to keep quiet.  
  
"What did you and Professor Holmes talk about before class?" She asked.  
  
Harry sighed, he had hoped his friends had forgotten that he had been in class before they got there. He really didn't wish to share what Professor Holmes had said about his parents. Not yet at least.  
  
He chewed his food slowly, but he knew both were expecting an answer and wouldn't matter how long it took him to swallow.  
  
"Not much." He said finally. "Only that Lupin had talked about me."  
  
"What did he tell her?" Asked Ron turning his attention back to his food.  
  
"Not much, I guess." Harry replied. "She only mentioned my looks. But everybody who knew my parents mention it the first time they meet me."  
  
"Didn't she mention your mother?" Asked Hermione, her glance telling Harry that she knew he wasn't telling everything.  
  
"Only once, just that she and Professor Holmes had been very good friends when they were students." Harry said. "But I already knew that."  
  
Harry was sure Hermione had more to say, but dinner was over and Professor Dumbledore was about to speak.  
  
"If I can have your attention, please." Said Dumbledore over the boisterous chatter. "I have a few announcements. I want to remind students that the Quidditch Season does not begin until a few weeks yet and teams must schedule training sessions with Madam Hooch for use of the Quidditch Pitch. Schedules will not be changed unless the respective Head of House presents a request to Madam Hooch. I also want to remind students about the new Defense Club, those wanting to join, please speak with Professor Lupin or Harry Potter, I understand the next meeting will take place this weekend.  
  
"Now," he continued. "It's time for you to go to bed. Happy dreams."  
  
Students scrambled from their seats and made their way out of the Great Hall.  
  
Minutes later, Harry found himself in his dormitory. Ron and Hermione remained in the common room to start on their Potions paper. Seamus and Dean had made plans to meet Parvati and Lavender before retiring for the evening. Neville was already asleep.  
  
Harry stood by the window, looking out into the grounds. The sky was dark but clear of clouds, as stars sparkled through its velvety surface.  
  
A movement on the grounds caught his attention. Someone was walking through the grounds toward the Forbidden Forest.  
  
Harry frowned. Who would be walking through the Forbidden Forest at this time of night? Not even Hagrid did so unless he had to.  
  
He could see flowing robes fluttering against the breeze, and he suddenly knew who the person was.  
  
"Brenna." He whispered.

-------------------------------

Harry stayed awake for hours after the rest of his roommates had found their beds.  
  
He was curious about the unknown girl who inhabited the castle. Nobody had seen her, despite the fact that the castle seemed crowded. How did she spend her days? What was she doing here? And why didn't she make an appearance during meals and classes? But most importantly, what was she doing out of the castle at this hour.  
  
He had so many questions about her, and he couldn't forget the last time he had seen her just before the last D.A. meeting.  
  
He knew it was late and he should be sleep, but he was afraid to do so. Many were the nights when he awoke in the middle of the night after a disturbing dream. But he was used to them now and was glad that he awoke before his moans woke Ron and the others.  
  
He abruptly got out of the bed. He couldn't sleep. He needed a walk.  
  
He bent over his trunk. He closed the lid after he found his invisibility cloak.  
  
He looked to his roommates. They still slept.  
  
He covered himself with the cloak and silently left the room.  
  
The common room was empty as the flames in the grate warmed the room. He could hear a soft crooning at one corner.  
  
Harry looked toward the sound and saw the small figure of Dobby cleaning the darkened corner.  
  
Harry decided to wait for Dobby to finish his work. He didn't want anybody to know he was out. Not even the elf, even though he knew Dobby wouldn't say anything if he asked him to say nothing. But he didn't want to take any chances. There were enough people in the castle who wouldn't be too happy with him if it were known that he was out of bed.  
  
It didn't take long for Dobby to conclude his work, and Harry saw him disappear from the room with a sharp crack.  
  
Harry scrambled through the portrait hole.  
  
The Fat Lady yawned as the portrait closed. "Don't be out too long." She called.  
  
Harry smiled as he trotted through the empty corridor. He was sure the Fat Lady knew it was he the one who had just left the Gryffindor common room.  
  
He was climbing a staircase when Filch's voice stopped him in his tracks.  
  
"Keep your eyes open, my sweet." Harry knew Filch was talking to his cat, Mrs. Norris. "I'm sure somebody will leave their common room. Weekends, they're the worst my sweet. Free time, bah! Time to plan mischief."  
  
Harry swallowed a groan that threatened to escape his lips. The Marauder's Map was hidden in his trunk, he had forgotten to grab it when he took his cloak.  
  
Harry waited to see if Filch appeared around the corner. But by the sound of the footsteps, Harry knew Filch was walking away from him.  
  
Harry sighed with relief. He should go back to the common room. Without the map, he was in danger of stumbling with a teacher or Filch, and he would be in trouble.  
  
He couldn't afford to be in trouble. He was determined to finish the school year without getting in trouble. He knew that trouble usually seemed to find him, but this time, he didn't want to be the one looking for it.  
  
But he was already out. And he couldn't sleep. Harry was sure that if he was careful, he could continue on his trek and be back in bed before anybody noticed he was out of the Gryffindor Tower.  
  
He was walking through the corridor in the seventh floor when he noticed somebody walking a few meters away from him.  
  
Harry frowned as he saw the dark silhouette pacing back and forth. It was then that he noticed the person was pacing before the Room of Requirement.  
  
Seconds later, Harry saw the person walk through the conjured door.  
  
Harry stood in place for a moment. He didn't know why he had made his way to that specific corridor, but now he was feeling a little disappointed that somebody had beaten him to the room.  
  
He started to turn back. There was no point in staying there any minute longer. The longer he stayed where he was, the closer he got to being caught.  
  
Dumbledore's voice drifted to him. "What do you think of him?"  
  
"He has potential." A young voice said.  
  
"I always thought so." Dumbledore sounded amused.  
  
"But he loses control too easily, and that could be fatal." The young voice replied.  
  
"He'll learn." Dumbledore said.  
  
"But will he do so in time?" Was the response.  
  
The voices where drifting away and it was harder for Harry to hear them clearly.  
  
"We'll see." Was the last thing Harry heard Dumbledore say.  
  
It was getting late and Harry knew it was time for him to return to the common room.  
  
He found nobody on his way. He could hear some of the portraits whisper to each other while others slept in silence.  
  
It wasn't long before he was the in front of the Fat Lady. It took him a while to wake her up long enough to whisper the password.  
  
As he climbed the staircase to the boys' dormitory he realized something. The young voice talking to Dumbledore had sounded familiar, but he couldn't place it.

------------------------

A/N: There you go. There were a few questions regarding Brenna, don't worry, you'll find more about her as the story continues, it wouldn't do for me to tell you about her before Harry finds out, it would take the mystery out of the story. But you'll learn more soon enough. Thank you all for reviewing, I enjoy reading what my readers have to say (even those who don't agree with me as long as it is constructive criticism) and look forward to see what you think about this chapter. I'm going to see the movie this weekend, so I probably won't have the next chapter done until maybe next week, but I know you will understand. The movie is just more important at the moment : D  
  
Enjoy!!!!!!!!!!  
  
LadyoftheLake 


	59. Sixth Year Chapter 10

A/N: I know, I know, it took longer than I thought it would, blame it on work and the fact that I had to live through a long spell of writer's block and this story was stalled for a couple of weeks. I know there was some confusion a couple of weeks ago, I tried to post this chapter then but somehow I made a mistake and only the Author's Note was uploaded, so I had to take it out and didn't get the chance to try to upload this chapter again until now. But enough, let's continue with the story!

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Disclaimer: Harry Potter and everything related to him is not mine.

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_**Chapter 10 New Alliances  
**_  
It was almost noon by the time Harry left his bed. He had fallen asleep the moment his head hit his pillow after his impulsive walk.  
  
Ron and Hermione were working on one of the tables in the common room.  
  
"Good morning." He mumbled as he took a seat beside them.  
  
"Good afternoon, you mean." Said Hermione watching him closely.  
  
"Here, brought you something from breakfast." Said Ron as he pushed a couple of slices of bread and bacon to Harry. "It'll be time for luncheon soon."  
  
"Thanks." Harry murmured as he began to eat his light meal.  
  
"Did you sleep well?" Asked Hermione, her worried glance traveling through his face as if to determine if he had slept at all.  
  
"When I finally fell asleep." Said Harry. He knew it was no good trying to lie to her. She was too observant and could easily know if he lied.  
  
"Maybe you should go to Madam Pomfrey and ask her for something to help you sleep." Suggested Ron looking at his friend. "Mum gives us some sleeping potion when we have trouble sleeping. I'm sure Madam Pomfrey has a few ready for students."  
  
"I know she does." Said Harry.  
  
"You should ask her tonight before going to bed." Said Hermione. "It might help."  
  
Harry shrugged indifferent. "Perhaps." He mumbled.  
  
He saw Hermione and Ron share a glance of concerned before turning their attention back to Harry.  
  
Hermione pushed a copy of the Daily Prophet to Harry. "You should read that, you'll find it interesting." She said.  
  
Harry looked guarded as he took the newspaper from the table.  
  
The title on the front page caught his attention.  
  
_CORNELIUS FUDGE VACATES THE MINISTRY  
  
For the first time in our world's history, a Minister of Magic renounces after popular pressure.  
  
Last night, Amelia Bones, Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and representative of the Wizangamot, announced in a press conference that Cornelius Fudge has presented his resignation as Minister of Magic.  
  
In an unprecedented decision, the position of Minister of Magic will be vacated at the beginning of the upcoming week.  
  
Cornelius Fudge has served as Minister of Magic for the last twelve years, but his service has been darkened by the late occurrences of the past summer.  
  
During the press conference, Madam Bones explained the actions to follow Minister Fudge's resignation.  
  
"The Wizengamot as well as every head of each department of the Ministry will meet in a series of emergency hearings to list the names of appropriate candidates for the position of Minister of Magic. As this has never been done before, it is appropriate that we discuss and analyze the parchments written at the time of the formation of the Ministry of Magic. Scholars have counseled that said parchments contain clauses on how to deal with similar circumstances. The Wizengamot has chosen me to act as Minister of Magic until such time when a candidate has been elected for the position.  
  
"I'm sure that the public will be happy to know that their voice has been heard and that the Ministry and the Wizengamot is doing everything possible to repair the damage that Mr. Fudge's latest decisions have caused."  
  
When asked if it was known what the ancient parchments say how to proceed for the election of the new Minister of Magic, she said:  
  
"As far as we can gather, the Wizengamot will elect among the heads of the different departments of the Ministry a few candidates to present to the public for popular election at the end of August."  
  
It is unknown how the public will react to this news, but according to the last polls - taken just before the petition for Mr. Fudge's resignation was presented – 68% asked for Mr. Fudge's resignation, 23% thought he should be given another chance, and 9% didn't care one way or the other_.  
  
Harry read the page in silence. He had known that Mr. Fudge's days as Minister of Magic were almost over after the petition had been presented, but the news still came as a bit of a surprise. He had been sure Fudge would have fought until the end for his position instead of stepping aside without a word. But it seemed that Fudge himself had known that his popularity had waned and if the matter had to be decided by popular vote, he would have still lost his job.  
  
"What will happen now?" Asked Harry glancing up to Hermione. He was sure that Hermione had read of the parchments mentioned in the report and probably knew the procedure to follow.  
  
"Well," Hermione frowned in concentration. "The first thing to do is to choose an acting Minister. They've done that. Next the history and records of the head of departments will be scrutinized and reviewed until a list of a few chosen candidates can be released. I'm sure that because of Mr. Fudge's association to Lucius Malfoy and other known Death Eaters, they'll look at the candidates' acquaintances closely. They'll not want the next Minister to have the same problems Fudge had. Interviews with family, friends, colleagues, even with school friends, might take place to determine if the candidate is trustworthy. They'll look for any sign that they might have any association that can be remotely close to the Death Eaters."  
  
"Sounds complicated." Said Ron, looking a little confused by it all.  
  
"It is, which is why they might have chosen the end of August for the popular election." Hermione said.  
  
"Who do you think they'll choose for candidates?" Harry asked flipping through the paper.  
  
"I really can't say. Nothing has been said about the traits they're looking for in the next Ministry of Magic." Hermione said. "But I don't think the list will be long. It might contain only two or three names to present to the public."  
  
"Do you think there are others besides Fudge who have a close association with Death Eaters?" Harry asked.  
  
"Lucius Malfoy had many close friends in the Ministry. Many received his endorsement when they came into the Ministry. His capture last June has damaged a lot of reputations in the Ministry." Hermione said.  
  
"Serves them right." Exclaimed Ron. "Who told them to side with Malfoy in the first place?"  
  
"It's very common, Ron." Said Hermione. "As in the Muggle world, politicians are not known to be totally honest. In some cases they're so corrupt that they bring whole governments into chaos. Money and Power are high incentives to those who are very ambitious."  
  
Harry knew Hermione was right. He was not up-to-date with Muggle or Magical politics, but he was sure that in both worlds there were people who craved power. Voldemort being the worst of this kind.  
  
Harry continued flipping the pages of the newspaper. The story of Fudge's resignation went on for page after page. Graphs of polls, stories about all heads of Ministry Deparments and pictures of the people the Daily Prophet experts thought were prospective candidates for the position of Ministry of Magic.  
  
"What are you going to do today, Harry?" Asked Hermione as she watched him put aside the Daily Prophet.  
  
Harry shrugged casually.  
  
"You should start your Potions paper." She urged him. "There's quite a bit to research for it."  
  
"I already started it." He lied; he really didn't want to think about Potions at the moment. "I thought I might to see Lupin and ask him to help me prepare for the D.A. meeting tomorrow."  
  
"That's a good idea." Said Ron looking up from his paper. "What do you have in mind?"  
  
"Well, I thought we should review first a little of what we did last year, I'm sure the new members should learn those and it wouldn't harm the rest of us if we practice it a little more." Harry said thoughtfully.  
  
Hermione nodded. "Sounds sensible." She said. "What's the first new thing you have planned?"  
  
"I thought a little more practice with the Patronus Charm wouldn't come amiss; after all, we were interrupted before we even got the chance to finish with it." Harry frowned at the memory of the rather abrupt manner their last meeting was broken off.  
  
Ron groaned and even Hermione grimaced at the memory. "Don't remind us." Said Ron.  
  
"I thought to follow up with some of those spells we are going to learn in Experimental Charms – only the ones everybody is bound to learn eventually, not those that we must keep to ourselves." He added when Hermione was about to interrupt. "I wanted to do a mock battle but I'll need to discuss that with Lupin."  
  
"That sounds fun." Said Ron.  
  
"And very useful." Added Hermione.  
  
"I think I'll go and see Hagrid." Harry announced rather abruptly.  
  
"I'll go with you. I can finish this later." Ron said putting away his parchments and books. Hermione followed a little more slowly. "I suppose I'll go as well." She said.  
  
Minutes later, Harry, Ron and Hermione were strolling past the front doors and walking toward Hagrid's hut.  
  
They found him sitting in a stool just outside his door. Fang, the boarhound, lay sleeping at his feet. In front of him, Hagrid had placed a pail of water and another of potatoes. He was peeling them and dropping them into the pail of water as he hummed softly under his breath.  
  
"Hello Hagrid!" They called out as they neared the hut.  
  
"Oh, 'ello!" He waved back.  
  
"Do you need any help, Hagrid?" Asked Hermione as she noticed him dump the potato peelings on the floor by his large boots.  
  
"No, thanks." Said Hagrid.  
  
"Hagrid?" Asked Ron tentatively. "Why did you have us collect insects on your class?"  
  
Hagrid chuckled with amusement.  
  
"It wasn't funny, Hagrid." Ron didn't sound amused.  
  
"It's for our next lesson." Hagrid replied. "They like insects. Their favorite food, besides the fairies, but fairies are difficult to catch."  
  
"What kind of creature are we going to care of now?" Asked Harry with hesitation. He knew very well what kind of creatures Hagrid preferred.  
  
"Insects and fairies?" Asked Hermione thoughtfully. "How did you get your hands on any Augurey, Hagrid?"  
  
"Knew you would guess." Smiled Hagrid. "Had them always. In the forest."  
  
"They're not too bad." Said Ron. "Mum always said they're dead useful, especially around the rainy season."  
  
"What do they do?" Asked Harry as he scratched Fang behind his ears.  
  
"They act as a sort of weather forecaster." Hermione explain. "They sing when rain is near. But I don't fancy having one during the winter. Hearing them all day long could be depressing."  
  
Hagrid was nodding his head. "Dreary sound, they make." He said. "And they aren't too pretty either."  
  
Ron shared an amused look with Harry; they both knew that Hagrid was most likely wishing that he could bring a dragon for the class instead of an Augurey.  
  
"How was yer week?" Hagrid asked.  
  
"Fine enough." Harry shrugged disinterested.  
  
"Experimental Charms was interesting." Ron said.  
  
"Reckoned it'd be." Said Hagrid. "Charms and Transfiguration were Emma's best classes when she were 'ere before."  
  
"Was she as strict as she is now? She seems likely to become another McGonagall." Ron mumbled.  
  
"She just wants to do good." Hagrid said. "Many troubles, she 'ad before she left."  
  
"She said there had been an attack on the Ministry." Harry said.  
  
Hagrid looked closely at Harry. "That's right. Big to do then. Folks at the 'ospital, Muggles and wizards dead." Hagrid shook his head sadly.  
  
"How could that happen, Hagrid?" Asked Hermione.  
  
"It happened last June, Hermione. It's not too hard to imagine that it had happened before." Ron exclaimed.  
  
Hermione glared at Ron and Hagrid looked apprehensively at Harry, who remained silent as if waiting for an answer.  
  
"Er...well. Things were different then, weren't they?" Said Hagrid. "Even the entrance wasn't like today's."  
  
"You mean the entrance to the Ministry was not where it is today?" Asked Harry full of curiosity.  
  
Hagrid shook his head. "Folks entered through Rowe Square, didn't they. Park in front, mansions around it. Nice neighboor'ood."  
  
"I've read of it." Said Hermione. "Is the only wizard populated area in London."  
  
Hagrid was nodding. "Sure is." He exclaimed. "Some of them houses 'ave been there fer centuries, they have. Many were destroyed in the attack." He added sadly. "Many stayed and built their houses again, others moved. A hotel opened up, the park was reserved only to people livin' in the square and the main entrance to the Ministry chang'd."  
  
Harry was thoughtful for a moment. The name of Rowe Square was familiar to him somehow but he couldn't remember from where.  
  
Then it suddenly came to him. It was during his meeting with Mr. Nicholei, his parents' solicitor. There was a property in London, in Rowe Square.  
  
"The Potter House is in Rowe Square." He said with surprise as he thought of it.  
  
The others looked at him with surprise.  
  
"It is." Said Hagrid. "Nice house. Big. Just across the park from the Ministry."  
  
"I haven't seen it yet." Harry said.  
  
"You might do so whenever you like." Said Hermione. "It is yours."  
  
Harry shrugged.  
  
Fang started to whine. "Eh? C'mon boy, time fer yer lunch. Ye lot should be up at the castle too." Hagrid said looking up at the sky.  
  
Harry glanced down at his watch. Noon had arrived and they hadn't noticed.  
  
"We'll visit later, Hagrid." Called Hermione as they moved away from the hut and started toward the castle.  
  
----------------  
  
The Great Hall was full by the time Harry, Ron, and Hermione found their way to the Gryffindor Table.  
  
"Where were you?" Asked Ginny as they sat beside her.  
  
"With Hagrid." Said Ron; starting to pile food onto his plate.  
  
"Lupin was looking for you." Ginny turned to look at Harry, who had been rather silent after leaving Hagrid's hut.  
  
"What for?" Harry turned to Ginny as if he hadn't noticed her there.  
  
Ginny shrugged. "He didn't tell me."  
  
"Maybe he wants to talk to you about tomorrow's meeting." Hermione commented.  
  
"Maybe." Mumbled Harry as he turned to look back at his food.  
  
Chatter floated around him without notice. Harry wasn't really paying much attention to what was around him, the only thing he had in mind was the house in London. He knew that most of his parents' personal things were in that house; Mrs. Nichols had mentioned it. The last months of their lives, before going into hiding in Godric's Hollow had been spent in the Potter House in Rowe Square.  
  
A shadow dropped over him. Harry quickly looked up behind him.  
  
"Hello, Harry. I wanted to speak to you about your meeting tomorrow." Said Professor Lupin with a smile.  
  
"Hello, Professor." Said Harry. "What about the meeting?"  
  
"Why don't you come to my office tonight after your Quidditch training? I have a few things that may come in useful to you." Professor Lupin said before moving away toward the staff table.  
  
"What do you think?" Asked Ron as he looked at the retreating form of Professor Lupin. "What can he have for us?"  
  
"We'll find out later." Said Hermione.  
  
"We'll know soon enough. We might as well go and get the brooms. We want to be at the Pitch before the others." Harry directed as he pushed away his plate.  
  
Minutes later, Ron and Harry were trying to push the crate full of brooms through the portrait hole.  
  
"Wait, wait!" Ron called from within the common room. "The crate can't go through in this angle."  
  
"Just push it to the side a little." Called Harry from the other side of the entrance.  
  
"What are you two doing? Don't damage my hinges." The Fat Lady yelled.  
  
"Don't worry." Harry sounded frustrated. Why was it taking so long?  
  
"Ok, got it." Called Ron and the box started to slide through the opening.  
  
Harry waved his wand and the box hovered a few inches off the ground as he waited for Ron to join him.  
  
"Phew! That thing is heavy." Ron exclaimed as soon as the portrait had closed behind them. The Fat Lady was frowning to their backs as they started to move away with the hovering crate behind them.  
  
"What did you expect? It has ten brooms inside it." Harry said, clasping his Firebolt tightly in his hand.  
  
The corridors were not as crowded as could be expected. The day was sunny, the breeze warm and everybody seemed to be taking advantage of the good weather to spend some time out of doors.  
  
Ron and Harry arrived to the Quidditch Pitch without incident. They took the crate to the changing rooms and waited for the rest of the team to make an appearance.  
  
It didn't take long for the others to arrive.  
  
"I can't wait for next week's game. We're going to sweep Slytherin out of the Pitch with these brooms." Said an excited Seamus.  
  
"They won't know what hit them." Laughed Alexander.  
  
"Let's not get too smug." Warned Harry. "They're not going to play clean. They'll try to do anything to gain the advantage."  
  
Ron scoffed. "Of course they will, they know they don't have any chance else."  
  
"In other words, they're going to play dirty." Said Ginny.  
  
"We should expect it." Harry said.  
  
"Humph! They know they can't win." Exclaimed Andrew Kirke.  
  
"Well, enough of this. It's time for us to practice." Said Harry.  
  
Each member of the team, except Harry, took a broom from the open crate before marching out to the Pitch.  
  
Hermione and others were sitting on the bleachers watching the training. Harry wasn't surprised to see Malfoy and his cronies sitting separate from the others.  
  
"Humph! We should ask Madam Hooch to keep an eye on them." Said Ginny as she followed Harry's glance.  
  
"Scouting, are they? They're scared." Laughed Ron.  
  
"Never mind them. Mount your brooms!" Ordered Harry.  
  
Ten brooms flew into the air. Harry remained on the ground by the crate of balls Madam Hooch had brought out of her office for their use.  
  
The lid of the trunk sprang open and three balls zoomed into the air. As Harry watched the Snitch disappear from sight he bent and picked up the Quaffle.  
  
"Ready?" He asked, mounting his own broom. "Reverse against the team, like always. Ginny, play Seeker for the reverse team." He blew on his whistle, hanging around his neck, and threw the Quaffle into the air.  
  
Four players zoomed into position in struggle for the Quaffle and the practice game began. The game continued on for fifteen minutes, ending when Harry caught the snitch five feet above the ground after a spectacular dive of fifty feet.  
  
"I don't know why you have me play seeker against you." Complained Ginny. "You know I'll never catch up to you, even with these brooms."  
  
"Never mind. We'll do some exercises now." Laughed Harry.  
  
He had the chasers try to score against Ron as four beaters threw bludgers at them from all directions.  
  
The practice lasted long enough until the bludgers collided and went off erratically in all directions, knocking Michelle from her broom. Luckily, she was only a few feet off the ground and landed softly on the grass underneath with no injuries except for having the wind knocked off her.  
  
"Are you all right?" Asked Harry landing swiftly at her side.  
  
"Yeah." She gasped as she sat up.  
  
"Are you sure? Maybe you should go to Madam Pomfrey, just to make sure." Harry said as the others landed nearby and ran to see how their teammate was doing.  
  
"Yes, Michelle. I'll take you to the infirmary." Said Ginny, helping Michelle off the ground.  
  
"All right." Said Michelle, holding her stomach as she tried to breathe deeply.  
  
"Do you need help, Ginny?" Asked Alexander worried.  
  
"No, we'll make it." Smiled Ginny and slowly, both girls started their trek back to the castle.  
  
The rest of the team helped Harry put away the balls before retiring to the changing room to change and pack the brooms.  
  
"Is she alright?" Asked Hermione as she joined Ron and Harry as the team started back to the castle. The crate of brooms hovered between Ron and Harry.  
  
"I think so. I sent them to Madam Pomfrey, just in case." Harry said.  
  
"That was some hit." Ron said. "But it looks like all she suffered was having the wind knocked out of her."  
  
The group walked tiredly but satisfied to the Gryffindor Tower. Those who had come to watch their practice cheered and applauded as they watched them pass by. Only the Slytherin group kept silent and whispered among each other animatedly.  
  
"Never mind them." Warned Hermione as Ron and Harry shared an angry glance. "They won't try a thing. Not yet at least."  
  
"No, they'll wait until the find us alone and they can take us on." Ron grumbled.  
  
"We'll have to tell the others to be careful." Said Harry. "To go about in groups."  
  
"And their wand at the ready." Offered Ron.  
  
"You two are overreacting." Hermione exclaimed. "Everything will be okay. And if they come to the D.A. meeting tomorrow, they'll be more than ready."  
  
"Are they all coming?" Asked Ron looking at Harry.  
  
Harry nodded. "Ginny was already in it, and the others came to me and asked to be part."  
  
"That's something. How many new members must we expect?" Asked Hermione, happy about the knowledge that the D.A. was sure to become one of the most popular clubs in Hogwarts.  
  
Harry seemed thoughtful for a moment. "About twenty, I expect." He finally said.  
  
"That's a good number." Ron exclaimed.  
  
"I thought so too." Harry said.  
  
They had reached the Fat Lady Portrait and after saying the password, they hurried into the common room.  
  
"I'm going to lock these and change. I agreed to meet with Lupin after practice." Harry said motioning to the hovering crate full of brooms.  
  
Half an hour later found Harry walking through the corridors toward Lupin's office.  
  
He found Lupin alone.  
  
"Come in, Harry, sit. Do you want some tea? I've just prepared a pot." Offered Lupin the minute Harry stepped into the office.  
  
"Thank you." Harry said as he took a seat before Lupin's desk. "How was your week, Harry? I understand your first Experimental Charms Class took place yesterday afternoon."  
  
"It did." Replied Harry softly.  
  
Lupin looked at him closely. "How did it go?" He asked as he passed poured tea into a cup.  
  
"It was okay." Said Harry as he took the steaming cup of tea.  
  
It seemed that Lupin understood that Harry didn't want to talk about his new professor and decided to change the subject. "I remembered you mentioned that you wanted to begin your D.A. meeting with some review with an emphasis on the Patronus Charm." Lupin said as Harry sipped his tea silently.  
  
"I thought we should as we were interrupted rather abruptly last spring." Harry said.  
  
"I see. I thought that maybe this would come in handy for that lesson." Lupin said as he pointed to a crate half hidden behind his desk.  
  
"What is it?" Asked Harry with a frown.  
  
"A boggart. It's easy to conjure a Patronus when there is no Dementor in sight, but many wizards freeze at the sight of one and can't conjure a Patronus in sight. This will give students the chance to not only practice their Patronus but their use of the Riddikulus spell to fight boggarts." Lupin explained.  
  
"But...how are you going to make it turn into a Dementor? Not everybody is scared of them." Harry said.  
  
"True. But your boggart is a Dementor. You'll have to stand rather close to the trunk, I'm afraid, for it to turn into a Dementor, but we'll let the others use it to practice their Patronus. Of course, it won't last in that form for long once another person comes into sight. But it will remain in that form long enough for one person to use it. It's going to take long, I'm sure, as we're probably going to have to force it to become a Dementor every time to allow everybody to practice with it." Lupin said.  
  
"Will it last long enough for everybody to get a chance?" Harry asked.  
  
"I hope it does." Lupin laughed. "I don't know if I could get my hands on another if it doesn't. But I think it will last long enough for your original members to practice their Patronus. It's you I'm concerned about. You'll have to suffer the Dementor's presence during the practice, I'm afraid." Lupin said looking at Harry.  
  
"I'll be fine. I can always conjure my own Patronus to stand before me and the boggart while the others have a go." Harry smiled.  
  
"I'm sure you won't have to do so." Lupin replied. "You've said most were able to conjure a Patronus on your last meeting. They might be ready to face this boggart."  
  
"I wanted to see if a mock battle could be arranged." Harry said. "I think it's important that they get some experience."  
  
"It's a good idea, I'll discuss it with Dumbledore. I'm sure he'll agree to it as long as we take some precautions." Lupin said thoughtfully.  
  
Harry nodded his understanding. "I understand."  
  
"Well, is there anything else we must discuss?" Lupin asked cheerfully.  
  
"No, I think that's everything." Harry said.  
  
"I saw your practice this afternoon, the team seems ready for the season." Lupin exclaimed happily. "Of course, I must not take sides; but between you and me, I rather enjoyed it to see you lot in training, I'm sure Gryffidor will keep the Cup this year." He smiled.  
  
Harry was smiling proudly. He enjoyed hearing Lupin's effusive comment. Lupin was the last person connected to his father left, and Harry was happy to know that he enjoyed the training. It was as if he was relaying what his own father would say if he had lived. "I hope so." Harry replied. "The team has worked very hard for it."  
  
"I'm sure you'll be victorious." Lupin said with confidence. "I heard Minerva brag about the team, she's as proud of the team as I am."  
  
Harry grinned happily. It meant a lot to him to hear that he had the support from the one person who had given him the chance to know how incredible Quidditch was.  
  
"I'm sure we'll make you proud." Harry said.  
  
"I'm sure you will." Lupin smiled warmly. "Well, dinner should be served before long. Run along now, I'm sure you must be famished after such an arduous practice."  
  
"Good night." Harry said as he made his way to the door.  
  
"Good night, Harry." Lupin replied just as the door closed behind Harry.  
  
It didn't take long for Harry to make his way to the Great Hall. It was still early but some students were beginning to straggle in as he made his way to the Gryffindor Table.  
  
"Think you're so important, do you Potter?" Said a familiar voice behind him a few minutes after he took a seat. "You and your Firebolts."  
  
"What do you want Malfoy?" Asked Harry unconcerned.  
  
"They won't do you any good, you know." Said Malfoy. Harry could sense his glare but retained himself from turning. If Malfoy wanted trouble, he would give it to him, but he wanted to make sure that everybody present was aware that Malfoy had begun. "Slytherin might not have state of the art brooms, but we'll win."  
  
"Keep saying that and maybe it'll happen." Harry replied.  
  
"What do you want Malfoy?" Ron's voice made Harry sigh with relief.  
  
"Nothing that concerns you, Weasley." Malfoy said with his customary leer.  
  
Harry finally turned to face his adversary. As expected, Malfoy wasn't alone. Crabbe and Goyle stood menacingly at his side glaring at everybody in sight.  
  
"Is there any trouble here?" McGonagall hurried to them.  
  
Malfoy looked wearily at the approaching professor and with a warning glance at Harry and Ron turned toward the Slytherin table, followed closely by his companions.  
  
"Did he try anything?" Hermione asked concerned.  
  
"No, you came just in time." Said Harry just as Professor McGonagall reached them.  
  
"What happened? Were you arguing, Potter?" She asked abruptly.  
  
"I wasn't Professor." Pointed Harry.  
  
"Malfoy just doesn't know when to stay in his place." Ron mumbled.  
  
"What was that Mr. Weasley?" Professor McGonagall snapped.  
  
"Nothing." Replied Ron.  
  
"You two better stay away from Mr. Malfoy, do you hear? I don't want to keep you from the next game." Professor McGonagall said before returning to the staff table.  
  
"It's not our fault Malfoy is such a git." Ron mumbled as he took his seat by Harry.  
  
"You knew he would cause trouble. You shouldn't have come on your own Harry." Hermione replied at Harry's other side.  
  
"I wasn't going to go around looking for you. I was in plain sight of everybody." Harry said angrily.  
  
"What did he say?" Asked Ron abruptly.  
  
"Nothing really." Harry shrugged.  
  
"Must be green with envy. We better win that match, Harry. I wouldn't be able to face anybody if we lose." Ron exclaimed.  
  
"You'll do fine." Hermione sighed with exasperation.  
  
"I scheduled a final training session for Friday night." Harry said. "I want the team to be in shape for Saturday."  
  
"Good idea." Responded Ron.  
  
"Now that that's settled." Interrupted Hermione. "What did Lupin want to speak to you about?"  
  
"We just discussed the next meeting." Said Harry. "He wanted to know if I still planned to do the review and further practice with the Patronus Charm."  
  
"And are you?" Asked Hermione pointedly.  
  
"I said I would." Harry replied.  
  
Food had appeared on the table as they talked. The Hall was now full of hungry students while the teachers watched carefully from the staff table. Talk was loud, laugher raucous and chatter animate. In all, it was a regular Saturday night meal.  
  
It was close to two hours later when Harry found himself back in the Gryffindor Common Room.  
  
Hermione quickly took property of a corner table and pulled out her book bag and started to work on her schoolwork.  
  
Ron and Harry were slower beginning their work, but eventually, all three where busily writing on their respective rolls of parchment with books scattered over the table.  
  
------------------  
  
It was midnight, and Harry was still up. The common room was empty, Ron and Hermione had already retired, but he still remained at the table they had been working on earlier.  
  
Sleep was refusing to come and Harry sat with his head cradled in his arms on the table as he watched the flame of the fireplace dancing on the crate.  
  
He had been having trouble sleeping lately. Nightmares were common, but Harry was getting used to them. So was the dream of him stepping into the closed door in the Department of Mysteries and stepping into fog. He always glimpsed the form of a woman among the mist and her voice always spoke encouraging words to him. Every time he had that particular dream he awoke feeling rested and at peace with the world.  
  
He never caught sight of the woman, but somehow he felt he was familiar with that voice, but he could never remember where after waking up.  
  
He wished now that he could command the dreams he wanted to have. He preferred his vision of fog and mist to that of watching Cedric and Sirius fall to their death.  
  
Tired of his thoughts, Harry decided to go for a walk. There were only two things he needed. His father's cloak and the Marauder's Map. He didn't want to meet anybody on his way.  
  
It took him a few minutes to gather his things and go up to the dormitory. His roommates were sleeping and he quietly sneaked out of the room with the cloak and map in his hands.  
  
The halls were relatively empty when Harry stepped out of the Gryffindor Common Room. The map showed that half the staff was patrolling the halls while the Head Students and a couple of Prefects walked around the main corridors.  
  
He could glimpse the translucent forms of the ghosts walking around the rooms and halls, while the subjects of the pictures looked around and moved from one frame to another to whisper silently to each other. It seemed that Dumbledore was determined that everybody and everything was on guard duty along the hallowed halls of Hogwats.  
  
Harry walked silently through the corridors, trying to keep far away from any other beings around the castle. He had no planned course; he just wandered around until he was surprised to find himself in the corridor of the seventh floor near the tapestry before the Room of Requirement.  
  
He quickly noticed that the room had been conjured and the door to the room stood alone along the wall.  
  
Harry looked around him to make sure there was nobody in sight. His curiosity had taken hold of him and he was extremely curious to know who was using the room at the moment.  
  
He stepped toward the door, and before he could reach it, it opened swiftly before him. He could see a light coming through the open door, but there was nobody on the threshold. He stepped cautiously through the doorway. The door closed just as he stepped inside.  
  
Harry looked around abruptly. He could se no one around. The space seemed endless as if there were no walls surrounding the room. Lanterns hanged midair lighting a small trail around the room. The surrounding area was dark and through the shadows Harry could see glimpses of tables and objects hidden in darkness.  
  
He walked through the lit trail walking deeper and deeper into the room. Presently, he heard a soft humming. The musical notes were soft and enchanting.  
  
"I saw you coming this way." A soft voice said.  
  
Harry looked around nervously. He still couldn't see anybody.  
  
"Couldn't sleep, Harry?" The voice said again.  
  
"Er...no." Harry replied.  
  
"I understand." The voice responded.  
  
Harry stood rooted in place. He didn't know where to go. But suddenly, there was no need. The lanterns flared up and every corner of the room was lit.  
  
Harry couldn't help but notice that in the darkness the room seemed to go on forever, while in light, the room was the same size it always was during their D.A. meetings.  
  
Brenna was sitting silently on a large cushion in the middle of the room. Candles flared around her, hovering a few feet above her head.  
  
"I like this room." She said as her body started to float up a foot above the ground, she straighten her feet and stood up as if she had been sitting in a chair instead of a cushion upon the floor. "It's perfect for meditation." She smiled.  
  
Harry watched her warily. He had almost forgotten about Hogwarts' mysterious visitor. She never joined students and staff for meals, and was never present during any of the lessons. Why was she here? And why was she hiding herself from everybody else?  
  
"I understand your curiosity." She said summoning a goblet from one of the tables against the wall. Harry was surprised to see her using no wand.  
  
"You can do Legilimency?" Harry asked, how else could she know he was thinking about her curious stay in the school.  
  
Brenna chuckled. "I am, but there was no need to look into your mind. You have a very expressive face, you know."  
  
Harry flushed with embarrassment.  
  
"But...er...aren't you a little too young to do Legilimency?" Harry asked. She looked to be around his age, he had noticed that before, but her carriage and manner seemed to be older.  
  
"Perhaps, it was something I had to learn at an early age." Brenna replied. She vanished her goblet with a slight wave of her finger.  
  
"How do you do that?" Harry asked suddenly.  
  
Brenna looked at him closely, as if deciding whether to tell him or not. "It's magic." She said with a smile.  
  
Harry rolled his eyes in exasperation.  
  
Her husky laughter floated through the air. "It's ancient magic." She finally said. "Wands did not exist at one time."  
  
"But I thought nobody could do ancient magic anymore." Harry said with a thoughtful frown.  
  
"In most cases." Brenna said walking back to her cushion. "There is still a place, where only ancient magic is the norm."  
  
"And you were born there?" Harry asked curiously. He couldn't remember hearing about a place where ancient magic was used. Perhaps he could ask Hermione, she was bound to have read of it somewhere.  
  
"I was." Brenna replied.  
  
The room became dark once more and Harry yawned tiredly.  
  
"I better go. Good night." Said Harry as darkness enveloped him and the lanterns lit the trail to the door.  
  
"Good night, Harry." Brenna's voice floated to him.  
  
Days later, Harry wouldn't be able to remember his trek back to his bed, but he eventually was able to climb into his bed and fall asleep as soon as his head hit his pillow.  
  
The sky was dark and cloudy the next morning. Harry and Ron were the last to leave the dormitory. They found Hermione by the stairs waiting for them.  
  
"How was your night?" She asked as they walked toward the Great Hall, watching Harry closely to see if he was still tired. "Was it rather late when you went to bed?" She sounded a little displeased.  
  
"Maybe." Said Harry. "I didn't notice the time."  
  
"You weren't in bed when I woke up at one." Mentioned Ron. "I went down to the common room and you weren't there either."  
  
"I went out for a walk." Said Harry shortly.  
  
"Oh, Harry! You could've been caught." Hermione exclaimed.  
  
"Nothing happened." Harry said quickly. "I took my cloak and the map. I was careful."  
  
"But it was still dangerous." Hermione chided. "Dumbledore has the whole castle on alert. The ghosts are patrolling, the paintings are reporting everything they see, not to mention the teachers and the prefects."  
  
"I know, I know. You don't have to tell me all that, I noticed it during my little walk." Harry snapped.  
  
He saw Ron and Hermione share a concerned look and he sighed with exasperation. He understood that they worried about him, they had been doing so for years, ever since their third year and they thought Sirius was after him. But it seemed that they hadn't stopped worrying since then. And it was beginning to chafe on his nerves.  
  
"I'm fine." He said.  
  
"I'm sure you are, mate." Said Ron with a smile. "Let's hurry to the Great Hall. I don't want to miss my breakfast."  
  
They hurried to the Hall, the various voices and laughter mingled to disguise the silence between the three friends.  
  
They found empty seats in the Gryffindor Table and started to pile food into their plates.  
  
"Where did you go?" Asked Hermione once they were settled.  
  
Harry seemed thoughtful for a minute. "The Room of Requirement."  
  
Hermione nodded in understanding.  
  
"Hermione?" Harry asked, remembering he had meant to ask her about a place where ancient magic was still in use.  
  
"Yes?" She asked looking up from the usual notes she brought down to breakfast.  
  
"Do you know of any place where ancient magic is still used instead of wands?" He asked.  
  
Hermione seemed lost in thought for a minute. Ron was silently listening as he ate his meal.  
  
"I don't remember anything of the sort." Hermione finally replied. "There are legends of course, but that's different."  
  
Ron shook his head with annoyance. "Honestly, Hermione, haven't you learned anything from being in the magical world?" He exclaimed.  
  
"What do you mean?" Hermione sat up with irritation in her voice.  
  
"What I mean is, in the Magical world, every legend has a basis in reality." Ron said slowly as if explaining to a young child.  
  
"Don't take that tone with me." She snapped. "And I know about all legends based in reality. I pointed that out to Professor Binns in our second year, didn't I? That's why I mentioned reading about legends."  
  
"Sorry." Ron said rolling his eyes.  
  
Hermione looked angrily away.  
  
Harry didn't know whether to laugh or snap at them both. But he did want to know about this legend Hermione had mentioned.  
  
He remembered well the last time a legend had become real story. They had all been terrorized by that legendary monster after all, and he himself had confronted it. They had proved the truth of that legend to their great cost.  
  
"Well?" He asked. "What is this legend you mentioned?"  
  
Hermione seemed to deflate by Harry's question. "Let me think. It was quite a while ago since I read of it." She was lost on her thoughts for a few minutes after that.  
  
"Do you know this legend?" Harry asked Ron, leaving Hermione to sort her thoughts in silence.  
  
Ron shrugged. "I might, I'm not sure. There are a lot of legends one hears when growing up in the Magical World. I'm not sure which one she's thinking of. I seem to remember Mum used to tell us a story about a magical palace where great witches lived. They were said to be direct descendants from the first witches and wizards in the world."  
  
"What else did your Mum tell you?" Asked Harry curiously.  
  
"Hmmm...I don't really remember. Maybe Ginny does." Ron said.  
  
"Ron's right. There are many legends about ancient magic. The one about the castle being one." Said Hermione. "But the most common is the one about the isle."  
  
"The isle?" Asked Harry curiously.  
  
"Yes, that's where the palace is supposed to be." Ron exclaimed.  
  
Hermione glared at him into silence. "Many legends originated from it, the one about the palace for one. There are others about the isle itself, and some about the inhabitants of the isle." She explained.  
  
"What does it have to do with ancient magic?" Harry asked confused.  
  
"Well, it is said that it was the origin of Magic itself." Hermione replied. "According to the legend, the isle is in the North Sea off the eastern Scottish shores." She explained to the attentive boys before her. "Druidism was the norm in the area at the time, this was a holy place to them. They believed that the Goddess herself lived within the confines of the small isle. And then a child was born, who had magical abilities. They worshiped her as a high priestess and the incarnation of the earth's power, of the goddess herself. She grew up and eventually had children, all with the same abilities as her mother."  
  
"That's right! She was the first magical being!" Exclaimed Ron. "The Lady of the Isle."  
  
"The Lady of the Isle?" Asked Harry.  
  
"That's the title given to her." Hermione said. "She made the Isle her home, she became its ruler and guardian. Eventually her descendants left the Isle and roamed the world, thus establishing the firsts magical communities."  
  
"What happened to the Isle?"  
  
"Well, according to the legend, the Isle was sort of the meeting place for those with magical blood. The location of the Isle made it possible for its inhabitants to stay peaceful from Muggle intervention. Muggles eventually forgot about the Isle and they were eventually Christianized. In the Dark Ages, when witch hunting began and most of the magical world went into hiding, the Isle kind of disappeared." Recounted Hermione.  
  
"Disappear? How can an island disappear?" Asked Harry bewildered.  
  
"It's a legend Harry. If the Isle truly existed once, then it stands to reason that it still does." Said Hermione. "In fact, it was this legend that gave birth to the legend of the Lady of the Lake in the muggle world and other similar in the magical world."  
  
"Okay, let's say that it does exist." Said Harry. "Then how could it have been hidden for so long, not only from the Muggle world, but from the magical world alike. I don't hear any wizards talking about an island where magic was supposed to have been born."  
  
"A disillusionment charm of some kind." Said Ron. "The same works for the Ministry and Hogwarts, it could work for an island in the middle of the sea." Said Ron.  
  
"And legend has it that it's surrounded by fog. Any boat caught in the area could be lost for days until it clears the mist." Hermione said.  
  
"And if by chance they stumble into the shore of the island, they can easily do a memory charm. If all the inhabitants are magical, that is." Ron said.  
  
"And all its inhabitants use ancient magic?" Harry asked.  
  
"That's what the story says." Hermione replied. "The Isle was already stuff of legends by the time the first wand was invented."  
  
"Stuff of legends? What kind of legends?" Harry asked.  
  
"Well, according to the legends, the magical abilities of the people of the island were never as strong as the Lady's, and the further they went from the island their abilities diminished. At any case, wizards and witches found that their power could be conducted through certain objects that acted as a sort of conductor. Before wands became popular, there were swords, scepters, canes, you name it. They used anything that could be charmed to be used as a conductor of magic. When wands became popular and magical governments decided to make them the standard tool, these magical objects became obsolete and in some cases dangerous. That's when the International Confederation of Wizards was created and they mobilized the different Ministries to gather all these objects. Some were easily destroyed, others were stripped of the magic and used as they were originally made to serve, and there were a few that were too powerful or too important to destroy. Another legend says that a group representing the Confederation was sent in search of the Isle, and when they found it, they gave the items to the Lady, according to the story she made a vow to protect the items so that nobody could use them for evil, only the one person with the power to defeat the darkness would be able to get to them and use them for his mission. The truth is, nobody really knows what happened to those items, some believe they are hidden in the Department of Mysteries." Hermione finished her narration. She turned her glance back at the food that had cooled in her plate.  
  
"Are these items so important?" Asked Harry in surprise.  
  
"One is said to be Excalibur and its scabbard." Hermione said with a smile.  
  
Harry laughed. "You are baiting me."  
  
Ron smiled. "She is right. Excalibur was said to have belonged to Merlin himself. It is thought to be one of the most important magical object in history."  
  
"Of course, the scabbard is more important." Hermione pointed out.  
  
"Why?" Asked Harry, still thinking that what Hermione just told him couldn't possibly be true.  
  
"Because, as long as its owner wears it, he can never be hurt." Hermione explained. "Or so the legend goes."  
  
"King Arthur died." Harry smiled amusedly.  
  
Ron chuckled and Hermione looked at him exasperatedly.  
  
"Honestly!" She exclaimed. "Don't you ever read?"  
  
Harry shared an amused glance with Ron.  
  
"Now why would we do that, when we know that you are going to tell us?" Ron replied.  
  
Hermione glared at the two snickering boys before here. "Fine." She said slamming her fist against the table. "I won't tell you anything then." And angrily left her seat.  
  
"Should we go after her, you reckon?" Asked Ron watching Hermione walking away.  
  
"I think so. I don't fancy taking notes in History of Magic." Smiled Harry.  
  
Harry and Ron quickly left their seats and hurried after Hermione.  
  
"Hermione, wait!" They called just as she had started up a set of stairs.  
  
"I don't have anything more to say to you." She said angrily.  
  
"We're sorry, Hermione." Ron said looking at her with hopeful eyes.  
  
"We never meant to make fun of you. You know we rely on you." Harry said.  
  
Hermione looked at him askance.  
  
"We do." Ron nodded vehemently. "We'd never have survived this far if it hadn't been for you."  
  
"Now you're just buttering me up." Hermione exclaimed.  
  
"No, it's true. I don't think I would've survived first year without your help. Not to mention all your help throughout the years." Said Harry.  
  
Hermione flushed with pleasure. Harry knew that she was pleased by the knowledge that they relied so much on her.  
  
"I hate it when you make fun of me." She mumbled.  
  
"We're sorry." Ron said taking her hand and pulling her toward them.  
  
"We didn't mean to make you angry." Harry replied.  
  
"Well, all right." Hermione said softly.  
  
Harry and Ron smiled happily. It had been easier than they thought.  
  
"Come. Let's go to the common room. We might as well make arrangements for tonight's meeting." Harry urged them.  
  
-------------  
  
The day passed so quickly that they barely had time to finish their schoolwork before they left the common room toward the seventh floor that evening.  
  
"Are you sure we should continue to use the room?" Asked Hermione as they walked back and forth in front of the tapestry.  
  
"Yes. We can easily obtain what we need in this room than in any other." Harry said as the knob appeared on the wall.  
  
They walked in to find the room the same as they always did.  
  
"Did you tell Lupin?" Asked Ron.  
  
"He knows." Said Harry as he watched Hermione pull the cushions and place them around the room.  
  
"I'm going to wait for the others in the hall. The new people won't know what to look for when they come." Harry said.  
  
"All right. We'll finish things in here." Said Hermione as she pulled one of the books from the shelves and sat on one of the cushions to read.  
  
Ron shared an amused glance with Harry.  
  
Harry left the room and waited. The others should be arriving soon.  
  
He hadn't waited for five minutes when he saw Seamus and Dean walking toward him.  
  
"What are you doing here? Are we meeting somewhere else?" Asked Dean as soon as he saw him.  
  
"No, same place. I just want to make sure the new people know where to go." Harry said.  
  
"Oh, alright. See you inside then." Said Seamus and they walked toward the room.  
  
Others came upon their heels. Ginny, Neville and Luna were next to arrive, then Alexander and Michelle. Terry Boot and Anthony Goldstein arrived followed closely by Hanna Abbott, Ernie Macmillan, Susan Bones and Justin Finch-Fletchley. Others came after that. Harry was happy to note that their group had grown to twice their original number, considering that they had lost seven members since their last meeting on their previous year.  
  
Proffesor Lupin was the last to make an appearance. The trunk with the boggart was hovering closely behind.  
  
"Everything ready, Harry." Smiled Professor Lupin.  
  
"Yes. They're all here." Harry replied.  
  
"Good, let's see how they do with our friend, shall we." Professor Lupin said and both walked to the room.  
  
It was complete pandemonium inside. Everybody was talking at once as the new members tried to fit in with the closely-knit group.  
  
"Will you lot be quiet!" Ron was screaming.  
  
"Quiet!" Screamed Ginny.  
  
The room became silent.  
  
"There you go, big brother. Now you can talk." She grinned cheekily at Ron.  
  
Ron glared at her for a moment before facing the rest of the group. Everybody was looking at him curiously.  
  
"Er..." He glanced up to see Harry and Lupin look at him with a smile. "Right. Now that Harry and Professor Lupin are here, they'll take over." He said and quickly sat down next to Hermione.  
  
Hermione and Ginny tried to hide their laughter behind their hands while Ron glared angrily at them.  
  
"Thank you, Ron." Harry said with a snicker. "I though we should begin with introductions. Most of us have worked together and know each other, but we have some new members we must initiate into the group."  
  
There were a few chuckles. Some of the new people seemed scared of what could happen.  
  
Harry glanced at the grinning members. "No funny business you lot."  
  
Hermione looked at him with approval.  
  
"If you will stand one by one, say your name and why you wished to be part of the club." Harry directed.  
  
"I'll begin." Announced Hermione. "I'm Hermione Granger of Gryffindor House and we began this group to practice Defense Against the Dark Arts." She said and sat on her cushion pushing Ron to stand up.  
  
"Alright! Er..." Ron looked around the group all of whom were looking up at him. "Yes, well, I'm Ronald Weasley also Gryffindor House and as Hermione, we wanted to practice Defense after that toad of Umbridge took over."  
  
"Ron!" Hermione exclaimed while there were grunts of agreement all around.  
  
Harry smiled with amusement but Hermione's disapproving glance wiped the smile off his face. "Yes, well, if you were part of the club last year just say you were an original member, I don't think we need to know how you feel about Umbridge." Harry said.  
  
Introductions continued, the new members coming last as some mumbled or stuttered their names.  
  
Once everybody had introduced themselves, Harry turned to Professor Lupin. "As you all know, our sponsor teacher this year is Professor Lupin." There was a loud explosion of applause as they all turned to look at Lupin.  
  
Professor Lupin smiled to the students. "I'll help you along to the best of my ability." He said.  
  
"Well, Professor Lupin and I discussed our lesson plan and decided that it would be best if we review what we did last term. It will help you to remember and it will help the new members to catch up." Harry explained. "So everybody divide into pairs. I would prefer if each pair is composed of a new member and an original member so that you can help each other."  
  
Everybody scrambled to their feet and divided in pairs.  
  
"We'll start with the Disarming Spell. Remember, it's Expelliarmus." Harry ordered.  
  
For fifteen minutes, Harry and Professor Lupin, patrolled around the room watching as wands flew from one student to another.  
  
From the Disarming Spell they moved to the Impediment Jinx and to the Stunning Spell.  
  
They practiced for more than an hour, moving from one spell to another until finally Harry ordered them to stop.  
  
"All right, we have an hour left." He said looking down at his watch noting that it was still early for dinner. "We'll practice the Patronus Charm. Some of you were able to conjure a Patronus the last time we met, some of you needed time. We'll practice some. Professor Lupin brought something along to help us practice."  
  
Harry turned to look at Professor Lupin.  
  
"I want to see you practice with the charm first. Then we'll move on with the lesson." Said Lupin.  
  
The group divided into two lines practicing the charm opposite each other. Harry walked along one line, while Professor Lupin walked along the other. After half an hour of practice, only a fourth of the group was able to conjure a corporeal Patronus.  
  
"Good enough. The Patronus Charm is an advance form of magic and not many are able to conjure one properly." Professor Lupin said to the assembled students around him. "But if you were able to conjure one, you must remember that it's easier when you are doing it in an empty room instead of in front of a Dememtor. Which is why I brought this along." He said motioning to the trunk that had stood against one of the walls throughout the lesson.  
  
"What's in there?" Asked Ginny curiously as she saw the trunk give a sudden wobble.  
  
"A boggart." He said.  
  
"But how is that going to help us?" Asked Terry Boot with narrowed eyes.  
  
"Harry's boggart is a dementor." He said. "We'll see how you do when a dementor is in sight."  
  
Harry braced himself as Lupin turned to the trunk. He didn't cherish the thought of standing before a Dementor, but he was confident that he could stand the rest of the lesson.  
  
The others moved restlessly as Lupin dragged the trunk near Harry. Some looked worried while others looked curiously at the preparations.  
  
"Those who were able to conjure a Patronus please step forward. The rest take a seat around the room and watch." Ordered Lupin.  
  
The chosen group stepped nervously in the middle of the room, the others took their cushions and formed a semi-circle around the group.  
  
"Stay there." Ordered Professor Lupin to the group. "Don't get any nearer, I want the boggart to sense only Harry."  
  
Harry was nearest to the trunk. Professor Lupin stepped aside, leaving Harry the only one in close proximity with the trunk.  
  
"When the door opens, the boggart will turn into a dementor. Harry, conjure a Patronus to stand beside you but don't order it to attack. The rest of you line up, as soon as the dementor steps out you'll try to conjure your own patronus, one by one." Lupin explained. "As soon as you ordered to attack, the boggart will change into your boggart step aside to allow Harry to step up, it'll turn into a dementor again and the next person will have a go." Hermione was the first in line.  
  
Lupin sent a jet of light to the trunk the lid opened and a dementor came out. Harry conjured his own Patronus to stand before him and the boggart. Hermione stepped up and tried to conjure her Patronus.  
  
Her first efforts were not successful until on her fourth try a silver otter formed and waddled toward the Boggart Dementor. The dementor stumbled.  
  
"Step back, Hermione." Ordered Professor Lupin. "Harry, let your Patronus move aside, allow the boggart to see you."  
  
The silver stag moved aside, Harry stepped forward. The boggart saw him and advanced. Harry hurried to stand behind his own Patronus. Cho was next in line.  
  
The half hour passed quickly as each person in line had a try against the Boggart Dementor. Harry was exhausted by the time the last person succeeded conjuring his Patronus. Ron had the hardest time as the effect of the Dementor's power got hold of him before he was able to conjure his own Patronus. But for minutes afterward he sat with his arms around his knees and breathing deeply.  
  
"Here." Said Professor Lupin above him. He placed a chocolate bar into Ron's hands. "It'll help you."  
  
Ron took it and gingerly unwrapped it.  
  
"Harry." Lupin turned to look at Harry who had tried to shove the boggart back into the trunk. "You better pass this chocolate to the others." He said giving Harry a bag full of chocolate bars.  
  
The room was emptied soon after, leaving only Harry, Ron, Hermione and Professor Lupin behind.  
  
"Are you all right, Ron?" Asked Hermione sitting by Ron.  
  
"Yeah." Ron whispered sitting back against the wall. "I don't fancy meeting a real dementor any time soon."  
  
"I don't think anyone does." Said Harry smiling wearily.  
  
"Sorry, mate. Now I know why your boggart is a Dementor." Ron replied.  
  
"You'll feel better in a minute." Said Lupin. "The chocolate helps."  
  
Harry nodded in agreement as it had been his experience in the past that chocolate had helped greatly when he came in contact with a dementor.  
  
"Are you sure you are okay?" Asked Hermione by his side.  
  
"I'm fine." Said Ron taking a deep breath.  
  
Hermione seemed skeptical but as he was standing up and looked better she remained silent.  
  
"Go to your dormitory and rest." Lupin said. "You'll feel better in no time."  
  
"If you say so." Ron mumbled.  
  
They left the room behind as they made their way out of the seventh floor corridor and started toward the Gryffindor Tower as Lupin made his way to his own office.

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A/N: To be really truthful, I've had this chapter written for more than a month, I just like to have a spare chapter done before I upload in this site to make sure that future chapters don't mess with the story already written. It happens sometimes and I have to change some things to keep the story in the same plane. Now, I wanted to ask a favor of my readers. Summers are always rather busy for me and even though I do get time now and then to write I always find myself struggling to make time to edit the chapters once they're done for me to upload them here. If anybody is interested in becoming my beta for the rest of this story I would truly appreciate it. I have to warn you though, this story is not nearly done and it will probably be very long (as if it wasn't already!), and there's also another story that I started working on. It has nothing to do with this story and it looks like it will be rather short compared to this one. I haven't started uploading it to this site yet, I want to begin on the right foot with that one so I want to see if anybody is willing to be beta for that story before I begin uploading. It's a RW/HG story, so if you're interested, let me know. Just write in your review letting me know how to contact you if you're interested in being my beta for either story.  
  
Thank you all for Reviewing, and welcome to those of you who are new to the story, I'm glad you're enjoying it. Somebody asked about time traveling fics (sorry I don't remember who), check in my favorite stories list, I added a few since the last time I updated it.  
  
I hope you enjoyed the chapter (I'm just not sure about the chapter, I think I'll have to think about it and maybe change it in the future), don't forget to review. : ) 


	60. Sixth Year Chapter 11

A/N: Sorry for taking so long, as I've mentioned before, summer is my most busy time of the year and I find myself with little free time. Happily, my summer contracts are over and I will have more time to write and do the things that I like to do. It was about time! I know some of you may think the same thing, and as long as I don't get called to do another major project, I'll be able to put aside some time to write and read more fanfics. Not many of you know, but I started a new story. The chapters are shorter than you're used to from this story, and the story is so much different than this one. I'll give you the address as soon as I start uploading it into (so far, it's only posted in ), or you will be able to find the link in my profile. Thank you all, especially to those of you who have been reading this story for ages, and welcome to those of you who are new to this story I hope you're all enjoying the story and I'll try to have the next chapter as soon as it can be edited. Alexa

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Disclaimer: See previous chapters for a more detailed line, but in short, I own nothing.

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_**Chapter 11 Bitter Clash**_

**__**

The week passed quickly for Harry. Between classes, schoolwork and Quidditch Practice, there was no room for worry or sorrow.

The closer the Griffindor vs. Slytherin Quidditch match came, the rivalry between the two houses grew. The outcome was greatly discussed among students, and even Professor McGonagall was seen on the edge as the day approached.

Harry remained optimistic, regardless of the fright and anxious state of the rest of the team. Half of the team was new, and the four who did have game experience had only been a part of the team for a year. Harry was the most experience member of the team and the others looked up to him.

Two days before the game, Ginny and Seamus were attacked by a group of zealous Slytherins as they chatted quietly about the game. As luck will have it, a group of D.A. members was nearby to help them, and the Slytherin attackers found themselves in the Hospital Wing with a furious Professor McGonagall.

Ron also found himself cornered, despite the fact that he was a Prefect and he was walking along a crowded corridor. To his relief, not only was Hermione nearby by, other Gryffindors who took offense to the fact that their keeper found himself between a wall and a wand.

After several violent occurrences, Harry called a meeting for the team in the Gryffindor Common room.

"I've just had enough!" He exclaimed angrily. "It has become rather obvious that Slytherin will do anything to win the match!"

"At this rate, the ones who'll be playing is the alternate team," grumbled Ron.

"Not even them," said Seamus angrily. "Only this morning somebody tried to push Colin down a staircase."

"I'm glad Professor Flitwick was there," said Colin, shuddering at the thought of what could have happened if the Charms Professor had not been present, "he saved me from a nasty fall."

"Accident my ass!" Ron exclaimed.

"Ron!" chided Ginny.

"Well! I just can believe they couldn't find who did it. That was no accident, it was on purpose."

"We know that, but we can't prove it," Alexander remarked. "The landing was full of students, it was the middle of the day and everybody wanted to go to the Great Hall for lunch."

"And I didn't see who did it," said Colin, "I only felt the push."

"Well, thankfully we didn't lose Colin, but we must be careful and keep our eyes open to any more attacks," said Harry. "I don't want to see any of you in the hospital wing with a serious injury. Believe me, it's not a happy experience."

"But what can we do? They're becoming bolder by the minute! They pushed Colin in the middle of the day in a crowded staircase. They even cornered Ron coming out of class and he's a Prefect," exclaimed Jack Sloper, who was becoming extremely scared as every attack was reported. "I never thought being part of the team was going to be so dangerous."

"If you don't like it, you can leave!" snapped Ron. "Colin or Dennis can take your place."

"Will everybody calm down?" yelled Harry above the noise the others were making as they bickered among themselves. "Nobody is leaving, and Jack has every right to be scared," he said, once silence had prevailed among the team members.

There were some commiserating mumbles.

"Keep your wand at the ready," said Harry. "And try not to be alone. We've been lucky that they haven't caught any of us on our own, otherwise, not all of us would be present here today. Professor McGonagall has assured me that she has the support of other professors and the ghosts to keep an eye on the corridors and the grounds. If anything happens, make sure that you tell a teacher immediately. Thankfully, nobody can get to the brooms, or they would no longer exist."

The others nodded. They were all wary of the Slytherins and did not wish to be caught unawares by one of their members.

"We only have two more days to go until the game," Harry said. "Try to keep out of trouble until then, they would love you to get detention to keep you from playing."

"Gits," somebody mumbled.

"Let them try," Seamus said. "They'll not take me out."

"That's right!" Several voices called out in unison.

"Too bad George and Fred aren't here anymore," Ginny said thought aloud, "they would've done something to even up the odds by now."

"Just send them an owl and let's see what they have to say on the matter," laughed Ron, also thinking of what their older brothers could've done to the Slytherins.

Everybody laughed thinking of the former beaters and legendary pranksters of Hogwarts.

"Well, let's get to dinner. And make sure you are not alone at any time," Harry said, dismissing his teammates.

"What do you reckon, Harry?" asked Ron as most of the team left the Common Room to travel to the Great Hall in search of their evening meal.

"I think Slytherin is becoming desperate. They haven't won a game against us for quite a while and the brooms have made them angry."

"And desperate times require desperate measures," said Hermione who had been sitting quietly at one corner of the room as the meeting had taken place. Nobody had seen her in her corner, and Harry and Ron had forgotten she had been there all along.

"You mean they'll continue their attacks?" Ron asked apprehensively.

"They'll try anything," Harry said angrily. "See what they tried to do with Colin."

"But we aren't sure that it was Slytherin!" argued Hermione reasonably. "Perhaps it was an accident."

"Don't be thick, Hermione, it was Slytherin all right!" Exclaimed Ron.

Hermione glared angrily at Ron but before she could retort, Harry spoke, "she's right, we can't prove anything. Nobody saw a thing, and the landing was crowded and everybody was in a hurry to get to the Great Hall. Colin might have felt a little push, but it could've been an accident."

"So what do we do?" Ron asked.

"As I said. Let's keep our eyes open and keep our wands at the ready," Harry replied.

--------------------

Nothing serious happened to the team on the next couple of days. But the rivalry between the two houses was as strong as ever.

Several students reported to Madam Pomfrey suffering from spells gone wrong during impromptu duels along the corridors. Filch pleaded constantly to Dumbledore to allow him to use extreme measures when he caught students using magic in the halls. And Professor McGonagall seemed cold when speaking with Professor Snape during meals; everybody believed she thought Snape allowed Slytherin to attack the members of the Gryffindor team.

Finally, the day of the match was upon them, and everybody was looking forward to it what would be a spectacular match.

Harry awoke early Saturday morning. The sun was rising and the sky was pink. Harry stretched his limbs as he lay on the bed. He could hear the soft humming and slight sounds Lotty made as he prepared the Quidditch robes Harry was to use for the game.

Harry slid the curtains open and left the bed.

"Good morning, Lotty!" he said with excitement.

"Good morning, Master Harry," Lotty piped. "Lotty has prepared Master Harry's robes, Sir."

"Thank you, Lotty," Harry smiled. "You can go and have some breakfast, you deserve some time off." He said, thinking only about the game they were due to play in a matter of hours. He barely noticed when Lotty bowed promptly before him and left.

Harry hurried into his robes and noticed something new in them, Lotty had placed a pin on his collar.

Harry looked at it closely, it had the golden Gryffindor Lion over a red shield, and an engraved C on the center. Harry smiled and looked at the back. There was a name and a set of dates.

_James Potter: Gryffindor Captain 1974 – 1976. _

Underneath was a new name:

_Harry Potter: Gryffindor Captain 1996 –_

Harry looked at the two names mesmerized. Throughout the years he had inherited some of his father's things: the invisibility cloak, the Marauders' Map, not to mention the land and monies that were left in the care of others until he was ready to care for them; but the appearance of this new item made him wonder about his father more than anything.

He knew his father had been a good Quidditch Player. Hadn't he heard Lupin, Sirius and others say the same thing? But what was his father really like? He only knew a little from the stories he heard from his father's friends, teachers, and of course, Snape. But they were not enough to give him a clear idea of what James Potter had been like in life. All the stories had been colored by the relationship other people had had with him. The teachers said he had been a good student, a prankster, and an intelligent boy. Lupin and Sirius had said he had been a good friend, their leader in their games and pranks and an excellent Quidditch player, while Snape had always made James Potter seem like an arrogant git, bully and mean spirited.

Harry didn't really know what to think of his father. But all the conflicting stories could only make his sadness greater. How could he possibly feel anger or pride in his own father if he had never had the opportunity to know him?

He was shaken from his thoughts by the sound of Ron's curtains sliding around the bed.

"How long have you been awake?" he asked with a yawn.

"For an hour maybe," said Harry looking at his disheveled friend.

Ron grunted sleepily as he turned to his trunk to start getting ready for the day.

Harry waited patiently. It wasn't until half an hour later when the two friends found themselves in the common room until they could go down to the Great Hall for their breakfast.

It didn't take long for the rest of the team to start making an appearance in the common room. When everybody was accounted for, Harry led the team out of the common room toward the Great Hall, each grasping a shinny Firebolt in the hand.

There was a lot of expectation in the air. Gryffindor and Slythering ate at oppoiste sides of the room, glaring at each other during the meal. Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw were making their support of Gryffindor clear, which made the animosity from Slythering much stronger.

Professor McGonagall's wary eye peered at them closely, it was clear she didn't want any problems before the game began. Snape sat stoic on his seat taking no notice of the heavy undercurrents felt throughout the Great Hall.

Harry was aware of the anticipation felt by every inhabitant of the castle, and it was making him nervous. Until that moment, his Captaincy had been an object of pride; now, he was cognizant of the fact that his reputation as Captain of the Gryffindor Team depended on the team's performance. If by chance, they lost the game, his term as Captain would not be a happy one. They needed to have a great performance that morning and win the match!

His appetite had abated, and Harry sat beside Ron and Hermione pushing his food around the plate.

"Aren't you going to eat anything?" asked Hermione looking at his plate.

"I'm not hungry," he said.

Hermione seemed to struggle with herself, as if deciding to urge him or not. At the end, she kept silent.

"I'm nervous," whispered Ron at Harry's other side.

"Don't say it," replied Harry, "I'm trying not to think about it."

"Sorry."

Harry looked around the table. It seemed that he and Ron were not the only ones that were nervous. Ginny was pushing her food around in her plate as well, Seamus was silent when he usually kept talking during the meals with Dean. The Creeveys seemed sick, Alexander played with his napkin, Michelle kept looking under the table to see if her broom was all right, and Andrew and Jack grasped their clubs tightly, taking no notice of their food. Damian was the only one who seemed to be enjoying his meal.

"Right!" exclaimed Harry, pushing his plate away from him.

The others looked at him abruptly.

Harry stood, "team, let's go."

The Gryffindor Quidditch team left the Great Hall as the sound of applause and cheers followed them out.

Harry led his team out of the castle. They hurried through the grounds to the Pitch, where the game was scheduled to begin in less than an hour.

They saw Hagrid cutting wood nearby, owls flying in and out the Owlry, and Madam Hooch walking to her office near the Quidditch Pitch.

In the changing rooms, everybody settled and looked expectantly at Harry to hear his pep talk.

"Er... Yes." He mumbled as he tried to get his tension under control. "I want everybody to take a deep breath." He ordered suddenly.

The others looked surprised but did as he asked.

"Good. Now, don't think about Cup or about Slytherin." He said. "Just go out there and have fun. We have the best team, the best brooms and the best talent."

"That's right!" Several exclaimed.

"Don't allow any of their tactics to scare you or distract you from our objective." Harry said

"What's our objective?" Dennis, the smallest member of the team, asked.

"To win, of course!" Exclaimed Seamus.

Harry laughed. "Of course. But also to show Slytherin that Gryffindors don't let themselves be bullied."

"Yay!"

"Now, I asked the alternates to be ready to play. We don't know when we might need them, but if the game gets rough, I might make some changes." Harry said looking at Ginny and Michelle.

"You are not going to bench me!" Snapped Ginny.

"I won't, unless it becomes necessary." Said Harry.

Ginny nodded curtly. It was clear that for a moment she had thought Harry was going to take her out of the lineup and allow Damian to play in her place.

The sounds of the clattering feet reached them. The rest of the school was arriving to see the game.

Harry took a deep breath. "All right. Here we go. Do your best, and we'll win," he said.

The team lined up behind him and they walked toward the door where they waited to be announced.

As Lee Jordan had left the previous year, a young Ravenclaw, Joshua McTale, had won the vacated position from dozens of hopefuls. Now, his voice was eager as he began the commentary.

"Welcome fellow Hogwarts students, and professors of course to the first and most anticipated game of the season!"

Cheers and boos were heard throughout the Pitch as red and green flags were waved in the stands.

"And here they are. The Rulers of the Pitch, the Kings of the Match, those brave players – Gryffindor!"

"Mount your brooms!" Ordered Harry as the door opened before them.

He led his team around the Pitch once before motioning the alternates to land and wait on the sidelines.

Joshua McTale was already announcing the Slytherin team. "– their opponents, here they are – Slytherin!"

The boos from three houses clashed against the excited cheers from the Slytherins.

Harry watched as the Slytherin Team flew around the Pitch before stopping and taking their place.

"Here comes Madam Hooch. The Snitch is released and the game begins!"

The cheers and screams from the audience urged the teams to do their best moves.

"Alexander Peters grabs the Quaffle. This Chaser is a new addition to the Gryffindor Team, Captain Harry Potter found himself with no Chaser section when he took over and has done his best to replace it. Peters passes to Ginny Weasley, the only chaser in the team with game experience. Weasley passes to Finnigan. Again to Peters. The Gryffindors' new brooms are doing their job as the chasers zoom toward the Slytherin keeper leaving their opponents way behind. Peter to Finnigan, here's the throw. Gryffindor scores! That's ten points to Gryffindor!"

Hundreds of red flags waved in the air as a groan sounded loudly from the Slytherin section. Gryffindor fans cheered and screamed happily.

"Slytherin has the Quaffle – " Joshua continued.

Harry was paying close attention to the commentary while his eyes were busily sweeping every corner of the Pitch in search of the Snitch.

He was aware that Malfoy was keeping close to him, hoping, Harry knew, to steal a march on Harry and get the Snitch first. Harry knew that it was Slytherin's only hope to win, as the brooms were doing their job and Slytherin had yet to be able to keep the Quaffle on their side.

"Another great steal by Gryffindor as Finnigan makes his way toward the Slytherin keeper. The Gryffindor keeper stays alert even though he hasn't had the opportunity to defend his hoops. Finnigan passes to Peters, Peters to Weasley, to Peters again. This lot is flying circles around the Slytherin chasers! Something to note fellow Ravenclaws as you prepare for the upcoming game."

Harry smiled amusedly as he heard Professor McGonagall's voice chiding the new commentator about being impartial.

"The Slytherin Chasers are having some problem keeping the Quaffle in their possession and keeping abreast of the Gryffindor's quick actions. Weasley in possession, passes to Finnigan. Score! That is their second goal of the match. Gryffindor twenty, Slytherin zero."

Harry glanced at Ron who was flying in circles around the hoops trying to relieve some of that unused energy.

He was happy to note that Andrew and Jack were doing well keeping the Bludgers away from their teammates. In fact, he had glimpsed some well-aimed hits toward the Slytherin beaters that kept them occupied and were not able to aim to the Gryffindor chasers as often as they should.

And then he saw it: a bright flash of light shinning a few yards from him. Harry knew immediately that it was the Snitch. Malfoy was still behind him but it seemed that he was too preoccupied watching his teammates than in what Harry was doing.

Instantly, Harry started to fly down at a great speed; as he had hoped, Malfoy followed him desperately. As Malfoy got closer to him, Harry instantly changed directions and flew toward the stationary Snitch near the Gryffindor hoops. Malfoy couldn't turn his broom as quickly as Harry had done as a result, he was too far by the time Harry stretched trying to reach the fluttering Snitch.

"Harry Potter caught the Snitch! Harry Potter caught the Snitch! After a brilliant game played, Gryffindor wins with 170 to zero!" Joshua announced as the Gryffindor's supporters cheered and jumped happily on the stands.

The team landed instantly and ran to embrace each other, happy that they had been victorious after their arduous training.

After a few congratulatory hugs and waves to their classmates, Harry led the enthused team back to the changing room. He was hoping to stay away from the furious Slytherin Team who didn't seem too happy about the turn of events.

"Oh, that was brilliant!" Exclaimed Michelle as they struggled into the changing room.

"It really was! Too bad you can't see yourselves playing. It was quite a sight." Said Damian beaming at his teammates.

"Slytherin didn't have a chance!" Squealed Dennis happily.

Harry smiled as the rest broke into excited chatter. He was happy that their effort paid off and their first game ended so well for them.

It was close to an hour after the game that Harry found himself along with the rest of the team on their way back to the castle.

Their entrance into the common room was received with cheers and applause. The usual after-victory party awaited them.

-----------------

Their loss against Gryffindor seemed to have embittered the Slytherins.

The frayed relationship between the two houses seemed close to a breaking point, and unfortunately, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw seemed to be trapped in the middle.

Harry, Ron and Hermione were sitting among their classmates in the middle of the Gryffindor Table in the Great Hall one morning a few days after the exciting game.

"There's a meeting tonight. Did you know?" Hermione asked looking at Ron.

"Yeah, Ernie told me when I came in." Ron grumbled. "That's all I need, more meetings when I have a huge workload waiting for me."

"It wouldn't be so huge if you did your homework when you're supposed to." Hermione chided.

Ron glared at her but didn't reply. Harry was happy that he did so as he was not looking forward to their usual bickering, and he hated being in the middle.

"What are the teachers saying?" Asked Harry in an effort to keep them from fighting.

"Nothing so far." Ron grumbled.

"They're worried." Hermione replied.

"They should, it's been a week since the game and things aren't any better." Ron exclaimed.

"Maybe you'll know more after your meeting." Said Harry.

"I hope so. How am I suppose to keep an eye on the younger students if I have to clue about what to do?" Ron complained.

Hermione shook her head in exasperation. "You're hopeless sometimes." She said and grabbing her books she promptly left the table. "I'll see you in class." She called and started to make her way out of the Great Hall.

"What was that supposed to mean?" Asked Ron as he watched her leave.

Harry shrugged his shoulders, he had other things in his mind.

It was true that many students had been hurt around the castle before and after the game. He was the first to acknowledge that the relationship between the two houses was not as good as the Headmaster would wish, but their mutual apathy had never escalated to such heights.

"C'mon." Said Ron. "We better go to class."

Harry followed his friend out of the Hall. He turned to look back at the staff table and was not surprised to see Snape and McGonagall whispering excitedly at each side of Dumbledore.

--------------------

Things didn't get better for the inhabitants of the castle. The afternoon sky turned black and cloudy as storm clouds spread through the area. Students took one look at the dark clouds and many decided to stay within the warm confines of the castle instead of braving the elements and take a walk through the grounds.

Harry and Ron were among those who chose to stay inside as they grabbed ownership of one of the many tables near the fireplace in the Gryffindor Common Room. Hermione had expressed her wish to go to the Library in search of some needed textbooks while the boys began the day's schoolwork.

"When do you have to go for your meeting?" Harry asked as he pushed his parchment aside tiredly.

"After dinner." Ron said. "Still some hours away."

"Do you reckon they want to talk about the attacks?" Harry asked curiously.

"I reckon they do. It's about time they did something, only this morning a first year broke her arm when she slipped in a puddle of slime." Ron said.

"I know. Hermione told me. Luckily, Hermione was nearby to stop any further damage." Harry replied.

Ron nodded. "Such a tiny little thing, the first year I mean. Hermione had me carry her to the infirmary, didn't weigh much."

"She'll be alright, Madam Pomfrey can fix a bone in seconds." Harry said confident in the nurse's skills as he had been in her care on several occasions.

"She did. The first year was in the Great Hall by lunch. Hermione was angry though, furious, really." Ron grinned. "You should've seen her, I wager she would've hexed whoever was responsible if she had know who it was."

"What are you talking about?" Asked Ginny who stood before them.

"None of your business!" Snapped Ron, annoyed rather than angry.

Ginny glared at her brother angrily but opted to look at Harry instead. "Do you know where Hermione is?" She asked.

"The library." Said Harry promptly.

"Where else is she going to be?" Said Ron. "You know Hermione, I bet she knows that Library from corner to corner."

"Never mind. I'll speak to her later." Snapped Ginny and walked away to join her friends at the other side of the room.

"What was that about?" Ron questioned looking at his sister who was shaking her head and talking closely to the other fifth years.

"Dunno. Probably wanted Hermione to help them study for their O.W.L.s." Harry said with a shrug.

It wasn't long until Hermione made an appearance in the common room.

"What took you so long?" Asked Ron the moment she sat at the table with them.

Hermione's eyebrows shot up in surprise. She looked at Harry who just shook his head to her and continued working on the parchment before him.

"What's wrong?" She asked Ron.

"Ginny was looking for you." Was all he said and dropped his eyes to the inert parchment before him.

"I'll see her about it later." Hermione said and started piling books on the table.

"What's all this for?" Asked Ron looking at the stack of books with disgust.

"Research, of course. I couldn't bring all the books I wanted but these will be enough to give me enough background for my paper." She said pulling one of the books toward her and started reading.

Ron turned an incredulous look on Harry.

"You should be used to it by now." Whispered Harry.

----------------

Dinner was rather quiet compared to the usual dinners at Hogwarts. People were whispering among each other and a few were too lost in their own thoughts to pay attention to their neighbors. The students were not the only ones who seemed preoccupied; the teachers seemed concerned as they sat around the staff table keeping an eye on their students.

Harry himself was playing with his food. Their Experimental Charms class combined with their Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson that afternoon and had been very strenuous and exhausting. But he loved the idea of learning magic that he would never had seen unless he was part of the elite group of Aurors.

"My arms are sore." Mumbled Ron.

"Well, what did you expect, we're dueling now in Experimental charms. You know how physical dueling can be." Hermione was saying.

Harry snorted with derision. He knew by experience how physical dueling with dark wizards could be and he was glad that he was getting trained in the art.

"I know. I was just saying." Snapped Ron rotating his shoulders a bit to ease the soreness in his upper arms.

"We'll be doing some dueling at the D.A. meeting this weekend." Said Harry. "Lupin agreed to take over that session."

"You didn't want to do it?" Asked Ron with surprise.

"Of course not. I don't think I have the experience to show a proper duel." Exclaimed Harry.

"You have more experience than everybody in the school combined!" Said Ron.

"Indeed you do, Harry." Agreed Hermione. "But I suppose I understand why you prefer to have Lupin take over that lesson." She continued.

"I want to master the art, you see." Harry explained. "I may have done it before, but, I want to learn how to do it properly."

"Of course you do." Said Hermione. "Everybody wants to learn how to do it properly, don't they? I mean, it's a matter of life and death, isn't it?"

Harry continued his meal in silence. Dueling was indeed a matter of life and death, as he knew quite well, and he wanted to learn from it as much as he could. He couldn't forget the words of the prophecy, he was destined to fight Voldemort, and he refused to go into it without knowing how.

And quite without meaning to, the memory of the last time he was involved in a duel came to mind. The memory of the events in the Department of Mysteries were still clear in his mind. He tried to push the memories aside but it was harder to do so than he had expected.

"Harry?" Hermione's voice broke through his thoughts.

He turned to look at her. "Hmm?"

"Something wrong?" She asked as she peered closely into his face.

"No." He replied. "Nothing wrong."

"Are you sure? Ron and I have been calling your name and you didn't answer." Said Hermione looking worriedly at him.

"I'm fine." He said.

"You didn't have another vision, did you?" Asked Ron with concern.

"No." Harry said.

"Harry – "

"I'm **fine**, Hermione." He said abruptly. He saw Ron and Hermione share a look before turning back to look at him.

"We're leaving for the meeting." Hermione explained. "We'll see you in the common room later."

"All right." Mumbled Harry and watched them leave the table in a hurry.

Harry sighed and pushed the plate aside. There was no reason for him to remain and without saying a word to any of those around him, left the table and the Great Hall behind.

The common room was starting to fill by the time Harry climbed through the portrait hole. He looked around and saw the small groups forming around the room. Some people saw him and waved to him to join them, but Harry wasn't feeling like staying and make conversation.

He climbed the staircase toward the sixth year boys' dormitory. He knew he could be alone there as he had glimpsed Dean and Seamus in the common room and Neville had stayed behind in the Great Hall. It would be some time yet until one of his roommates returned to get ready for the night.

But he hadn't counted on Lotty, he found the elf tidying his trunk. His robes were ironed and folded neatly on top of each other, his shirts and trousers pressed and folded, his socks and underclothing bundled in a corner and his books stacked. Harry could glimpse the invisibility cloak and the Marauder's Map semi-hidden underneath his clothes and the various trinkets he had collected over the years placed neatly between the books.

"Er...thank you, Lotty. You can go once you're done." Said Harry as he noticed that the elf was almost done with his tidying.

"As you wish, Master Harry." He elf squeaked with a small bow.

Harry walked to his bed and found a package waiting for him. "What's this?" He asked, lifting the package full of curiosity. He was not used to receiving packages at school from anybody, until recently that is, as Mrs. Nichols began sending boxes of pastries every few days. But those usually arrived in the morning mail, with the rest of the mail received at the school, none had been delivered in any other form, except for the brooms.

"It was sent from the Manor, Master Harry." Lotty explained.

"But why didn't it arrived with the morning mail?" Asked Harry starting to open the package.

"Lotty thought Master Harry would prefer to open it here, was Lotty wrong?" Asked the elf with concern.

Harry looked at the small frame in his hands. It was a picture of his parents, placed in an ornate frame of gold. They were standing by the lake in the Manor grounds, the sun was shining brightly and the flowers were blooming all around them. They looked carefree and happy.

"You weren't wrong, Lotty," whispered Harry.

He heard the elf finish up his duties and the sharp crack that announced his disappearance.

There was a note with the picture and he read it quickly.

_Master Harry, _

_This was found among your mother's things in the London house and I thought you would like to have it with you. The frame is enchanted to change pictures every time you touch the roses engraved around the frame, every rose for a different picture. Your mother had it made when their marriage approached. I hope you enjoy it. _

_Your servant,_

_Mrs. Nichols._

Harry looked at the frame closely for the first time. There were indeed roses all around the frame. He touched one and saw the picture change. This time, it was Sirius' face smiling up at him.

He touched another. The picture changed once more. This time it was an older picture as he could see four teenagers waving from the photo. Harry looked at faces eagerly, he had seen those faces before in the pensive. His father, Sirius, Lupin and Pettigrew were punching each other and laughing happily, Harry smiled.

He touched another rose and this time a photo of three girls appeared. He instantly recognized his mother, but he didn't know who the other two were. He could only assume that one of them was Professor Holmes.

He spent more than an hour looking at each appearing photo. There were many people he didn't recognize, and a few he did. He was determined to ask Professor Lupin about them, he was sure to know who they were.

The sound of footsteps snapped him from his fascination with the frame. He placed the frame on the left corner of his bed and hurriedly changed and climbed into the bed, drawing the curtains just before the door opened.

"Harry?" He heard Ron whisper. "Are you awake?"

Harry didn't respond. He was watching toward the frame where he knew the picture of his parents had appeared once more. Even though he couldn't see it through the darkness, he somehow felt safety envelope him.

---------------

The sound of Ron changing and climbing into bed reached him. He sighed silently and settled for the night.

"Harry! Harry!"

Harry mumbled and snuggled deep into his pillows, but the two voices calling his name kept intruding.

"Harry! Harry!"

"Hmm..." Harry pulled the covers over his head.

"Harry, you better get up!" A female voice said rather sharply.

"Shuddup!" Harry mumbled.

"You better apologize to your mum, Harry!"

"What?" Harry awoke abruptly. A sliver of light was streaming through a small opening in the cutains.

"Now Harry, dear, you're going to be late!" The voice said once more.

Harry looked around him in confusion. "Who's that?" He asked as he rubbed his eyes with his knuckles.

He looked around the bed once more. It was just as it always was in the morning. The curtains were still drawn around the bed, the pillows stood against the headboard and the sheets were strewn around the mattress.

"Down here!" Another voice said. "You're not a morning person, are you?"

Harry looked cautiously at the corner of the bed the voices were coming from he was sure he was imagining things, or at the very least he was still dreaming.

His eyes fell on the picture frame he had received last night from the Potter's housekeeper. He could see the two figures of his parents looking at him.

"We're speaking to you, Harry!" He heard his father's photographic figure say. "You're going to be late. Your roommates have been coming and going for some time now, you know."

Harry looked at the picture with surprise. "I must be dreaming." He mumbled as he rubbed his eyes with his hands.

He looked at the picture again. He could see his mother and father looking at him. James Potter seemed amused while Lily Potter looked a little concerned.

"Harry, dear, you need to eat some. Mrs. Nichols said you tend not to eat as much as you should." His mother's figure said.

Harry scrambled from the bed in a hurry, getting caught in the curtains for a moment before finally finding his way out of the bed.

"Harry? Something wrong?" Asked Ron who at that moment was just coming out of the bathroom. "I was about to wake you up. We don't want to miss breakfast."

"Er...yeah." Harry mumbled as he looked at the picture, which had fallen to his pillow as he fought his way out of the curtains.

"What are you looking at?" Asked Ron who was becoming a little concerned about Harry's lack of attention.

Ron walked gingerly toward the bed. It was clear he saw nothing amiss as he looked at Harry with a question in his eyes.

"The frame," Harry whispered.

Ron looked back into the bed and promptly saw the frame laying on top of the pillow. He took it carefully and turned it over to see what had scared his friend.

The young couple in the photo waved at him. "Hello!" They said.

Harry looked at Ron, had he heard them?

"Nice." Ron said looking at Harry. "I hadn't seen it before."

"Just got it. Mrs. Nichols sent it last night." Harry said.

Ron looked at the photo again.

"You must be Harry's friend," Lily Potter said.

"Yes, I am," said Ron and placed the frame on the stand next to the bed. "Are you going to get ready now?"

Harry looked at Ron silently. "Did you hear her?" He asked cautiously.

"Of course, I did. Harry, are you all right?" Asked Ron.

"I thought I was losing my mind when I heard them speak." Said Harry sitting on his bed with a sigh.

"Why would you think that? Harry, you should be used to speaking photos by now." Laughed Ron. "We live in Hogwarts, where everybody in paintings and pictures move and speak."

"Yes, but I'm not used to hearing by dead parents." Snapped Harry. "And the pictures at the Manor didn't speak."

"Not all of them do." Explained Ron looking a little amused. "Some are just like all the rest. They just move but are not charmed to speak. The ones that are charmed, are a lot more expensive but common enough."

Harry looked over at the frame once more. He could see the image of his parents listening closely to their conversation.

"I think I better keep the frame in my trunk." Said Harry. "I don't fancy my parents' picture looking every moment I spend in here."

"Hey!" James yelled.

"What are you planning to do that you don't want us to see?" demanded Lily.

Harry took the frame and placed it gently among the folded clothes in his trunk while Ron laughed with amusement.

--------------------

Half an hour later, Harry and Ron stepped down the stairs to find Hermione waiting for them.

"What took you so long?" She asked.

"It's not too late." Said Ron. "We still have half an hour left of breakfast."

"But you two are usually early on Saturdays, you have Quidditch practice today, remember?" She commented as they stepped out of the portrait hole and started making their way toward the Great Hall.

"We remember." Said Harry. "We're not likely to forget, are we?"

The Great Hall was full of breakfasting students. They were all divided in groups chatting and laughing at their own jokes or those of their companions.

"But we couldn't get the Pitch this morning, only in the afternoon." Explained Ron. "So I figured I could do with a bit of a lay in."

They had reached the Gryffindor Table and found an open space in the middle. They had just begun to pile food into their plate, when the flapping of wings overhead indicated the arrival of the morning mail.

The owls swooped into the hall. Some struggling with heavy packages as others flew in with ease as letters and notes were attached to their legs.

Harry was used to having Hedwig coming in empty-handed, but she usually just came to greet him every morning. This time, he was a little surprised to find that Hedwig was one of those owls struggling to keep flight with a large package.

"What do you got there, Potter? I would be careful if I were you." Leered Malfoy from the Slytherin Table as some students noticed the snowy owl landing swiftly before her master.

"Sod off, Malfoy!" Many in the Gryffindor Table replied.

Harry was stroking Hedwig gently, who hooted happily, looking pleased with herself that she had arrived with her master's mail.

"Thank you, Hedwig." Said Harry, offering his goblet of milk to Hedwig who drank pleasantly from it.

There were many eyes turned toward the packaged, as few noticed to fail the large size of the package and as Harry, they were all aware that Harry rarely had any mail, except for the few small packages that the Manor's housekeeper started sending that semester, that usually carried some pastries and sweets made by Otty, the Manor cook-elf, who made them just for that purpose.

Harry took the package gingerly and started to peel the wrapper from around it. A small valise was uncovered. On both sides was a monogram with a large P and the family coat of arms.

Attached was a note from Mrs. Nichols.

_Master Harry, _

_Thought you might like to have this. It belonged to your father when he was still at Hogwarts. _

_Your servant,_

_Mrs. Nichols._

"What would I use it for?" Asked Harry. "Everything I have fits perfectly well in my trunk." But he sounded pleased nonetheless. "She seems to be doing some cleaning, she's been sending me some of my parents' stuff in the last couple of days."

"It looks like it has something inside." Ron said as Harry flapped open the valise and glimpses of cloth were easily discerned.

Harry looked to see what was inside. What he found were a couple of everyday wizard robes, both were black, with red lining and golden embroidered collars.

"Why did she send this?" Harry asked, pulling one of the robes out of the valise.

"She knows you wear Muggle clothing when not in school robes." Hermione said. "Most wizards raised in the wizard world have at least a robe for everyday wearing."

"You didn't bring any, did you?" Asked Ron who had turned his attention back to his food. "And I know Lotty had ordered some everyday robes for you when we got to the Manor, Mum told me."

"Yeah, but I'm not used to wearing wizard robes." Harry said, stuffing the robe back into the valise.

"She must think you should have some, just in case." Said Hermione.

Harry shrugged and placed the valise under his feet before turning his attention to his food. Hedwig had long gone back to the Owlry to rest and around the Hall, many students turned to share their news from home with their friends.

Harry, Ron and Hermione returned to the common room after they finished their breakfast. Harry hurried to take the valise up to the boys' dormitory, while Hermione and Ron sat in their customary seats around the fireplace.

Harry found them bickering at his return.

"I told you they would." Ron was saying.

"I think we were all expecting that they would, Ron." Hermione replied.

"What are you fighting about now?" Asked Harry, taking a seat beside Ron.

"Nothing!" Snapped Ron.

"I don't think he understood the purpose for last night's meeting, that's all." Hermione said bluntly.

"I did too. I just don't see why we need to know everything they spoke of." Ron complained. "We would've been in bed earlier if they hadn't kept us for so long."

"What was the meeting about?" Asked Harry with some curiosity.

"The usual." Said Ron. "Patrol schedules, hall monitoring. You know, same as always."

"They spoke about the attacks as well." Hermione said. "It looks like some of the pictures saw a student walking around the castle late at night. But the teachers said they will deal with it. They don't want us to get involved."

"I still think it's a Slytherin." Ron said.

"We know what you think, Ron." Said Hermione. "You don't need to remind us."

"We'll know soon enough." Said Harry. "Once they know who is responsible, everybody'll know."

"You're right, and there is no reason for us to stay here and discuss it when we know nothing about it. We should be finishing our work." Hermione exclaimed. "We have that paper to write for Professor Holmes, not to mention the one for Lupin. And I must start my research for the Potions paper due in two weeks."

Ron groaned loudly. "Please, don't mention work. Teachers are being evil this year. We've had more worked assigned in the last weeks compared to last year. And we don't even have exams yet, we've only started the year."

"What did you expect? We're on N.E.W.T. level classes now. Work should be getting harder as we continue." Hermione said, pulling out her book bag, which she had hidden in the common room that morning before leaving for breakfast.

"I don't know how Fred and George did it." Grumbled Ron looking at Hermione taking out the books and parchment she would use to begin her work. "They didn't seem to be overworked when they were here."

Hermione scoffed. "Of course they didn't. I don't think they did one single thing on their last two years here."

Harry laughed. "Well, you have to admit, they have done very well for themselves." He said. "And they didn't need to know what they studied for their N.E.W.T.s at the end, did they?"

"Fred says mum was barking mad when they arrived home after they left." Ron said. "Wanted them to come the very next day. But they said they would leave home if she made them. I think that's what changed her mind. She didn't want them to leave home."

"Was she still very angry when you got home?" Hermione asked, as Harry sat in silence listening to what his friends had to say.

"A little, but she had seen the shop, you see, and they were doing very well with it. I don't think she minds now." Ron replied. "Although I think she was glad to know that the money had come from you, Harry. I think she was afraid that the twins had gotten the money from Dung or one of his sort."

"She didn't mind it at all?" Asked Harry with some surprise.

"I don't think so, George said she didn't. He said she was pleased that you had been the one to give them the money. Said she told them to make sure they did something to show their appreciation in some way." Ron said.

Harry flushed with pleasure. He was happy to know that his actions didn't hurt Mrs. Weasley at all. "They don't need to do that. I didn't want the money, and I don't need it." He said.

"You two better get your things, we have so much to go over this weekend." Hermione said looking over her notes.

Harry and Ron shared an exasperated glance before returning to their dormitory to gather their books.

It wasn't until some hours later that Hermione called a halt to their studies and began to gather their books.

"Lunch should be served soon. We shall continue after." She said as she started clearing the table.

"Sorry, Hermione." Said Ron. "But we won't be joining you after lunch. We have Quidditch practice."

"Alright, I suppose we do need a bit of a break." Said Hermione finishing putting away her things.

They hurried to leave their materials to their respective dormitories and met once more in the common room before going down to their midday meal.

--------------------------

Everybody seemed to be in the Great Hall. Laughter and conversation permeated the room as students chatted and laughed with their friends.

Harry, Ron and Hermione hurried to get a seat in the Gryffindor table. They found it at the end, near Neville and Ginny.

"About time you came down." Said Ginny, sliding a little to make room for them. "When I asked if you were coming to lunch, you lot just grunted at me."

"Sorry, Ginny. Didn't hear you." Said Ron pulling his plate eagerly toward him.

"I figured." Ginny said.

"We were just working in the paper for Professor Snape." Hermione explained. "I guess we became a little too occupied by it."

Neville groaned across from them. "You have no idea how pleased I was to get an Acceptable in Potions! I wasn't too keen in taking Potions anymore, but I didn't want to do poorly in it either, my granny wouldn't have been too pleased!"

"Wished I could, but Mum would kill me if I did, especially since I barely made it in," said Ron sadly.

Harry could well imagine Mrs. Weasley's relief when the O.W. L. results had been delivered and showed that Ron did far better than they had expected. After what happened with the twins, Harry knew that Mrs. Weasley had been rather disappointed and was looking to Ron to redeem the family name.

The meal continued uninterrupted. Harry's thoughts were soon lost planning the upcoming Quidditch training session and the D.A. meeting the next evening.

* * *

A/N: I hope you enjoyed that chapter. Thanks to Ashley (aka Vamperfly) for being my beta for this chapter, she's also taking a look at the first chapter of my new fic. The next chapter will be ready soon enough. Thank you all for reading and please review. If you want to add something for Ashley, go ahead!


	61. Sixth Year Chapter 12

A/N: I know, it's been too long! I know it's been longer than I expected, and I'm not trying to make excuses, because I know how tiresome they are, but I really didn't expect it to take me that long to update, but I had trouble with my comp and I lost some files and it took me a while to get everything back in order. Luckily, I'm used to keeping backup files in everything I do in my comp, including my stories, and then did some changes to their boards, and that also threw me into a loop and it took me some time to fix my threads there that I forgot all about this chapter and didn't remember I hadn't uploaded it until now. Sorry about that. But now that school has started and my work schedule is back to normal I can work on getting my free time in order so I can write more. But let's continue with the story, shall we?

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Disclaimer: I don't own anything in the Harry Potter world, only the few additions I may have created for this story.

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**_Chapter 12 Family Ties_**

Harry trudged down the corridor with Ginny and Ron. Their training session had been hard but very satisfying.

"Jack and Andrew are getting better, aren't they?" Asked Ginny as they turned into the corridor leading to the Gryffindor Tower.

"Yeah, shame that bludger knocked Andrew out of the game next week." Ron replied.

"He'll get better soon, Madam Pomfrey can cure anything." Harry said with confidence as he was usually the one to find his way into the infirmary than any other student. "I told Colin to be ready to take his place."

"Well, at least they've been training with the rest of the team." Ginny said. "And he is better than he was in the summer."

"That's why I asked him and not Dennis. Dennis still needs to get better handle of his broom and not get distracted by the game when he should be looking for the bludgers." Harry said.

They had come to the portrait of the Fat Lady, who watched them closely and waited for the password.

"Fairy Ligths." Said Harry. The portrait opened.

"You better change and wash!" She exclaimed as they tripped into the common room. "You look disgusting."

"Yeah, yeah, go complaining to someone who cares." Said Ron as the portrait shut itself behind him.

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It was late at night. After their training session, Harry, Ron and Ginny retired to their respective rooms to tidy up. Hermione was waiting for them in the common room.

After working in their schoolwork for many hours, and going down to dinner, Harry decided to retire early. Ron had stayed behind to play a game of chess with Hermione.

Lotty was packing away his clean robes. The frame Harry had placed in his trunk that morning was back in the side table beside his bed.

"Lotty is almost finished, Master Harry." Said the house elf when Harry entered the room.

"That's alright, Lotty. I'm just a bit tired." Said Harry flopping down on his bed.

He looked up to the frame. He could see his parents whisper among themselves. He remembered the other pictures stored in the frame. There were many of his parents' friends when they were younger and he remembered he wanted to ask Professor Lupin about them.

He grabbed the frame abruptly.

"Hey! Be careful." He heard his father say.

Harry pressed one of the carved roses around the frame. The picture of the Marauders came into view. James and Sirius were standing in the middle, with Remus and Peter at either side.

He pressed another rose and the picture changed once more. This time his mother came into view, with two other girls. He knew one of them was Professor Holmes. He recognized her easily even though she was younger. But he wondered who the third girl was.

Harry turned to look at his watch. It was still early and there was still time until curfew. He took the frame in his hand and made his way out of the dormitory.

Ron and Hermione were still playing by the fireplace.

"Something wrong, Harry?" Asked Hermione when he spied him by the staircase.

"No, just going to talk to Lupin." He said and continued on his way to the portrait hole.

"You want us to come along?" Asked Ron as he moved his knight on the board.

"No, I'm fine." Said Harry. He opened the portrait hole and climbed out of the common room without looking back.

There were still students walking around the corridors. He saw Filch mumbling and growling at the younger students in one of the corridors. He saw the young students hurry away from the cantankerous old man.

Harry hurried down the corridors toward Lupin's office. He hoped he was still there and hadn't retired for the night yet.

There was nobody around when he arrived to Lupin's door. He knocked and an "enter" was instantly heard.

Harry turned the knob and pushed the door open.

Lupin was sitting behind his desk a pile of graded parchments on one side, and a stack of parchment in front of him.

"Hello Harry." He said with a smile as he saw Harry enter the room. "What can I do for you?"

"I was just curious Professor." Said Harry having second thoughts about showing him the frame.

"About?" Lupin asked pushing away the stack of parchment he had been grading.

"Er...well...Mrs. Nichols sent me this." He said placing the frame on the desk.

"Ah. I wondered where that had been stored." Lupin said taking the frame gingerly in his hands.

"I was just wondering who the people were in the pictures." Harry said softly.

Lupin was pressing the roses around the frame, looking at each picture carefully and in silence. Harry wondered if he had heard him at all.

"I see why you're curious about them." Lupin finally said. "You haven't met most of them."

Harry nodded.

"Are you curious about a specific one?" Lupin asked pushing the frame towards Harry.

Harry pressed the rose he knew would show the picture of his mother and her friends. Three young women stood waving at him. He pushed the frame toward Lupin and waited for his response.

Lupin took the frame and looked at the picture.

"They were rather popular when we attended school here." Lupin said with a smile.

"I recognize Professor Holmes." Harry said.

"Yes, she is easy to recognize, isn't she? She hasn't changed much from the last time I saw her almost eighteen years ago." Lupin said.

"Who's the other girl?" Asked Harry.

Lupin looked at the picture without saying a word for a long time. Harry was starting to dread what Lupin would say. Had she died? Had she been killed by Voldemort, or his Death Eaters?

"That's Katie." Lupin finally said. "Katheryn Bennet, but she liked to be called Katie. You might have seen her before in other photos. She was the maid of honor in Lily and James' wedding."

Harry was a little surprised by this news. But then again, he thought, he had never really seen the others in his parents' wedding picture. The only ones he had noticed were his parents and Sirius.

"Wha...what happened to her?" Harry asked.

Lupin took a deep breath and was silent for a moment, as if deciding what he should say about her.

"Sirius sent her away." Lupin said. "When some of our members started to be attacked, we thought that a spy was among our ranks." He said bitterly. Harry knew he was thinking of Peter Pettigrew. "Sirius got worried, so he sent her away, to hide. She's been hiding ever since, as far as I know."

"But why?" Asked Harry a little confused. "Why would Sirius send her away?"

"She was his wife, Harry." Lupin said looking at the young man before him. "Katie is your godmother."

Harry was speechless. Why was it that he still knew so little about his own life? And even less about his parents?

"Do you think she'll ever be back?" Harry wanted to know. Here was a person so closely related to himself and Sirius. He wanted to meet her.

"I don't know." Lupin replied sitting back on his chair. "Sirius sent her to her cousin, said he would know the best place for her to hide. As far as I know he's the only one with an idea of where she could be and the only one who could be in contact with her. Sirius made sure her hiding place was a secret, nobody knew where she went, and none of us ever received any owls from her."

"Why didn't she return after...after Voldemort disappeared?" Asked Harry.

"I'm not really sure. I can only assume that because of the belief that Voldemort was still alive and could return at any time with a little bit of help from his Death Eaters, she was never contacted about what happened." Lupin said with a frown. "It could be also that nobody wanted her to know about Sirius being sent to Azkaban."

"But when we knew that he was innocent, why didn't Sirius try to contact her?" Harry couldn't understand why his godmother could be gone for so long and nobody knew where she could be.

"He never got along with her cousin." Lupin said with a smile.

"Why?"

Lupin smiled before answering. "Severus is her cousin."

"Snape?" Harry asked with surprise.

"Indeed." Lupin chuckled. "Sirius loved her so much, he was willing to accept that he was her cousin and not let it bother him."

Harry had never imagined that Sirius would have accepted Snape into the family, just for the love of a woman. Sirius had seemed the lonesome type to him. He never spoke of his family, only of his friends. Harry hadn't even known that he had been married. Why hadn't Sirius told him about his godmother?

"Why didn't he tell me?" Harry asked feeling a little hurt that Sirius had not told him more about himself.

"It was really hard for him to think of her." Said Lupin kindly. "I know for a fact that he stayed away from the places that reminded him of her. He could've easily gone for a visit at his London house in Rowe Square. But he never returned since he escaped Azkaban. Not because it was the first place the Aurors tried looking for him, but because most of her personal items were still there."

Harry looked thoughtful for a minute. He could understand why Sirius had remained away from his own house while on the run from the Ministry, but that still didn't explain why Sirius had been more forthcoming about his own life.

"Any more questions?" Asked Lupin looking down at the photo, where the three young girls were giggling and waving at him.

"No." Said Harry after a moment.

"Well, you better go up to your dormitory. Curfew should be on effect in a few minutes." Said Lupin pushing the frame back to Harry.

"Thanks Professor." Said Harry before leaving the office.

He grasped the frame tightly in his hands as he made his way back to the Gryffindor common room. He was thinking about the woman he now knew was his godmother and one of this mother's best friends. He had learned so much of his own father through the stories that Sirius and Lupin had told about their childhood. Now, he knew of two women that could do the same in regards to his mother. Professor Holmes was one, Katie Black was the other one. And now he wondered. Where was his godmother?

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Sunday arrived and the morning found many young Gryffindors in the common room trying to finish up their class work.

"You should be doing the same." Hermione said after Ron complained about the lack of room remaining among the tables dispersed around the room.

"Don't start Hermione." Groaned Ron. "Besides, I only have to finish the Transfiguration paper, I just need about six more inches."

"Then you should finish it now, when you have the chance. We have a D.A. meeting tonight." Hermione reminded him.

"I know." Ron said.

Harry was sitting beside them in the couch before the fireplace. The flames danced merrily in the grate and the room was mostly quiet as students worked diligently on their papers. But he wasn't paying much attention. The dreams had returned the previous night, but unlike past dreams, he couldn't remember much of what he saw. One thing he was sure of, they had nothing to do with Voldemort.

It had been some time since his last vision of Voldemort, and he was a little worried. The last year, he had been plagued by the images about the Department of Mysteries, and he was still bitter about the fact Voldemort was able to feed those images to him. It made him feel violated, as if he had been under his control and allowed Voldemort to do as he wished.

Occlumency hadn't helped much. No, that wasn't true, Harry thought. It wasn't that Occlumency didn't work, it was the fact that he and Snaped had allowed their dislike for each other to get the better of them and made the lessons ineffectual.

He wished now that it hadn't been so. He wasn't sure what the images intruding his dreams meant. What did those objects embedded in the sand had to do with him? And who was the woman in the mist that called to him?

He wished he knew what they meant. He also hoped that they were not images fed to him by Voldemort. He didn't think he could stand it if they were. He didn't want to lose somebody else because of his failure to keep Voldemort out of his head.

"Harry?" A voice intruded into his thoughts.

"Hmm? What?" He asked looking at Ron and Hermione in confusion.

"Are you all right?" Asked Hermione with some concern.

"Yeah." He said with a sigh as he leaned further back on his seat.

"You didn't sleep well last night. Was it You-Know-Who?" Asked Ron in a whisper.

"No." Said Harry. "How do you know I didn't sleep well?" Asked Harry looking at Ron askance.

"I heard you mutter and twisting around in your bed." Explained Ron a little defensive. "I woke up to go to the loo."

Harry was silent for a minute and shrugged indifferently.

"Well?" Asked Hermione.

"What?" Asked Harry again.

"Your dream." She urged. "What was it about?"

"It's the same as always." He said grudgingly. "It means nothing."

"How can you be sure?" Said Hermione. "They always said dreams have a meaning behind them."

"Yeah, well, we didn't learn much about it in Divination, did we." Said Ron. "I thought you didn't like Divination."

"It's not about Divination." Remarked Hermione. "Science has proven that dreams come from a person's subconscious mind. Sometimes dreams give you answers about questions you may have. Some are meant to be images of your unsaid yearnings. That's why they're called dreams."

"Wherever did you hear that?" Asked Ron with amusement.

"I read it in one of my father's psychology books." Replied Hermione.

"Should've known." Muttered Ron.

"I think I'm going down to breakfast now." Harry said. "I can still get some before I finish my paper."

Hermione and Ron followed him as they made their way out of the portrait hole and started on their way to the Great Hall.

It was common during the weekends for breakfast to be served a little later than on weekdays. Most of the student population took advantage of their free mornings to stay in bed longer and the meals had been scheduled to cater their needs. It wasn't unheard of for students to miss one of their meals during the weekends, something most wouldn't do during the weekdays, as teachers were sure to notice if anyone was missing.

Thus, Harry was not surprised to see many students straggling into the Great Hall as he and his friends sat on the Gryffindor Table.

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The day passed without incident, as Hermione was able to get the boys to work on what remained of their schoolwork. After stopping only to eat lunch, they spent a quiet afternoon in the Gryffindor common room.

It was late afternoon when Harry put aside his finished work.

"I should go and get Professor Lupin. He wanted to see me before our meeting today." He said.

Hermione nodded without seeming to have paid much attention.

"I'll finish this and meet you in the Requirement Room later." Said Ron scratching a line off his parchment.

After putting all his work into his book bag and leaving it on the table for Ron to take it to their dormitory when he finished, he went in search of Professor Lupin.

Harry made his way to Lupin's office without meeting anybody in the corridors.

He found Lupin's door open.

"Come in, Harry." Called Lupin as he caught sight of Harry at the door. "I just wanted to make sure you were sure about tonight's meeting."

"I think it would be useful. Not many have been able to participate in one." Harry said sitting on one of the chairs before Lupin's desk.

"Very well, if you're sure. Dumbledore has agreed to it, as long as I'm there to intervene if needed." Lupin said calmly.

"I understand." Harry said quietly.

"Well, perhaps we should go and prepare the room. We have only half an hour before the others arrive." Lupin said.

Harry and Lupin walked to the seventh floor room in silence. Harry was busy thinking about the reaction of the others once they found out what they had planned for the meeting this evening.

Lupin stood aside while Harry walked back and forth before the tapestry thinking about their needs for that evening. The door appeared and Harry and Lupin made their way inside.

Unlike the room they usually used for the D.A. meetings, this room looked larger. There was a long stage along the middle of the room, not unlike the one that had graced the Great Hall during his second year when Professor Lockhart had tried to teach them how to duel. But unlike that stage, this one had thick mats on the floor, and it was wider.

There were chairs placed along both sides of the stage. The room was darker, a few candles hovering around the room giving off the only light around the stage and the chairs.

"This will do." Said Professor Lupin looking satisfied.

"Do you think so?" Asked Harry thinking about the time he had been upon a stage like the one before him. It had been at that time that he, along with the rest of the school, found out he was a Parseltongue and it only brought him a lot of trouble.

"I do. Everybody will be able to see quite well as we work." Lupin said looking at the stage closely. "It's a good thing this has mats on the floor. Less injuries."

"Do you expect any?" Asked Harry with worry.

"We must always expect injuries when we do this. Madam Pomfrey has been informed and she's ready to take care of any difficulties that may arise. I had a hard time getting her to agree to wait in the infirmary, she was quite determined to be here during the meeting." Lupin said looking amused by the nurses' worry.

Harry frowned at the thought of Madam Pomfrey attending their meeting, although it would be a good idea in case of an emergency.

"Don't worry." Said Lupin as if he had been reading Harry's mind. "I don't think there will be any need for Madam Pomfrey to attend the meeting. And if the need arises, I can transport any injured to the infirmary in a matter of minutes."

Harry nodded but now he had second thoughts about the planned lesson. But it was too late as Hermione, Ron and Ginny entered the room.

"Wow." Breathed Ginny. "What are we doing tonight, Harry?"

"You'll see." Said Harry.

"Take a seat. We'll begin as soon as the rest are here." Said Lupin.

Hermione, Ron and Ginny hurried to take seats at the very front, eagerly to see what their friend and Professor had planned for them that evening.

The others started appearing soon after. They were all weary or excited about the change in the room, and the seats started to fill out.

It wasn't long until everybody was sitting and looked to Harry expectantly.

"All right." He said calling the attention of everybody in the room. "As some of you may have guessed, we'll be doing some dueling tonight."

There were mutters and excited chatter around the room.

"Quiet!" Harry called. "Professor Lupin is in charge tonight, so pay attention as he goes over the rules."

Harry took a seat by Ron as Professor Lupin climbed up the stage.

"Here we go. Rule # 1: Use only spells that you have been taught in class and that you've practiced in these meetings. That means you cannot use any spells you may have learned outside of school or that you may have learned from somebody else other than your teachers. Rule # 2: Only one couple of combatants on the stage at one time. The rest of you, stay on your seats and observe. At the end of each match you'll have the chance to criticize and advise from what you saw. Rule # 3: Pay attention. I don't want you all getting lost in your own discussions that you didn't pay attention when a spell deviates and hits you instead of the person on the stage. Rule # 4: You aim your spells to your partner only, if I see you aiming to somebody else you'll be sent to Professor Dumbledore to be reprimanded. Rule # 5: In case there's an injury and your opponent gets hurt, you point your wand to the floor and stop at once. If necessary we'll take the injured to the infirmary, but if it's only a simple injury, I can easily take care of it. Any questions?" Lupin looked around at the students below him. None raised their hands.

"Good." Said Professor Lupin. "I need a first volunteer couple."

Several hands were raised.

"Hermione, Cho." He pointed to the two girls sitting on opposite sides of the stage.

Both hurried up to the stage, taking their place where Professor Lupin pointed.

"Face each other." Professor Lupin said. "Bow. Let's see if you remember how you should stand."

Both girls took the position.

"Good. Remember, when you duel you never know what your opponent will use against you, go with your instincts. Don't try to think about the spells she can hit you with, just the ones you can use effectively to fight against her. Go."

"Expelliarmus!"

"Petrificus Totalus!"

Two flashes of light shot from the wands. Hermione was able to deflect the spell thrown at her with a quick shielding charm, while Cho used her quick Quidditch reflexes to avoid the spell, but in the process of doing so she didn't see Hermione call the next spell.

"Silencio! Accio Wand!" Called Hermione. Cho just remained still surprised to have found herself without her voice and wand.

"Stop!" Called Professor Lupin walking to the middle on the stage. "Good, that was excellent." He said motioning to Hermione to give him Cho's wand, before pointing his wand to Cho.

The others where applauding and talking over the roar.

"All right, all right." Called Lupin. "Anybody has anything to say?"

"Cho got distracted, it cost her." Said Dean Thomas.

"Indeed. What could she have done better?" Asked Lupin.

"She shouldn't have waited to cast another spell." Neville said.

"It wouldn't have been an accurate hit, though." Somebody called.

"What does it matter when it could save your life?" Neville said.

"Neville is right. Dueling can be used as a training exercise but when it comes to Death Eaters it could lead to death if you're not prepared. All right, another couple." Professor Lupin said.

Hands were eagerly raised into the air, accompanied by "me, me" from the audience.

"Ron, Terry."

Ron and Terry Boot hurried onto the stage eager to give a good show.

They stood at opposite sides and waited for Lupin to give the word.

"Go." Came the command.

"Expelliarmus!" Called Terry, but Ron surprised everybody by calling "Incendio!"

A blast of fire shot of his wand, Terry lost his balance when he tried to step back and get away from the flames.

"Impedimenta!" Called Ron closely after his previous incantation.

Terry fell heavily on the matted stage.

"Excellent." Said Professor Lupin waving his wand over Terry allowing him to sit up. "Good use of the Incendio Charm. It is useful to start with a diversion, especially if you happen to be outnumbered." Professor Lupin said to the audience.

Ron and Terry sat on their vacated chairs. Ron was pleased when those around him slapped his back in congratulations. Even Hermione seemed impressed.

Several other couples passed to the stage to try to give a good show. Some succeeded while others were complete failures and their matches ended with the first spell.

Harry chose not to partake in the exercise. He knew that everybody was waiting for him to take the stage, and he hated the feeling of anticipation that caused.

Thankfully, Professor Lupin didn't seem eager to call his name. Harry didn't know if it was because he wanted to give the others the opportunity to perform or because he didn't want Harry to show off before the others. While the first didn't bother him, the other one did. He didn't want to show off, he was sure that there were others who could be good opponents, but a side of him was confident that he could take on whoever volunteered to oppose him. And that made him a little uncomfortable. It made him think of his father and of what he had seen in the Snape's memory. It was a side of his father he was not happy to have seen, and he wanted to prove to himself that he was not like his father had been.

The meeting seemed to have come to an end, as the others were scrambling from their seats and getting ready to leave the room.

Everybody was exclaiming about the meeting. They all had been impressed by the session and many were determined to do a lot better the next time they had a similar exercise.

"Coming?" Asked Hermione when only she, Harry, Ron and Professor Lupin remained.

"In a minute." He said and walked over to Professor Lupin.

"Ah, Harry. What did you think?" Professor Lupin said pleasantly.

"It went well." Said Harry.

"It did. Some need more practice to be at least competent enough to survive. But as it stands, I think only a few would be able to do well against a gang of Death Eaters." Professor Lupin replied. "Let us hope they never do so."

Harry nodded. Ron and Hermione were waiting for him by the door. Dinner should be served soon.

"Good night, Professor." Said Harry.

"Night, Harry." Professor Lupin replied. "I'll see you at dinner."

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Harry was lying on his bed. The curtains had been drawn around it and he could clearly hear the soft snores from his roommates. But he couldn't sleep.

The dueling exercise had made him think of what had happened in the Department of Mysteries the last June. Memories of that fateful night kept flashing before his eyes. When Hermione used the Silencing Charm during her duel, he had been startled. He remembered well what had happened the last time she used it, and in a matter of speaking, it had saved her life. If the Death Eater had possessed his normal vocal capacity, she would be dead today.

He knew he hadn't been the only one to remember that scene. Neville had been sitting across from him in the other side of the stage and Harry saw him jumped a little when he heard Hermione use that specific spell. But unlike Harry, it seemed that it hadn't bothered him, it interested him to see how efficient a simple spell could be used in a duel.

Harry felt a little ashamed to see that his friends had put the events of that night with ease, while he still had nightmares of what he had seen. But then again, none of them had been personally affected the same way he had been. Not only had he lost the one person that was a father figure to him, but, he had learned the mystery behind Voldemort's attack on his home when he was one year old, causing the death of his parents and a prophesied destiny for him.

He could hear the clicks of his watch that lay by his bed along with his glasses. He didn't know the time, but he was sure it was late. The thought that he should be up early for classes and should be getting some sleep passed through his mind for a second. But he didn't care. He also knew that his friends would notice his lack of attention and would be asking questions, but he didn't care for that either.

The minutes passed and Harry lay quietly in bed trying to clear his mind of the images that had bothered him earlier, with little success.

When he opened his eyes again, there was a sliver of light coming from the corner of the bed through the curtains. He must have fallen asleep after all.

He rubbed his eyes with one hand while he searched for his glasses with the other. His fingers finally felt the rims of his glasses and his hand grasped them promptly.

He could hear slight movement throughout the room.

"Harry?" He heard Ron's voice call.

"I'm awake." Harry said as he sat up on his mattress before sliding the curtains aside.

"Good, we're all late as it is. I'm surprised Hermione didn't come up here to wake us up." Ron grumbled as he struggled to put on his robes.

"She would've if it had been just the two of us." Harry said with a yawn. "If we're not down soon, she'll send somebody to see what's keeping us."

"I'll tell her you'll be down soon." Said Dean who was already dressed and ready to begin the day.

"Thanks." Said Ron as Dean left the room. "You look tired." He said to Harry.

"I feel tired." Said Harry but didn't say any more as he started to get ready for the day.

Ron seemed to understand that his friend didn't want his concern and said nothing further. But Harry knew that he would speak with Hermione about it later in the day.

"I'm so glad History of Magic is later this afternoon." Complained Neville. "I could do with a little nap."

Ron chuckled and Harry smiled.

Minutes later, Ron and Harry left the empty bedroom behind and made their way to the common room.

Hermione was waiting for them at the foot of stairs.

"What kept you?" She asked.

"We overslept." Said Harry.

"What? The whole lot of you?" Hermione snapped as they made their way to the Great Hall.

"I expect we were more tired than usual." Said Ron with a shrug.

The Hall was full. The four house tables were loaded with food and students ate eager to begin a new day.

"I hate Mondays." Said Seamus as Harry, Ron and Hermione sat nearby. "I always feel more tired on Mondays than on any other day."

"That's because you lot don't go to bed when you're supposed to." Ginny snapped nearby.

"The weekends are supposed to be our free time, we have to take advantage of it. We spend enough time of it doing school work." Seamus replied.

"You wouldn't need to if you did your work on time." Said Hermione nibbling on a golden piece of toast.

"What fun would that be." Dean whispered to Seamus.

Seamus snickered, but stopped quickly by the glare Hermione sent his way.

Harry ate silently as he listened to the conversation around him. His eyelids were heavy and his eyes itched by the lack of sleep.

Students were starting to leave the Great Hall on their way to their respective classes.

"We should go. We don't want to be late to class." Said Hermione pushing the plate away from her.

The others followed suit.

Soon, the Hall was empty and halls were full of chattering students as classes were about to begin.

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Harry was tired. Lunch had come and gone and he still battled fatigue. He had to agree with Neville. He was glad that History of Magic was his next class as he was looking forward to rest just a little.

"You look awful." Said Hermione as they were making their way to class.

"I feel awful." Said Harry.

"Are you sure you're not sick?" She asked with concern.

"I don't think so." Harry replied.

"Maybe you should go to Madam Pomfrey before going to dinner and ask for a potion, she's bound to have something to help you." Said Ron. "There are a lot of people falling ill lately. I think there must be a virus going around."

Harry groaned. "She might make me stay in the infirmary for the night. I spend too much time in there as it is."

"It could help." Said Hermione.

"I'll think about it." Said Harry.

He knew that she wouldn't be satisfied by that, but for the moment she seemed to accept it.

History of Magic was not a popular class. It was the only class in Hogwarts that was taught by a ghostly professor and it was the only one where people could fall asleep in and the Professor was not likely to notice as he droned on and on until the end of class.

Harry was not the only one in class to rest his head on his arms as the class went on. Soon enough, he was falling asleep and for the first time, Hermione didn't seemed to mind and didn't try to shake him awake.

He was walking among thick mist. He could not see anything around him except the fog that surrounded him. He walked deeper and deeper into the fog, he could see shadows walking among his nebulous surroundings, but nobody answered at his call.

A faint female voice reached him. "It is time." It said. "You must learn."

It was repeated over and over again.

"Is anybody here?" He called, but the voice continued with its chant. "What must I learn? Time for what?" He called, but no response was forthcoming.

"Harry?" A stronger female voice intruded the fog. "Harry!"

Harry was shaken awake.

He sat up abruptly, the class was emptying and Hermione and Ron were standing beside him.

"Class has ended." Said Hermione looking at him closely.

"Did I miss anything?" Harry asked trying to contain a yawn.

"Not much." Said Ron as the three friends walked out of the classroom. "You know how it is."

Harry lost his battle and yawned.

"You look awfully tired." Hermione remarked. "Classes are over for the day, why don't you go back to the common room and take a nap?"

"Maybe I should. I won't be able to work on any of my schoolwork if I can't think straight." Harry said. His eyes were still heavy with sleep.

"At least for a couple of hours. I'll wake you before dinner." Ron said.

Harry nodded and quickly made his way to their dormitory the moment they reached the Gryffindor Common Room.

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Ron was as good as his word. He woke Harry up two hours after their return to Gryffindor Tower in time to work a little on his assignments before dinner was served.

"Feeling better?" Asked Hermione as he took a seat at the table she and Ron had been using that afternoon.

"Much." He said pulling out some parchment and quills from his book bag.

The three continued to work in silence. Harry glanced up now and then looking at his friends. They were rather silent which was rather unusual for them. Even in the middle of intense studying, Ron and Hermione always managed to exchange words.

He was about to ask what was wrong when Neville interrupted.

"Harry." He said tentatively.

Harry looked at him with surprise. He hadn't even noticed Neville approaching them.

"Sorry." Said Neville. "Just wondered if I could speak with you for a moment. In private."

"Sure." Said Harry feeling a little surprised. Neville didn't usually ask to speak with him privately. If he needed help with schoolwork, he was more likely to ask Hermione for help.

Ron and Hermione also seemed surprised. Harry shrugged and followed Neville to a deserted corner.

Neville looked nervous as he looked around to check that they weren't being overheard. Harry looked at him closely. In truth, even though he was a little nervous, Neville seemed determined about something, and Harry was curious to find out why.

"What is it, Neville?" Harry asked as he noticed that Neville wasn't about to tell him what he wanted.

"Er...did – did you read the Prophet?" Neville asked fearfully.

Harry frowned. He didn't remember seeing the newspaper that day and he was surprised that he hadn't noticed as Hermione usually read the paper out loud if anything important was reported.

"No." Said Harry slowly wishing now that he had slept last night so that he could have paid attention to what was going on around him that day. "Should I have?" He asked wishing that Neville wasn't about to tell him anything bad.

"Er..." Began Neville, looking frantically around the room.

Harry looked at Neville. What was wrong? "What happened, Neville?" He asked.

"Azkaban was attacked." Neville said quickly.

Harry sighed. He should have expected it, he thought, with Malfoy and many of the most important Death Eaters in Azkaban, it was a matter of time before Voldemort tried to get them out.

"Are they out?" He asked.

There was no need for Harry to say whom he was talking about. Neville understood.

"Some." He said looking down. "The Ministry was able to keep some of them in the prison."

"Who's out?" Harry asked.

"Malfoy and the Lestranges." Neville mumbled.

Harry groaned. Of course, they would be the ones Voldemort would be most eager to have back in his inner circle. "Why are you telling me this?" He asked suddenly, he now knew why Ron and Hermione were so silent, they would have told him later, once they were sure he was feeling better.

"I...I wanted to...to ask you for...er...for a favor." Neville replied.

Harry looked at him waiting.

"Er...I... I was hoping you could...er...give me private training." Neville said.

Harry blinked in surprise. Training?

"Training?" Asked Harry. "What kind of training?"

"Defense lessons." Said Neville. "I want to be better at it." He added quietly.

"But you are getting better at it, Neville." Said Harry. "The D.A. has helped you a lot, you wouldn't have survived last June if it hadn't."

Neville flushed with pleasure at Harry's endorsement. But he quickly continued his urging.

"I know. But I could be better, I know it Harry. My parents were Aurors and they were the best. Now their attackers are out again. I want to be better." He pleaded.

Harry sighed. He understood what was driving Neville to plead for further training. Wasn't he hoping for the same to fight Voldemort?

"Let me think about it." Harry said. "I'll tell you tomorrow."

"All right." Said Neville, looking satisfied by Harry's answer.

Both parted ways, Neville to the dormitory and Harry toward the table he was sharing with Ron and Hermione.

"What did he want?" Asked Ron.

"He told me about Azkaban." Said Harry.

"I'm sorry, Harry." Said Hermione in a rush. "We meant to tell you, really, we did. But you were so tired and we hoped you would feel better tonight so we could tell you."

"I know. I'm not angry." Harry said.

"You're not?" Asked Ron carefully.

"No. I wouldn't have understood anyways if I had not rested after lessons." Said Harry. "I didn't even notice that anybody was whispering or anything."

"It's not known yet." Hermione said.

"What? How do you and Neville know then?" Asked Harry in surprise.

"Fred and George." Ron said. "They sent an owl this afternoon with a copy of the paper. Neville just happened to be sitting nearby and heard me when I showed it to Hermione."

"We told him not to tell. Nobody has received that copy of the paper this morning, the Ministry has managed to delay it." Hermione explained.

"How did Fred and George managed to get a hold on it?" Asked Harry.

"Dunno." Said Ron with a shrug. "But I'm not surprised they did. I wager they sent a copy to Dumbledore and the rest of the Order as well."

"Besides." Hermione said. "The Ministry will not be able to keep this out from the public for long. They'll have to allow the paper to be out either tomorrow or the next day."

"But why are they trying to delay it anyways?" Asked Harry.

"To give themselves time I suppose." Said Ron. "This is the second time in a year that Death Eaters have been able to escape from Azkaban. It's clear that the precautions they've taken to protect the prison are not working as they wished."

"And now Malfoy and the Lestranges are out again." Whispered Harry. "Malfoy must be strutting around the Slytherin Common Room."

"He might not know." Said Ron quietly.

"He knows." Harry replied.

"The Ministry has been keeping a very close eye on Malfoy's family." Said Hermione. "It is possible that he doesn't know yet. It may take some time for Lucius Malfoy to be able to get in contact with them."

"Everything is possible now." Said Ron. "Things are not going to get any better, are they?" He asked with a sigh.

"I doubt it." Said Harry.

----------------------------------------------

Harry had eaten dinner in silence. People around him conversed and laughed easily, but he knew that Ron, Hermione and Neville were not doing so.

The teachers also seemed to be a little distracted, as some students noticed when Professor McGonagall's meal cooled as she was eagerly discussing something with Professor Dumbledore. Even Professor Dumbledore didn't seem like himself, as he played around with his food without saying anything to Professor McGonagall at his side.

Students were becoming curious and Harry knew that Hermione was right, the Ministry would not be able to keep the story from leaking any time soon. By this time tomorrow, everybody in the school – and the Wizarding World – would know what had happened at Azkaban.

He knew sleep would not come easily at bedtime. And he was not looking forward to another sleepless night.

His meal had cooled and it tasted like sawdust when it finally made its way to his mouth. Harry pushed the plate away from him. "I'm going to work on my Potions paper." He said and left the table abruptly before his friends could remind him that he had finished that paper a few hours before.

Harry walked through the silent corridors toward the Gryffindor Tower. He didn't notice the subjects in the paintings following his every move curiously, nor did he notice Peeves placing wads of bubblegum along the floor in a corridor nearby. His mind was full of speculation and worry. What would the effect of the return of Malfoy and the Lestranges into Voldemort's inner circle? What would happen now?

Ron had been right, things were not going to get better any time soon, and he knew it would be a long time until they were. But he shuddered to think about the sacrifices that would have to be made, especially on his part, for things to take a turn to the better.

He was startled to find himself facing the portrait of the Fat Lady. He had been so immersed in his thoughts that he hadn't noticed he had arrived to his destination.

"Are you ready to tell me the password now?" She snapped as if he had annoyed her in some way.

"Trailing stardust." Harry said.

The portrait opened promptly. "Next time answer when I ask you instead of standing there like a loony." The Fat Lady called as he climbed into the common room.

As he had expected, the common room was empty and he walked to his favorite seat in front of the fireplace.

He sat for many minutes watching the flames dancing in the fire. He had promised Neville to think about his request and he was inclined to give in and train him. But how could Neville expect him to do more for him that he could do for himself? There was only so much he could do for Neville, he himself had a lot to learn.

He looked at his watch. It was still early and the others would soon be returning after dinner. He made up his mind and stood up from the chair. He needed to talk to Professor Lupin. He quickly made his way out of the common room. He heard the Fat Lady mumble something behind him, but he didn't pay much attention as he continued on his way toward Lupin's office.

He found the door closed. He knocked hesitantly but heard no response. Maybe he's still in the Great Hall, he thought before knocking once more. He heard voices inside and Harry stood uncertainly by the door. He was about to turn back when Professor Lupin's voice reached him.

"Do you know how hard this is for me? Seeing you here day after day and not knowing what is going to happen between us? It's been almost 18 years, Emma, and things are not the same."

Harry didn't mean to overhear, he knew he should have turned around and returned to the common room but he couldn't help but be curious about his professors' conversation, for he now knew that it was Professor Lupin and Professor Holmes who were behind the door.

Their voices had lowered and Harry could only hear muffled tones.

Harry decided that perhaps he should return later and had just turned around and walked a few paces when the door opened.

"Harry?" He heard Lupin's voice say behind him.

Harry turned slowly. "Er...hi Professor." He said.

"What are you doing here? Is dinner over?" Lupin asked.

"Er...I think so." Harry said. "I left before everybody else was done." He added.

Professor Holmes was standing by Professor Lupin looking at Harry curiously.

"Did you have a question for Remus, Harry?" She asked.

"Er...not really." Harry said. "I just wanted to talk to him. But you are busy, so I'll come back later."

"No, don't worry. Come on in." Said Lupin quickly.

Harry could have sworn he heard Professor Holmes sigh, but her expression had not changed at all.

"Good night." She said and turned to leave the office.

"Good night, Professor." Said Harry after Lupin's soft "Good night."

Lupin closed the door behind Harry and motioned to one of the empty chairs in front of the desk.

"Well, Harry, how can I help you?" Lupin asked with a rather feigned smile that made Harry wonder what had happened between his two professors to make Lupin seem depressed about his previous meeting.

"Er...Do you know about Azkaban?" He asked quietly.

Remus sighed. "I should've known Fred and George would've said something even though they were asked not to."

"Is it really bad?" Harry asked.

"I won't lie to you Harry, but I can't say much about it either. All I can say is that it doesn't look good." Lupin said.

"What will the Ministry do now?" Asked Harry curiously.

"I don't know. The fact that they're trying to delay the news from getting to the public tells me that they don't know what to do themselves. It's not a good time for Ministry to deal with this. After all the mess the Ministry had to deal with after the attack last June, this will only make the public to think twice about the Ministry's competence." Said Lupin.

"How did they get away? I thought the Ministry had taken steps from preventing this sort of thing." Harry exclaimed.

Remus sighed. "That's what we're asking ourselves. The enchantments and wards put around Azkaban were among the strongest and more advanced sort of magic. Not even the curse-breakers from Gringotts could get through them when they were placed. It was thought to have become more impenetrable than ever. We don't know for sure how the Death Eaters managed to get inside and help Malfoy and the Lestranges to escape, but we have our theories." He replied.

"Could there be an agent among the Ministry?" Harry asked.

"It is possible. We're simply not sure of what happened, we only know bits and pieces but not the whole story. The Ministry is not talking. Not even to Dumbledore." Lupin answered.

"Why? I thought the Ministry had cleared everything up between them and Dumbledore." Harry said with some confusion.

"Publicly, they did." Said Lupin. "But that doesn't mean they will tell him everything. I think the Ministry is still afraid of the respect and power that Dumbledore possesses, if he had wanted, he could've been the Minister of Magic for many years now, the only thing keeping him from that position is his own choice to stay at Hogwarts."

"I still don't understand." Harry said.

"The Ministry knows about the Order, Harry." Lupin continued. "They don't know what it's called, of course, but they know that Dumbledore has a group of people trying to stop Voldemort, and the Ministry is not too happy about it."

"But why? Isn't the Order helping the Ministry trying to stop Voldemort?" Asked Harry.

"They are, but there are people in the Ministry that want Dumbledore to keep out of it. They want the Aurors to be the ones to get all the credit, you see, and they know that if Dumbledore has his own group working for the same purpose, it will be the Order who will manage to do the deed instead of the Ministry. They want to show to the public that the Ministry has the best people for the job and that things will get better, as it is, the public is feeling more confident about Dumbledore than the Ministry even though some of them still believe that there was some truth to the reports of last year."

"In other words, they want to be in the spotlight and they're trying to keep Dumbledore out of it." Harry said.

"Yes. They think that by restricting the information given to Dumbledore that he won't have enough to go on and will stay out of the subject of the escaped Death Eaters." Lupin replied.

"But the Order is doing something about this, aren't they?" Asked Harry.

"We're doing everything we can, Harry." Said Lupin understanding Harry's need to know everything. It was the lack of information about his past and his future that lead to the events of last June. "But," continued Lupin, "we can only do so much with the information we have."

"So the Ministry has succeeded from keeping the Order to learn more about what happened." Said Harry angrily.

"They've tried." Lupin replied. "But we have our own contacts within the Ministry and Azkaban, as well as others around the world who have managed to gather more information than the Ministry has been able to. There's just too little information at the moment for us to do much about it."

"What will happen now?" Harry was worried what these new turn of events would mean, not just to himself but to his friends and the rest of the Wizarding world.

"All we can do for now is try to gather more information. We have not been able to find the place where Voldemort is staying. Malfoy and the Lestranges are more likely to stay there and keep low for a while." Lupin said thoughtfully.

"What about Snape? Doesn't he know?" Asked Harry.

"No, Severus is not among those of the inner circle. I think Voldemort is keeping him under surveillance, when he's out of Hogwarts at least. He wants to make sure that Severus is a loyal follower and not a double agent of Dumbledore's." Lupin explained.

"But why not kill him if he's not sure?" Harry knew that Voldemort had no reservations and would kill anybody he suspected of treason.

"Severus is useful to him." Lupin said. "He's placed perfectly at Hogwarts where he can pass information that could be useful to his cause. He's also a master in Potion making, a talent that is not common to most wizards and Severus has knowledge of more dark potions and curses than anybody else taught at Hogwarts."

"Why does he know all that? Why would he need to?" Asked Harry in confusion. He had heard before that Snape had been considered a good student while at Hogwarts and that he had know more about the Dark Arts than any other student that it was for that reason that he had wanted to teach the Defense Against the Dark Arts class.

Lupin seemed thoughtful for a moment as if gathering his thoughts before answering. "His family has a dark background." Lupin finally said. "Specially from his father's side. They were related to the Blacks, you know. His father and Sirius' were very close friends when they attended Hogwarts and they continued to be after they left and had married. The Snapes are said to be direct descendants from Grindelwald himself. Many believed that he left behind diaries and books full of Dark Magic, that it is the source of the Snapes' talent."

Harry tucked every piece of information carefully in his mind. He had always wondered about the Potions Master, he was full of contradictions and never was what others expected him to be.

"Well, I think I've told you enough. Curfew is about to start, you should be in your common room." Said Lupin leaving his chair.

Harry nodded and slowly made his way to the door.

"Good night, Professor." He said as he opened the door.

"Good night, Harry. Sleep well." Replied Lupin.

Harry closed the door behind himself and thoughtfully made his way towards the Gryffindor Tower.

He passed a set of large windows facing the Forbidden Forest. The full moon was still weeks away but the night seemed bright and he could see the grounds perfectly under the dark sky. He could see Hagrid's shadow behind the curtains closed around the windows of his cottage. Smoke drifting silently out of his chimney.

Suddenly, he saw movement and watched as a slight figure made its way to the forest. For a moment, he had thought it was a student out on a lark, but then he noticed that the cloak this person was wearing was too bright compared to the black ones the students used. The figure glided across the grounds into the forest, without looking back or around, as if unafraid to be found out.

Harry stayed in front of the window for a moment, hoping that the person would return from the forest.

"What are you doing here?" A voice asked behind him.

Harry turned around abruptly to find Hermione standing before him.

"Ron and I have been looking for you." She said a little crossly.

"I was with Lupin." Harry said starting to walk back to the common room. "I was just on my way back."

"You seemed a little preoccupied." Hermione said turning a curious look his way.

"I was just looking out the window." Said Harry.

Hermione seemed eager to ask some more questions but she must have changed her mind as she remained silent. Harry could only be grateful she had, there were many things that he had to think about.

They had just arrived to the portrait of the Fat Lady when heavy footsteps were heard coming their way.

"Where have you been?" Panted Ron as he ran toward them.

"With Lupin." Said Harry.

"Should've gone there first." Said Ron as Hermione said the password and the portrait opened to let them in.

The common room was full as students clustered around the tables and couches working feverishly in order to finish their work.

Harry was feeling tired. Most of his work was done, and those he had not finished were due later that week.

"I'm going to bed." He decided and left his friends to look after the younger students as he made his way to the dormitory.

He noticed he wasn't the only one to go to bed early as entered the bedroom. Neville was already in his pajamas getting ready to bed while Dean was already behind his curtained bed.

"Good night, Harry." Said Neville as he climbed into his own bed.

"Good night, Neville." Said Harry and watched as Neville kissed a small picture by his bed before closing the curtains around his bed.

Harry glanced at the closed curtains for a moment before glancing at the small frame. He recognized Neville's parents instantly. It seemed to have been taken around the same time the picture Moody had shown him last year was taken. Harry finally understood what was behind the request Neville had made him earlier. Revenge might be part of it, but Harry suspected that so was family honor.

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N/A: There you go, this is my latest offering to you, hope you like it. There have been some questions about this story being posted in the boards. It is posted under the same title and it is ahead by a chapter. If you want to look it up, it's in the fan fiction section of the message boards. I'll start editing the next chapter as soon as it's finished. Hopefully I won't have any more distractions. Until then, thank you for reviewing and I'll don't forget to do so once more.


	62. Sixth Year Chapter 13

A/N: I am very sorry it has taken this long to get this chapter up, I never meant it to be this long a wait but things just happen that change well-meant plans. And a bad case of writer's block doesn't help either. It's been close to a month since I added anything new to my story and that kept this chapter from being edited at all. I guess that after two and a half years writing this story it was bound to happen. But I'm going on vacations next week, and I had hoped to have this ready for you this weekend so you'll have something to read over the holidays. Thank you all for waiting so patiently. Let's continue with the story.

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Disclaimer: I own nothing, nothing! Except maybe for a few secondary characters and a few of the places Harry goes to (like the Potter houses, with the obvious exception of the cottage at Godric's Hollow) everything else belongs to the exceptional JK Rowling. Whom, will finish HP and the HB Prince soon! : )

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**_Chapter 13 Defense Training_**

By the next morning, Harry had decided to tell Neville that he would help him train. He might not be able to show him everything there was to know, but he could teach him the little he did know.

The only thing to do now was to find a room where they could practice. He wasn't sure if they should use the Room of Requirement, as many people now knew of its existence. Neville had made it clear he wanted the lessons to be secret. Harry hadn't even told Ron or Hermione about it, and he wasn't sure he ever would. Not unless Neville allowed him to.

The others were already up. He could hear Ron and Dean laughing by the bathroom door waiting for Neville to finish up. Seamus was sitting on his bed getting his papers ready to turn in that morning.

Everything seemed normal. He had no strange dreams during the night and the day seemed clear and sunny outside.

"Will you lot hurry up, breakfast will be done before you are ready." Called Seamus as Neville stepped out of the bathroom.

Harry scrambled slowly from his bed as he heard Seamus complain about the time the others were taking to finish their morning ablutions.

By the time Harry stepped out of the bathroom, only Ron and Neville remained in the room waiting for him.

"I'll meet you in the common room, Ron." Said Harry as he noticed Neville glancing at Ron nervously and throwing beseeching glances at Harry.

"Why?" Asked Ron with surprise, they usually went down together to meet Hermione every morning.

"I just need to get something, you better go down before Hermione decides to come up and look for us." Said Harry walking purposely to his trunk.

"All right." Said Ron and Harry waited until his footsteps had walked away from the dormitory.

Neville turned to looked at him uncertainly, Harry could plainly see that Neville was nervously waiting to see what he had decided on regards to his request.

"Er…Harry?" He asked tentatively. "Did you – "

"I did." Interrupted Harry taking pity on his friend. "I'll help you, Neville."

Neville broke into a large smile.

"But don't get your hopes up." Warned Harry. "There's only so much I can help you with, you'll have to do some training on your own or ask Professor Lupin to help you with more advanced defense."

"Oh, we'll do famously." Exclaimed Neville. "Thank you, Harry. I do want to be better at Defense."

"Never mind, Neville." Said Harry quickly. He never felt comfortable when others tried to praise him. "We'll have to look for a room to practice."

"Why not the Room of Requirement?" Asked Neville.

"Too many people know of it. Somebody could stumble into our training, unless you want others to find out." Harry said.

"No…no, I don't want others to know I'm training." Said Neville. "What room will we use then?"

"I don't know yet. I'll have a look around. I'll let you know when I find something." Said Harry.

"Okay. Thanks Harry." Said Neville and quickly made his way out of the dormitory.

Harry remained looking after him for a few seconds before leaving at a much slower pace.

----------------

Harry went through every class with his mind on the training sessions he agreed to give Neville distracting him from time to time. He didn't know where they could train without anybody finding them out. An empty classroom was too risky, even though he knew most teachers wouldn't mind if they knew. The Room of Requirement was too well known and anybody would find it if they wanted to use it.

He could ask Dobby if he knew of a private room, he supposed, just like he did with the Room of Requirement. It was Dobby, after all, who had told him of the room. The house-elves would know every room in the castle and probably went to places that the human inhabitants of the castle had never been to.

In fact, he probably didn't need to go looking for Dobby, he could ask Lotty. Lotty had lived in the castle when both his grandfather and father had been attending Hogwarts, just as Minnie had done. Lotty would know some of the secrets Hogwarts hid.

Harry decided to ask Lotty that same night. Every night, Lotty waited for Harry as he made sure that his master had clean clothing for the next morning. It would be the perfect time to ask. He'll do it before the others retired for the night.

Having decided on what to do, Harry was able to concentrate more on his lessons. Thankfully, he did not have Potions scheduled for that day and History of Magic was boring enough that nobody noticed he had other things in his mind.

Lunch time came and went and the afternoon classes kept them busy enough until dinner time.

"We haven't seen much of Hagrid lately." Said Hermione as they sat along the Gryffindor Table that evening.

"He's been busy with his brother." Said Ron with a grimace.

"Grawp can keep anybody busy." Harry laughed.

Hermione shook her head. Since that night on June, Harry, Ron and Hermione had kept away from the forest. They didn't want to come face to face with a giant, even if he was Hagrid's brother.

"I just hope he doesn't bring him to class one of these days." Said Ron, who was the only one who hadn't met Grawp yet.

"Let us hope so. The augurey are interesting." Said Hermione, taking out her notes for the day and propping them up in front of her.

"Interesting? All they do is brood in their nests and eat, and then they cry when it's going to rain. Not too interesting in my opinion." Said Ron. "We fed them, we watched them build their nest, and we watch them brood. What else is there to do with them?"

"Hagrid will have something in mind for later." Harry said.

"He always has something in mind for later." Exclaimed Ron. "That's what I'm worried about."

Harry smiled. He knew Ron was not too eager to find out what would come next in Hagrid's curriculum, Hermione wasn't too eager either, and Harry understood their reasoning. Hagrid's lessons could be dangerous if he was allowed to use the beasts he liked. Lately, they had worked only in the Augurey's, but as Ron had said, there was only so much they could do with them.

The sky was dark and the stars were beginning to shine through the enchanted ceiling of the Great Hall. Harry noticed that many were almost done with their meal and at the staff table the teachers seemed eager to leave the Hall to do whatever they did during the evenings.

It wasn't long until students started to leave the Hall for their respective common rooms.

"There's charms to work on and a Transfiguration paper to finish." Hermione was saying as she, Ron and Harry walked down the silent corridors toward the Gryffindor Tower. "Potions is completed, and I have to begin my research for Ancient Runes."

Ron groaned. "I hate Mondays. We usually get too much schoolwork on Mondays."

"The same goes for Fridays." Said Harry.

"Will you two stop complaining? Halloween is two weeks away, which means we have about eight weeks of study time before half year exams." Hermione said.

"Don't remind me, the way we're going, we'll be having nervous breakdowns by the time we're reviewing for those exams." Said Ron.

"The fifth and seventh years have the worst of it." Said Harry. "They have O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s to prepare for."

"You heard McGonagall, our exams will be based on the N.E.W.T. level tests we'll be taking next year." Hermione reminded them. "That means that whatever grade we receive on these tests will give us an idea of what we'd get if were taking the N.E.W.T.s now."

"Hermione, it's expected that we won't do as well as the seventh years." Said Harry. "We don't know enough to do so."

"Oh, Harry, they'll test us only on the things we are supposed to know. But the test will be similar to how we'll be testing next year." Hermione said.

"Well, it doesn't do to get all worried about it." Said Ron. "We still have time until test time is near."

"But that's what I've been saying, Ron." Exclaimed Hermione. "Testing time is around the corner and we must start preparing for it."

"Hermione, let's just get to Halloween without worrying about tests." Pleaded Ron. "I want to be able to think of other things instead of tests at the moment."

They had arrived to the common room, queuing behind a group of third years that had opened the portrait before them.

The common room was still virtually empty. Many had remained behind in the Great Hall chatting with friends in other houses before returning to their respective common rooms. Hermione walked promptly to an empty table in a corner and started to pull out her books and parchment.

Ron sighed with resignation and followed her.

"I got to get a few things from my trunk." Said Harry and went up the stairs toward the dormitories.

As expected, he found Lotty pressing his robes and shirts and setting them on the chair by the bed ready for him to don in morning.

"Hello, Lotty." Said Harry cheerfully.

"Master Harry." Said Lotty looking at Harry with surprise.

"Lotty, I wanted to ask you something." Said Harry in a hurry.

Lotty took his attention from his duties and looked at Harry with an eagerness that Harry found somewhat unsettling and was sure the elf would do anything in his power to make him happy.

"Yes, Master Harry, Sir?" The elf asked reminding Harry of Dobby.

"Er…well…do you…do you know of a room in the castle that others don't know about?" Harry asked quickly.

The elf looked thoughtful and Harry was afraid that it would tell him that it didn't know about any secret room, besides the Room of Requirement.

"I already know about the Room of Requirement." Added Harry as the elf continued to think.

"Dobby told Lotty, Sir." The elf answered.

"Oh, well…do you know of any other room?" Harry asked again.

"Lotty heard of a room, Master Harry, Sir." The elf squeaked solemnly. "But Lotty does not know where it is, Master Harry, Sir."

"Oh. Who told you about it?" Asked Harry, maybe the other elves knew and he could ask Dobby to find out.

"Master Aliaster did, Master Harry." The elf said. "Master Aliaster found it when he came to Hogwarts, Master Harry, and told Lotty all about it."

"Master Aliaster?" Asked Harry.

"Master James' father, Master Harry." The elf replied.

"My grandfather?" Asked Harry in surprised. He did remember being told that his grandfather's name was Aliaster, but it had escaped his memory until now.

The elf nodded vehemently.

"What did he say about this room?" Asked Harry curiously.

"Master Aliaster said that he had gotten lost, Master Harry." The elf explained. "And he comes to a painting. But it's not really a painting, Master Harry, Master Aliaster said it was a wall just pretending to be a painting. But when Master Aliaster touched the painting, Master Harry, the painting disappeared and a door was there."

Harry was listening intently. He knew there were mysteries in Hogwarts that not everybody knew about. Even Dumbledore didn't know everything about the castle. But this door sounded too good a mystery to let it pass.

"Master Alaister didn't go inside." The elf continued. "A teacher found him and led Master Alaister back to the Great Hall, Master Harry."

"Where was this wall, Lotty?" Asked Harry.

"In the South Tower, Master Harry. In the uppermost floor of the South Tower." The elf said.

Harry smiled.

"Thank you Lotty." Said Harry and getting a couple of textbooks from his trunk exited the room thinking about the painting that wasn't a painting, but a wall pretending to be a painting.

Harry couldn't go looking for the wall that evening. It was too late to do so and he didn't want to take Ron and Hermione with him. They would only ask why he was looking for this mystery wall and he couldn't really tell them about it, not if he wanted to keep Neville's lessons a secret. But there was still time, he thought as he prepared for bed that night, there was still time to go looking for it.

----------------------

Harry didn't get any free time to go out looking into the South Tower. With school work, Quidditch Practice and D.A. meetings, Harry didn't get a chance to look for the South Tower until the end of the week.

Neville hadn't said anything, but Harry knew Neville was eager to commence his training as soon as possible.

As Hermione and others had predicted, the news of the attack on Azkaban and the escape of Malfoy and the Lestranges couldn't be kept in secret for long. Two days after Fred and George had sent the news to Ron, the Daily Prophet published it in large print in the first page.

As expected, there was a loud public outcry when it was found out that the Ministry had tried to keep it quiet. Now, not only did the Ministry had to deal with the Azkaban escapees but with a public that was losing confidence in its government.

Harry tried not to think about the situation, but deep inside, he knew that Voldemort was delighted by the turn of events. This would be a perfect time to crush the Ministry and take over the Magical World. But Harry also knew that the only reason Voldemort had not tried to take over the Ministry was because Dumbledore and the Order would do everything in their power to keep him from victory and if he appeared publicly, the Order would get more powerful and their ranks would grow. Only fear and disbelief kept people from openly believing that Voldemort was back. As long as they didn't see him, they could still believe that the Ministry and Dumbledore were wrong and Voldemort hadn't returned.

Harry knew that sooner of later they would see the truth, but for the moment things could stay as they were until it was time for a final face-off.

But he didn't want to think about that, for now, all he wanted to think about was finding that door his grandfather had once found.

Friday had finally arrived, and, as always, students were eager to leave behind thoughts of school work and textbooks and thought only of having fun and resting for the next two days.

Ron and Hermione had a prefect meeting after dinner. Harry thought it would be the perfect time to go exploring.

Making sure that nobody noticed, especially Ron and Hermione, he stuffed his invisibility cloak and the Marauder's Map into his pocket. Fortunately, the school robes Mrs. Nichols had bought for him were voluminous enough to hide the bulge.

He ate dinner, slower than he usually did, and waited after Ron and Hermione had to leave for their meeting before leaving his seat.

He walked calmly out the Great Hall, trying not to look around or make any motions that would call the attention of anybody, especially a teacher. He didn't need a teacher following him to see what he was up to. And if there was a teacher who would do that, it was Snape. He would only be too happy to catch Harry sneaking around to give him detention, no to mention taking points off Gryffindor.

Harry walked past other students as they all walked around the corridors trying to make their way to their common rooms. Harry tried to keep out of sight of any Gryffindors, as they would only be too happy to keep him company on their way to the Gryffindor Tower. He was able to sneak into a small corridor off the main one and quickly slipped the invisibility cloak over him. He next tried the Marauder's Map. He wasn't sure how to get to the South Tower from his present position and wanted to check if there were any shortcuts that would keep him out of sight from others.

There was a shortcut, and conveniently enough, the entrance to the corridor was at the end of the one he was hiding in.

Harry followed the length of the corridor, at the very end, he found a narrow door, but it didn't have a knob.

Harry stood looking at it, how was he supposed to open it.

He looked down at the Map, and a dot labeled HARRY POTTER appeared next to the door. The little dot walked into the door without stopping.

Harry looked up to the door once more. And without second thoughts walked straight into it. He felt the same sensation he felt as he crossed the barrier for Platform 9 ¾ . Once he was on the other side of the door, he looked back. Well, he thought, if they can do it for the platform, they can do it for the school.

With a smile, he continued down the darkened corridor.

Harry pulled out his wand and after a muttered "Lumos" he continued on his way, checking the map periodically to make sure he was following the correct path. Several times he had to stop and look at the map as several other corridors crisscrossed with his current track. Some of the corridors weren't on the map and he could only imagine that his father and friends had not found any use for any of them, or they would've made sure to put them in the map.

He followed the corridor straight toward the South Tower, nobody crossed his path and nobody seemed to be on the South Tower at the moment.

After walking along the darkened path for half an hour, Harry found himself crossing a narrow entryway into a large corridor. He had arrived at the South Tower. Now, he only had to make his way up to the uppermost floor.

He found the staircases easy enough, but unlike most in the castle they seemed to remain stationary.

Harry climbed up to the last level, out of breath and with a stitch at his side, he leaned against the wall to catch his breath.

He pulled out the Map once more and made a final check of the floor. Nobody was around, and he could freely look around until he found the wall Lotty had told him about.

He kept the cloak over him, as he glimpsed some paintings along the walls, and he knew that Dumbledore had asked the paintings around the castle to keep an eye for anything out of the ordinary.

Well, he thought, my coming here is out of the ordinary.

He didn't know exactly where to start looking. Lotty had not known the exact location of the mystery wall, and his grandfather was not there to tell him anything about it, even though, according to Lotty, his grandfather hadn't been able to find his way back to the mysterious wall after that one time.

Harry walked back and forth along the corridor. For minutes, he stood in front of paintings, hoping each time that it was the one that he was looking for. But so far, he hadn't been able to find it.

Finally, he had reached a small corner of the corridor. A large painting adorned one of the walls.

It was a beautiful painting. The colors mixed and brightened showing an island surrounded by dark waters of a sweeping ocean.

Harry was transfixed by the painting. The water was moving and the waves crashed around the white shores of the island, but there was no person depicted in the picture. He couldn't see anybody moving around in the colored grass. Hypnotized, he reached out to the painting. Seconds later he found himself facing a door.

It seemed, that he had found the door he had come looking for.

He grasped the knob and twisted gently, testing to see if was locked. It wasn't and it easily gave way to his gentle push. But what he found inside, was not what he had expected.

"Hello, Harry." A voiced said as he opened the door.

Harry found himself in a sitting room, very similar to the one in Gryffindor Manor. There were French windows at the far wall, facing the school grounds. The curtains were pushed aside and the rising moon was shining brightly through the glass.

In front of the window was a day bed, piled high with small pillows. Across from the door was a fireplace, the flames dancing merrily in the crate, and just beside the fireplace was a large chair with a tea table beside it.

In the chair was Brenna, who didn't seem too surprised to find Harry at her door.

"I'm…I'm s-sorry." Harry stuttered. "I didn't know anybody was in here." Harry was surprised to see her in this room, according to the map, nobody had been present in the South Tower, so how was it that she was here?

"Would you like some tea?" Asked Brenna pleasantly. It was until then that Harry noticed the tea tray on the table beside her with a little plate of biscuits.

Before Harry could say anything, she pointed to the tray, a cup and saucer instantly appeared and the teapot rose into the air and poured tea into the newly appeared cup.

"Take a seat." She said and pointed to the cleared space near the tea table. A chair seemed to spring up from the floor.

Harry walked into the room and sat on the chair.

Brenna passed the cup to Harry.

"Thank you." He said, and shook his head when she offered the plate with biscuits.

"Uncle Albus did warn me that if there was anybody who would find my living quarters, it was most likely to be you." She said before sipping her tea silently.

Harry didn't reply. He didn't know what to say.

Brenna looked at him closely.

Harry started to feel uncomfortable under her scrutinizing gaze.

"You'll find an empty room at the other end of the corridor." She said. "It will serve your purpose."

"How…How did you know I was looking for an empty room?" Harry asked surprised. He had the feeling, that like Dumbledore, she was skilled at both Leglimency and Occlumency.

"Why else would you be here?" She replied.

Harry shrugged but opted not to say anything.

Brenna smiled and turned to the tea tray, and Harry saw the tea pot rise once more on the air and pour some tea into her cup.

"How do you do that?" He asked suddenly.

Brenna looked at him questioningly.

"Wandless magic, I mean." Harry urged.

Brenna shrugged unconcernedly as she sipped some of her tea.

"I've been trained in the art since I was a child." She finally replied.

"Is it very hard to learn?" Harry asked. She was not the only he had seen perform wandless magic before, but he had thought that only those with great talent and power were able to do so. And now, here before him was a young woman, who was likely close to his own age, and she could perform a sort of magic he had thought was acquired with age and wisdom.

"It depends." She said. "Most Hogwarts students learn the basics during their sixth and seventh year. They learn to move things, apparition, of course, and maybe some transfiguration. But not all can become masters in the art unless you've been trained to do so from childhood."

"And that's rare?" Harry asked intrigued by the thought of performing magic from childhood.

"Very." Said Brenna. "The only one I know, other than my people of course, that has made some study in the art, is Uncle Albus, but as he studied it after leaving Hogwarts, he can not really be thought of as a master in the art. But he's fairly good."

"You mean the people where you live only use wandless magic?" Asked Harry. He had heard her say something of it before, and he had asked Hermione about it, but they all ended up talking about legends and he couldn't remember what they were about.

"It has been the custom for centuries." Brenna responded. "We do not usually leave our land, and we keep ourselves out of sight of Muggles and Wizards alike. We like to keep things simple and we do not respond well to change." She said with a little smile. "Our ancestors can be traced back to the first group of wizards and witches in the world. During their time, there were no wands to be used. They learned to use and control the magical core in their bodies and taught it to their children when they were old enough. But those that leave home tend to forget what they've learned from their parents and find themselves having to use items to conduct their magic. That's how wands were first created."

"One of my friends once said that before wands wizards used all sorts of things to conduct their magic, swords, staffs, jewelry. That it wasn't until the first conference of International colonies met that it was decided that wands would be used as the appropriate conductor of magic." Harry said thinking about something Hermione had once said.

"That's true. And since then wizards have forgotten that magic lives within their bodies and that with proper training, wands are not necessary." Brenna said.

"Can you teach me?" Harry found himself saying. Later he wouldn't understand what drove him to ask the question, but at the moment, he felt the great need to learn.

Brenna was looking at him, as if measuring him to see if he was capable of learning. She must have found something in him because she nodded.

"I will." She said. "But I must warn you, it can be rather difficult and needs lots of concentration and meditation to become skilled in the art. You might not be able to see any process until some time has passed."

"I've found that learning to do proper magic takes time." Replied Harry.

Brenna smiled and nodded. "So it does." She said quietly.

"When should we begin?" Asked Harry.

"Next weekend." Said Brenna. "You'll need time to arrange your schedule. The training can be rather draining, you'll find that you'll want to rest after and I don't want to take time from your studying."

Harry nodded. He was also thinking about the Quidditch training and the D.A. meetings, not to mention the private lessons he had agreed to give Neville. His schedule seemed to be filling by the minute, suddenly, he'll find himself with no time to do his schoolwork and he knew that Hermione would not stand for it, and his secret training would not be secret for long.

"You won't say anything about it, will you?" He asked Brenna.

"If that's what you wish." She answered.

"Thank you." Harry replied. "I got to go."

"Good night." Brenna said. "Go to the other end of the corridor, you'll find a door by the end wall. You can use that room for your training with your friend, and we can use it for your own."

Harry nodded. He had seen the door when he was looking over on that side, but as he was looking for a painting that turned into a door, he had not paid it too much attention.

With a sudden thought he turned to look at her once more as he had just reached the door. "Maybe you'll teach me a little Occlumency as well." He said.

Brenna laughed. "You do need a little bit of practice."

"I know." Harry smiled bitterly.

"We'll see what can be done." She said.

"Thanks." And with a small wave he opened the door and left.

Harry arrived at the Gryffindor Tower before Ron and Hermione were back, which made it easy for him to slip into his bed without anybody noticing that he had been gone for a while. Seamus, Dean and Neville were snoring softly as he climbed into bed.

He pulled the curtains around his bed and with a sigh lay on his bed. Minutes later he heard Ron entering the room. He glimpsed a corner of the curtain lift and saw his friend's shadowed face look for him in the darkness.

"Harry?" Ron asked.

"Hmmm?" Grunted Harry.

"Sorry mate, just checking if you were sleep." Ron replied as he let the curtain fall into place.

"Well, don't be a git and let me sleep." Said Harry and snuggled into his mattress.

"I said I was sorry." Ron said before the room fell silent once more.

-----------------

It was during breakfast the next morning that Harry told Neville he had found a place for them to train.

"It's in the South Tower." Harry was whispering. "There's a door against the wall facing a painting of the castle. It looks like nobody has used it for some time, so we can use it without anybody interrupting." He said even though he couldn't be sure of that fact as he didn't have time the previous night to check on the room to see if it worked for their purpose.

"When can we start?" Asked Neville.

"Whenever you want." Shrugged Harry.

"Tonight. The sooner we start the better." Said Neville.

"All right. After dinner. We have D.A. meeting in the afternoon after Quidditch practice." Harry said thoughtfully. "We can't stay for too long. Or people will notice."

"All right." Replied Neville.

"An hour or so will be enough, I think." Harry continued.

"More than enough." Said Neville.

Harry nodded and turned back to his food.

"What was that all about?" Asked Ron, who was sitting on his other side.

"Hmmm?" Harry turned to look at his friend.

"The whispering, you and Neville." Said Ron.

"Oh, he was just asking about the article in the Prophet." Harry said turning back to his food quickly.

"What a mess." Sighed Ron.

"Well, the Ministry should've expected it. There are many people who are vocally disappointed in the way the Ministry is doing things." Hermione said, overhearing her two friends sitting across from her.

"Yes, but to camp around the shore closest to Azkaban?" Ron exclaimed. "What do they think they can do? All they're doing is calling the attention of the Muggles."

"And let's face it, Hermione." Added Harry. "Wizards are not the most conspicuous sort of people."

Hermione had to concede that fact.

The Daily Prophet had reported that morning that a large group of wizards had camped along the shore closest to Azkaban prison. Their tents and obvious performance of magic were calling attention of the nearby Muggle community, and during the previous night, the camp had been visited by a police patrol. Needless to say, the Ministry had to intervene and the newly created Muggle Relations Department was placed in charge of the situation.

"I bet dad will have to work overtime because of this." Ron grumbled.

"You're forgetting one thing, Ron." Said Hermione. "You're dad is the Head of the Department, he'll just send others to take care of it."

"You're forgetting we're talking about my dad." Replied Ron. "He won't just send people over, he'll go with them himself."

Harry had to agree with Ron, he couldn't imagine Mr. Weasley to be the sort of man who would send others to do the job for him, even if he could.

"But even if he does go with the team trying to make things right, he'll not have to do everything on his own, he'll have others to help." Hermione replied.

"I suppose. If nothing else, mum will make him go home early." Ron smiled.

-----------------------

That Saturday was a busy day for Harry.

He spent the morning in the common room with Ron and Hermione working in their school work. After a light luncheon, Harry, Ron and Ginny made their trek to the Quidditch Pitch with the rest of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team for practice. They spent half an hour working in their individual moves and conditioning exercises before playing a mock game that lasted close to an hour.

After the Quidditch training, Harry and the others hurried to their dormitories to clean up before meeting once more in the Room of Requirement with the rest of the D.A. for practice. This session was led by Professors Lupin and Holmes as they were practicing some of the new defense charms they had learned in their Defense Against the Dark Arts classes. The Blasting Curse was a problem for the younger students but Harry and Hermione were the first to get it right and were praised for it by the professors. From the Blasting Curse they moved to the Confundus Charm, and from there they moved to practice binding spells they had learned on their previous training.

After the D.A. meeting, the students met once more in the Great Hall for dinner, where Harry ate another light meal as he had a training session to go through with Neville. The only thing in his mind was trying to find a way to escape Ron and Hermione's eagle eyes and go on his way to the hidden room in the South Tower.

However, he didn't need have to go through with his own plan as a third year Gryffindor got into an altercation with some older Slytherins just as Harry, Ron and Hermione were leaving the Great Hall. As the prefects on hand, Ron and Hermione hurried to deal with the problem. Harry took advantage of the distraction to hurry toward the South Tower. He knew it wouldn't take too long to part the combatants but they would have to issue punishments and fill forms after that, he just hoped it would take them half an hour to finish with their duties before they went looking for him. He had to make sure that the next training meetings would have to take place when Ron and Hermione where on Prefect Meetings, he didn't think he could come up with different excuses to be away from his friends.

He made his way to the door Brenna had told him about. He grasped the knob and turned, but it was locked. Harry withdrew his hand in consternation. He was about to grasp his wand, which he kept in his backpocket, when an envelope appeared tied around the knob.

Harry took the envelope gingerly and opened it. Inside was a small note and a bronze key.

"I thought you may have need of this." It said.

Harry took the key and tried it on the door. He heard the lock give and the door opened silently at his gentle push.

The room was completely empty. It was a circular room, as large as the Gryffindor Common Room, with no windows around the wall, only a large fireplace across from the door. The floor was carpeted and dusty, and small torches were lighted around the room.

Harry spent the next minutes cleaning the room of dust and the few cobwebs he found. The fireplace had been quickly cleaned and a warm fire lighted in the grate.

He was trying to figure out how to conjure furnishings for the room when Neville opened the door.

"This place is perfect." Said Neville as he closed the door behind him.

"Yeah. It does need a little work for it to be perfect for our needs. I don't fancy dust flying around as we work." Harry said as he looked around the room.

"We have time to fix it." Said Neville. "Maybe we could ask the house-elves?"

"I'll ask Lotty. He won't say anything if I tell him not to. The castle elves are most likely to tell Dumbledore or the teachers if they asked." Harry said.

"You think so?" Asked Neville with some surprise.

"They belong to the castle, don't they? They think of the Headmaster as their master and the staff are like family, so it's only logical to think that they wouldn't be too eager to keep things from Dumbledore and the others." Harry said with a shrug.

"And Lotty won't tell?" Neville seemed unsure.

"Lotty is my elf." Said Harry. "He won't tell if I tell him not to. Not even to Dumbledore."

Neville nodded feeling relief.

"Well, let's get started, we don't want to take too long in here, we're bound to be missed by someone." Said Harry.

Neville nodded and walked to the center of the room, where Harry was waiting.

"Where do you want to start?" Harry asked.

"I…er…I wondered if we could practice dueling." Said Neville with some hesitation. The D.A. members had noticed that Harry never took part of the dueling practices whenever they tried it in their meetings, but they all thought that Professor Lupin was sure of his prowess to keep him from taking part.

Harry shrugged unconcernedly. "If you want." He said pulling out his wand.

The two boys took their stance and bowed.

------------------------

Harry was happy to note that Ron and Hermione hadn't noticed that he had been gone when he returned to the common room later that evening.

Neville had left first, while Harry tried to clean some of the spots they had scorched while they were dueling. Harry thought that Neville was doing well. The D.A. meetings had done wonders for his self-esteem and defense tactics. In good time, Harry thought, Neville would be able to do much more than help in a battle with Death Eaters. Not that any of them wanted to repeat the experience any time soon.

Fifteen minutes after Neville's departure, Harry eased out of the room and locked it behind him. He pocketed the key in his robes and quickly made his way back to the Gryffindor Tower.

Ron and Hermione were out of the common room when he arrived. He hurried to the dormitory and washed up quickly. When Ron and Hermione returned to the Tower, they found Harry sitting in one of the tables working on his Potions paper.

"I never thought that it would take so long to deal with a couple of students." Said Ron sitting in one of the chairs around the table.

"I thought you'd be here sooner." Said Harry without looking up. Ron might not notice anything, but Hermione was another thing, if he lied, Hermione would know.

"We had to take the students to the infirmary and then McGonagall came in and wanted to know what had happened, by the time we were done, Snape had arrived." Said Ron.

"And of course, we had to repeat the story all over again." Hermione said.

"Are they all right? The students, I mean." Said Harry.

"Yes. Madam Pomfrey fixed them up in a minute." Hermione replied. "What have you been doing?"

"Just starting on my Potion paper." Harry replied.

"We should too." Hermione said.

"I'm too tired to start on my paper." Exclaimed Ron.

"You're always too tired to start on your papers." Hermione replied.

Harry smiled but noticed that Ron had begun to take out parchment and quills from his bookbag without further discussion.

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A/N: There you go, I know it's not as long as some of my previous chapters, but hopefully, this vacation and the holidays will help my brain to come up with more story. Thank you all for reviewing, and I want to welcome all the new readers who have recently discovered this story. I'm glad you're all enjoying it. I wish you all happy holidays and a Happy New Year, and I hope you'll see me back soon. 


	63. Sixth Year Chapter 14

A/N: Hello! Thank you to all of you who have replied in the last weeks, I hope that all of you continue to enjoy this story. I'm not completely sure that I'm too happy with the last few chapters, I've been extremely busy this past year and it seems that my writing has been suffering for it. Lack of time, and in some cases, lack of attention can do that I guess. But now that book 6 is coming out, I'm trying to catch up and finish this story. Maybe after I'm done, I'll go back and revise it and I'll make the changes I think it needs. But with the next book so near publication, I guess I can safely say that this story is completely out of cannon and into the AU world. I suppose it was always that, but not so much AU as others I've read. Well, enough of my rambling, I hope you enjoy the story.

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Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or anything within the Harry Potter World, all of it belongs to the wonderful JK Rowling. The only thing I can claim to are some of the secondary characters and some of the new places that Harry has visited.

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_**Chapter 14 Halloween Night **_

Two months had passed and Harry was settling into his busy schedule. Every day he attended his assigned classes before spending the rest of the afternoon in the common room or the Quidditch Pitch.

The Quidditch Season was in full force. Gryffindor stayed in the lead but Ravenclaw wasn't too far behind. Harry trained his team as hard as he could, and so far, his efforts had paid off.

The weekends were just as busy for him. After training sessions in the morning, he had to prepare Neville's lessons after D. A. meetings. As Ron and Hermione usually attended Prefect meetings on Saturday evenings, Harry and Neville decided that they would take advantage and do their training at that time. By the time Ron and Hermione were back from their meeting, Harry was to be found to be working quietly on their usual table.

Harry didn't want to keep secrets from his friends, and he knew that if they found out, as he was sure they eventually would, they would not be too happy with him and would be hurt by his secrecy. But, he thought, considering that there were other things that he kept to himself, especially about the prophecy, he was sure that he would be able to keep it secret for as long as he needed to.

His training with Brenna was due to commence on Halloween night after the Feast. He didn't know yet what he would tell Ron and Hermione, but he was sure he would think of something if they asked.

Halloween started like any other day. They attended morning lessons, beginning with an exhausting Transfiguration lesson where they had began studying human transformation and followed closely by Charms were they had began their study of Muggle Repelling Charms.

Luncheon was just like always. Harry ate heartily while Ron did the same at his side. Hermione had spent most of the meal reading from her notes and discussing their lessons as she did so, not that the boys heard anything she said.

Afternoon was spent in Double Potions, where Snape had started to introduce advance healing potion making, making each student, especially Harry unprepared for the task.

"That was grueling." Complained Ron as they walked back to the Gryffindor Tower to leave their bookbags before returning to the Great Hall for the Feast.

"But it is very important." Hermione said. "Every wizard should be able to do some sort of healing potions whenever becomes necessary."

"And with my luck." Harry said. "I'll need to learn it."

"We all do." Hermione said vehemently.

"Yeah, alright." Ron said. "I accept that, but why do we have to do it now, we're only in sixth year! This looks to me like something seventh years should learn."

"Oh, honestly, Ron. Everybody needs to know how to do healing potions, they're important." Replied Hermione. "Besides, we'll learn other healing potions next year."

"Yeah, and I wager they'll be even worse than the ones we're doing now." Mumbled Ron.

Hermione seemed not to have heard him as she continued speaking. "I know that we'll learn to do the Wolfsbane Potion next year. Professor Lupin told me so." She said.

"We will?" Harry asked with interest.

"Well, it is advanced, that's for sure." Ron said. "And only a few are skilled enough to make it properly."

"We've known that." Said Hermione. "That's why Snape prepares it for Professor Lupin every month. Professor Lupin is not very good at them."

"We know." Ron replied testily.

They mingled with the other students who were trudging back to their common rooms in preparation for the Feast.

The Feast was always at the top of Hogwarts' social calendar, it wasn't very often that the school's inhabitants met in celebration, except for this one meal.

"I wished we could have a party instead of a dinner." Harry heard Lavender complain to Parvati as he joined Ron and Hermione in the common room a few minutes later. "It would be more exciting."

"A dance would be nice." Parvati agreed as she and her best friend stepped out through the portrait hole.

Ron was looking at their retreating backs in horror. "Who would want to dance when we've been in classes all day long?"

"Halloween is not always on a weekday, Ron." Said Hermione. "We went to Hogsmeade on Halloween three years ago."

"Hasn't happened again, has it?" Replied Ron.

Harry didn't say it, but he could clearly remember that day as it had been the day Sirius first got into the castle and tried to get past the Fat Lady while the rest of the school was dining in the Feast in the Great Hall.

They walked down the corridor, along with other students making their way to the Hall. Everybody seemed eager to join in the Feast and celebrate that the school day was over.

The Great Hall was decorated as it always was. The giant pumpkins Hagrid had been growing had been carved and lit and were now hovering among the house tables. The live bats were fluttering near the enchanted ceiling while the ghosts floated around the room greeting each other.

Harry, Ron and Hermione quickly made their way toward the Gryffindor table. They found a space near the front.

"I thought you lot would be here before me." Said Ginny as she turned to look at them curiously.

"We're not too late." Said Ron.

"Don't pay him any attention. He's just being a bear because Snape gave us a large paper to write." Said Hermione.

"He just did it to spite us." Ron said. "I don't know why we have to write that paper in the first place, he talked about it long enough, I don't think there is anything else to learn from it."

"Oh, quit your complaining and eat." Exclaimed Hermione.

Ron grumbled some more and started to pile food on his plate.

Harry sat quietly letting his friend's voices wash over him. He was thinking about his meeting with Brenna later that night. He had agreed to meet with her after dinner. He had said that it would be better if he sneaked out of the Tower after midnight, once everybody had fallen sleep, but Brenna had been adamant about meeting earlier. Harry had not understood why she had done so, but he had agreed. Now, he had to figure out how to make his escape without his friends asking too many questions.

He could tell them he was taking some special training, but they would ask who would be teaching him and he didn't think he could lie very convincingly. He didn't want to mention Brenna, he knew that they might had forgotten her presence in the castle. Nobody had seen her around, and he knew nobody else but the three of them knew of her existence. He often wondered why she kept to herself. Not even Professor Holmes mentioned her. If he hadn't seen them together at their arrival to Hogwarts, Harry would've sworn Professor Holmes didn't know of Brenna either. It was a mystery, and he wanted to know about it.

The Feast was soon coming to an end, and Harry had to start making his excuses.

"I got to go." He said and quit the room quickly before the others could say anything to him.

He had tucked his invisibility cloak and the Marauders' Map into his cloak. He took both out as soon as he got out of the Great Hall and hurried to a darkened corner to put the cloak on.

He had just slipped it over him when he heard rapid footsteps. It was Ron, Ginny and Hermione.

"Where did he go?" Asked Ginny.

"The common room." Panted Hermione as they followed Ron toward the Gryffindor Manor.

"I wonder what's wrong." Harry heard Ginny say as they turned toward the staircase.

Harry waited a few minutes until he was sure that his friends were well on their way to the Tower. He knew that he had a lot of answers to give once he returned later that evening. But he hadn't been able to concentrate on an excuse to give.

He hurried up the staircase and started making his way to the South Tower, he could hear the clamor of the voices as the Feast was over and the students started making their way to their common room.

The deeper he got into the South Tower the silent the corridors became. It had become obvious to Harry on the first time he walked this way, that this side of the castle was mainly inhabited, which was why, Harry thought, Brenna must have chosen it to live in.

Soon enough, Harry found his way to the corridor he had been looking for. He walked to the door to the room he and Neville had been using for their secret training.

He slipped the key on the knob and found himself in the isolated room. He and Neville had tried to make it comfortable for their needs. Lotty and Dobby had helped by bringing pillows and mats to the corridor. Harry thought it would be best if they thought it was the corridor they were using and not know about the room, in case others asked. Harry had transfigured some of the pillows into chairs and the mats and the rest of the pillows had been spread around the floor. They had become handy once they started practicing their dueling.

He wasn't in the room alone for long.

Finally, he heard the knob twist and the willowy figure of Brenna made its way into the room.

"I'm glad to see that you could make it so quickly." She said.

"You wanted to start early." Harry said.

"So I did. Shall we begin?"

Harry nodded, he was eager to commence.

"Wandless magic is a very advance sort of Magic." Brenna said coming to the center of the room. "Ideally you would have begun your training at an early age to become a master in the art. As it is, we'll do the best we can."

Harry nodded.

"First thing you have to do is learn to feel your magical core." Brenna sat crossed legged on the floor and Harry sat to follow her example. "Meditation is very important. It increases the connection between your powers and your body and allows you better control of your natural abilities. It also helps when learning Occlumency."

Harry saw Brenna close her eyes and take deep breaths.

"There are many ways to meditate." Brenna said slowly. "Some people need an external source to help them meditate, such as sounds. Others prefer to close their eyes and try to clear their minds, while others use imagination to help in their meditation."

"Which is the best?" Harry asked.

"You must find your own mode of meditation." Brenna said. "You must try to find which is best for you. You might prefer to use music as a background to help you meditate or you can picture a place in your mind to help you. It's up to you."

Harry took a deep breath. He remembered his training with Snape on the last year. He had tried to keep his thoughts from invading his mind but it had not been a successful method. He determined to try other methods.

"Close your eyes and take deep breaths." Brenna ordered.

Harry did as he was told.

"Now try to clear your mind of any thoughts."

Harry groaned.

"Anything wrong?" He heard Brenna ask.

"No, I'm fine." He quickly answered.

"Alright. Now try to pay attention to your body." Brenna continued. "You should feel your breath as it travels down to your lungs."

Harry frowned. He didn't understand what this exercise was supposed to do for him, but continued to do as he was told.

He took deep breaths and tried to feel them as they went through his chest.

"Take deep breaths." Brenna continued. "Do you feel anything?"

Harry was surprised by the question. Was he supposed to feel anything? "Er…no."

"Alright. Continue breathing." Brenna ordered.

Harry continued breathing deeply trying to pay attention to his body, but he still didn't understand what he was supposed to feel by this exercise.

He felt the air travel through his body. He could picture in his mind the oxygen molecules travel through his respiratory system and attach themselves to his blood cells. He could barely remember the biology lessons he took in school before coming to Hogwarts, but he could remember the education movie his teacher had shown them when they were studying the respiratory system.

He had been rather excited to learn how his body worked and he had watched the movie with much pleasure. He had never been allowed to watch anything on television at his aunt's house but this movie had been one of the few he had seen and had stayed in his memory for a long time.

Harry was surprised to find himself feeling something.

He felt a surge of power invade his body. He had felt something similar only once, the time he had blown out his Aunt Marge. At the time, he had thought the surge of emotion he felt had been anger; an anger so hot and strong that had invaded his whole body. Now he knew differently. He had felt anger, yes, but it had also been this deep surge of power that now invaded his body once more.

"Are you feeling anything?" Brenna's voice broke through his mind.

"Yes!" He exclaimed with surprise as well as gladness.

"Good." He heard Brenna say. "Continue breathing slowly and open your eyes carefully."

Harry took deep breaths and opened his eyes slowly. He saw the room had become dark but a source of light lit the space they sat in. He gasped when he noticed that it was his own body that was the source. Both his body and Brenna's glowed a little, giving off the light that lit the room.

"What was that?" He asked as the glow of his body dimmed.

"That was your magical core." Said Brenna.

"It was?" Harry noticed that while his own glow was dimming, Brenna's had not.

"Oh, yes." Brenna replied. "You must learn first to connect with your magical core. Eventually, you'll learn to call it forth without any need of meditation, but for now, it will be the only means of getting in touch with it." She explained.

"How long will it take me to learn to do so?" Asked Harry, happy with himself at having been able to do something he knew no other to do.

"It all depends. But it is a good sign that you were able to connect this early in your training." Brenna said. "Most wizards do so while they are children. The magical core is touched by strong emotions, fear, anger, hate, love. That's why magical children have instances of accidental magic before coming to Hogwarts. Children are emotional beings. They act by instinct, not by logic, and that makes them able to get in touch with their magical core more easily than teenagers and adults."

Harry listened intently to Brenna's lecture.

"Once training with a wand commences, the connection with the magical core is lost. Wandless magic is powerful. The wand conducts magical activity, and controls it. But power is lost in the process. That's why only a few wizards exist who are truly powerful, but it is because they train themselves to be so. Wandless magic allows you to do things no other wizard is capable of, and it must be learned and controlled with care."

Harry knew that Brenna wasn't trying to scare him off, only trying to warn him. And he would heed her warning carefully.

"I think this is enough for tonight." Brenna said abruptly. "You will feel a little drained and perhaps disoriented. Don't worry, it will pass."

Harry nodded. "Thanks." He said.

"I'll wait for you next week." Brenna said.

"Same time?" Harry asked.

"It would be best if you rested a little before coming." Brenna said carefully. "Make it two hours later."

"Good night." Harry said as he started making his way to the door.

"Good night, Harry." Brenna's voice drifted slowly to him just before he shut the door behind him.

Harry walked slowly toward the Gryffindor Tower. He thought about what had happened and what it could mean to his future training.

His thoughts were interrupted a few feet from the Fat Lady portrait.

"Where have you been?" Hermione snapped when Harry came into sight.

"What?" Harry asked with surprise as he was shaken from him thoughts by his friend's voice.

"Where have you been?" Hermione asked once more.

"We looked all over for you." Ron said, sitting on the floor beside Hermione.

"Oh." Harry had been caught unawares and he had forgotten to come up with an excuse for his friends.

"Why did you leave in such a hurry?" Harry had not noticed Ginny sitting a few feet from her brother, her back was rested against the wall and watched him carefully.

"I had somewhere to go." Harry said.

"Where?" Hermione asked.

"What?" Harry stalled.

"Where did you have to go?" Hermione asked.

"Somewhere. Can we go in? I'm not feeling well." Harry said quickly. Brenna had told him he would feel drained and disoriented and he was now becoming aware of the effects from his training.

"Harry, you're not going to get away with this." Hermione warned looking skeptical.

"Hermione, he's looking pale." Ron warned.

Hermione looked at Harry once more and became worried at once. "Oh, Harry, I'm sorry." She hurried to her friend's side.

"Can we just go in? I need to sit." Harry groaned silently.

"Yes, of course. Ron open the portrait." Ginny ordered.

Ginny and Hermione helped Harry through the portrait hole, Ron watched carefully behind them.

"Maybe you should go to Madam Pomfrey." Said Hermione as they led Harry to one of the empty chairs.

"No, I'll just rest for a moment." Harry sighed, sitting back on the chair.

He looked around the room, hoping that nobody else had noticed his weakness, and he was happy to note that they were the only ones remaining in the room.

"Where were you?" Asked Ron with some worry.

"Oh, I was just walking around. There were some things I needed to think about." Said Harry, trying to sound nonchalant.

"But why did you leave so quickly?" Ginny persisted.

"I told you, I just needed to be on my own." Said Harry.

He had started to sound exasperated, which seemed to make his friends wary.

"Did you finish your Transfiguration paper? I still need an inch in mine." Said Ron, quickly changing the subject before either of the girls would continue to plague Harry with their questions.

Hermione was silent for a moment but she seemed to understand that a change of subject was needed. "You had all week to work on it."

"I still need an inch. Let me read yours." Said Ron, quickly turning to look at her.

"No. You need to do it on your own." Hermione replied quickly.

"I told you, I just need an inch. It won't hurt if you let me see it for a moment." Ron cajoled.

Harry listened to their argument in silence. He was relieved that they had stopped asking questions. He knew it was unnecessary to keep his training a secret. They were his friends and they would keep his training secret as they had done with many other things. But he wanted to see if he could do it. Maybe some day he would tell them, as he would about the prophecy. But not yet

--------------------

It was almost midnight, and Harry couldn't sleep. He and his friends had retired to bed almost two hours ago. He could hear the soft breathing of his roommates, and he knew he was the only one who was not asleep.

He had thought that he would instantly fall asleep the moment he lay in bed. He had been so exhausted after his training with Brenna that he had instantly agreed to retire early when it had been mentioned. But the moment he fell into the bed, his exhaustion seemed to have seeped away from his body, and now he lay, in the middle of the night, hoping to fall asleep.

After half an hour of trying anything he could think of, he was not anywhere near as tired or sleepy as he had been at the beginning of the evening.

He slipped quietly from the bed, making sure that he made no noise on his way to his trunk.

He heard Ron mumble and move on his bed. For a moment, Harry was afraid he had woken his friend. He waited silently until he heard Ron's soft snores once more. With a sigh of relief he opened his trunk and rummaged in it for his cloak.

He needed a walk, he thought, and he knew that Ron would want to go with him if he knew what Harry was planning. But he didn't want any company. He needed to do some thinking on his own.

He closed his trunk quietly and slipped the cloak over his body. He tiptoed out of the room, and close the door softly, making sure his roommates were still asleep as he emerged into the corridor.

Sure that his friends were not aware of his absence, he stepped down the stairs and crossed the common room. Luckily, there was nobody in the common room that would thwart him.

He opened the portrait hole slowly, peering out to make sure there was nobody in sight.

He heard the Fat Lady mumble something in her sleep as the portrait closed behind him.

Harry stepped into the corridor and looked around. Now that he was out, he didn't know where to go.

He walked aimlessly for several minutes until finally, he found his way to the entrance hall.

The sweeping stairs were being cleaned and polished by dozens of house-elves. He could see others sweeping and waxing the floor and many others dusting the carved walls and doors.

There was a lot of activity. In all his many nightly roams around the castle, he had never seen the elves at work. He had known they did most of their work in the middle of the night, when they could not be seen by the inhabitants of the castle, but he had never had the opportunity to witness it.

Now he could see the happy creatures as they did their work. They didn't talk, but some were humming happily under their breath while some squealed happily as they slid across the floor waxing the tiles.

Harry smiled. He should bring Hermione one of these nights, he thought, she would change her mind about S.P.E.W. if she could see this.

Suddenly, the elves became quiet and stopped working. Harry frowned at the sight, what had made the elves stop?

Voices coming from above him gave him the reason.

The elves dispersed rather quickly and Harry stepped quickly into a hidden cupboard nearby. He didn't want to risk the chance of being caught out of bed. There were some members in the staff that would be only too happy to make sure he got into a lot of trouble.

Soft steps passed by and Harry opened the door a little to look out. What he saw surprised him.

Three women were sliding through the entrance. The castle doors opened before them as if they had been waiting for the women to pass. Harry knew perfectly well who one of the women was. It was Brenna. She had changed her robes. Earlier in the evening she had been wearing a set of glittering celestial blue robes. They had shimmered and glowed during their session. Now, she was wearing a set of white robes, as were her other two companions. He didn't immediately recognize the two other women, but he had an inkling of who it could be.

He saw them leave the castle, the doors remained open, and he made up his mind on that instant. He was curious, why would these women walk on school grounds in the middle of the night?

Midnight was approaching and Harry knew that wherever they were going, they planned to be there by then. He followed silently.

He was not surprised to see them walk into the forbidden forest, somehow, he had known that the dark forest at the edge of the school grounds had been their destination all along.

He hurried after them, he wanted to stay close enough not to lose them and far enough to not being noticed.

The women before him walked in silence, they didn't look around, nor did they speak a word, but it seemed like they knew perfectly well where they were supposed to go.

Harry glimpsed other beings in the forest, but was surprised that they weren't approached by any. He knew that the centaurs had decreed the forest out of bounds for humans, for most humans at least, Dumbledore had been able to walk into their midst without incident, but tonight they were not intercepted by any.

They went deeper into the forest, until at last they reached a clearing. There was a pool of crystal clear water fed by a small stream that passed through the northern part of the forest. The pool was surrounded by flat stones, some were submerged into the pool, creating natural steps into the pool.

Harry watched in fascination as the women came to a stop. Brenna stood patiently by the pool as the two other women walked around her. Harry could now see the faces of the older women. As he had suspected, one of them was Professor Holmes, who was now opening a bundle she had been carrying through the grounds. She took several things from it, a flask, which she promptly gave to the other woman - whom Harry quickly recognized as the old woman he had seen with Brenna in the train – a crown of golden leaves and candles.

The crown was promptly placed on Brenna's head and the candles lit and levitated surrounding the pool. The older woman sprinkled something from the flask around the pool and Brenna walked proudly into it.

Harry didn't understand what was happening but it was clear that this was some sort of ritual. But if it was so, what did it mean? Why were they performing it now?

Harry gasped in surprise when he noticed that Brenna had not sunk into the pool, instead, she was standing above it, not hovering, not flying, standing above it. Harry shook his head and turned to look again. He noticed that the water underneath her had turned solid. It didn't look like ice, but more like glass. Only the step where she stood had turned to crystal.

Professor Holmes and the other woman were now walking around the pool, both chanting in a language that Harry could not understand.

Brenna's body started to glow, just as it had done during their session, a swirling silvery mist surrounded the pool, the women continued to chant, and Harry remained in his hiding spot as he watched avidly.

The mist stared to glow in concert to the chanting. It didn't last for long and the mist eventually dissipated into the surrounding forest. Brenna remained at the center of the pool for a minute, and then she began to walk back to the edge of the pool. Harry watched as every step turned the water to crystal, dissolving only as her feet took another step.

The chanting stopped and the candles started to blow out.

The older woman, whose name Harry didn't remember, took a bundle of clothes, that had been folded at the edge of the pool, and placed it around Brenna's shoulders. The shimmering cloak glowed for a second before turning to a pearly color.

Professor Holmes gathered the candles and the flask and placed them in her pocket. Soon after, they start their way back to the castle.

Harry hurried to keep up, walking as silently as he could so not to make any noise. Sooner than he had expected, they cleared the forest and crossed the grounds toward the entrance hall.

The doors were still open, and Dumbledore himself was waiting upon the stairs.

"I gather everything went well." He said with a smile.

"Of course, was there any doubt?" Asked the older woman rather snappish.

"It went well, Uncle Albus." Said Brenna looking at the older woman with a warning glance.

"Then it's time for us to celebrate." Dumbledore replied.

"You will excuse me if I don't join you." Smiled Professor Holmes. "But I have classes tomorrow morning and it wouldn't do to show up late and tired for lessons."

"Of course." Said Dumbledore. "Minerva is waiting for us in my office." He said turning to Brenna and the other woman. "You will not go until morning, will you Elspeth?" He asked of the older woman.

"It is best if I wait until then." She said.

"Good, you will be able to join us for a little celebration then." Dumbledore sounded cheerful, and it made Harry more curious about what he had just witnessed.

Harry stayed hidden in the shadows nearby. He knew that Dumbledore was the only one who in the past was able to see or sense him through his invisibility cloak, this was a time he hoped to stay hidden from the Headmaster's awareness.

"Let's meet Minerva, shall we. I expect the night will turn chilly soon." Dumbledore said and quickly led them up the stairs.

Harry remained hidden for a few minutes longer. When he was sure there was nobody around, he started his way toward the Gryffindor Tower.

He walked silently through the empty corridors, and promptly entered through the portrait hole after giving the password to a sleepy Fat Lady.

His roommates were still asleep when he entered the Fifth Years' dormitory.

Harry folded his cloak and silently placed it into his trunk before slipping once more onto his bed.

What had he witnessed? He wondered, and what was the significance of it?

Dumbledore seemed to know what had happened that night, and it seemed that it was cause for celebration, but why? Harry wondered.

Now, Harry understood why Brenna had been so set to having their training after dinner instead of waiting until everybody was in bed. She needed to be free to attend this ritual.

Harry's questions remained unanswered but the walk through the forest and the questions in his mind were enough to make him sleepy once more.

When Ron awoke in the middle of night, he could hear Harry's soft breathing and his body stirring in his bed.

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A/N: There you go. I know it's a bit short, but I think of this chapter more of a transition chapter that a whole chapter. There are only so many things Harry can do on one night : )

Thank you all for replying, and I hope that I'll be able to update soon. I haven't been able to finish the next chapter yet, as the holidays and the end of the semester kind of kept me away for a while and I've been having trouble with my internet as well, that doesn't really help : ( But don't worry. I'm not giving up on this story, and neither should you. Once again, enjoy the story and I hope to see your replies soon! : D


	64. Sixth Year Chapter 15

A/N: I am very sorry that months have passed and I have not posted any new chapters, I truly apologize to all of you who have been following this story from the beginning, my only excuse is that my muse seems to have lost total interest on this story. I have been battling with writer's block when it comes to this story for months now, and nothing seems to snap me out of it. In fact, it has been more than a month (before HBP came out to be exact) since I've written anything new to this story and it has only been a small post (half a page in word, actually) that I added to the thread in I suppose it was bound to happen, this story is three years old and I've been struggling to write Harry's part of the story since OotP came out. That means that it has taken me 2 years to write 15 chapters and considering that I wrote all of Lily and James' story in a year, it concerns me that I was not able to finish the sixth year before HBP came out. :sigh: It took me close to a month to finish editing this chapter for you, I hope that you can forgive me for taking so long. I have only one more chapter that I'm still working on and after that, we'll see. Thank you again to all my faithful readers and welcome to all of you who are new to the story.

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Disclaimer: I do not own anything in the HP world, anything you may recognize belongs to JK Rowling, secondary characters and plot are the only things that belong to me.

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_**Chapter 15 Notes and The Forbidden Forest**_

Harry was distracted and thoughtful throughout the morning after Halloween, and his friends soon noticed.

"Harry?" Ron asked him as they left the Great Hall after luncheon.

"Hmm?" Asked Harry walking beside him.

Hermione had hurried to the library soon after she was done with her meal and was then to go toward Ancient Runes as Ron and Harry had a free period.

"Anything wrong?" Ron asked warily.

"Wrong? Why do you ask?" Harry seemed genuinely surprised by his friend's question that only served to confuse Ron.

"You've been preoccupied this morning." Ron said.

"Oh, just things in my mind, that's all." Said Harry with a shrug.

"Did you have bad dreams last night?" Asked Ron with some concern.

"No." Said Harry. "Now that I think on it, I don't think I've had any dreams lately."

"That's good, isn't it?" Asked Ron.

"I suppose." Harry replied.

"So what's on your mind then?" Asked Ron.

"Not much." Replied Harry.

Ron glanced warily at his friend but decided not to push him further.

"I suppose we should start working on our Transfiguration report." Ron sighed heavily. Harry knew his friend was not looking forward to spending his whole free period working on a paper that was sure to take the whole week to complete.

"It would be best. We have a lot to do." Harry said.

The two friends walked slowly through the corridors toward the library.

The library was silent and the light was dimmed. Only a few tables were occupied as other sixth years sat around working on their various papers.

Ron and Harry found an empty desk where to work from and sat to commence their research.

Harry started looking through his stack of notes to get an idea of where to begin. He noticed that Ron was doing the same.

"I don't know where to begin." Moaned Ron. "Wished Hermione didn't have Ancient Runes this period." He sighed.

"Not much good that would do us." Said Harry. "She'll not help us to write this paper, you know that."

"I know, but she's bound to have some ideas of what books we should read." Said Ron.

Harry nodded, Hermione always knew what books they should read to complete their research, even if she didn't tell them what they should write.

The boys continued reading their notes and writing ideas in a parchment until the time came to retire to their next class.

-/-/-/-/-/-/

Dinnertime was as boisterous as it usually was. Harry sat in silence eating his dinner while Ron and Hermione sat across from him whispering to each other.

"What is wrong now?" Asked Harry after noticing several glances thrown his way from his friends.

"Nothing." Said Ron quickly.

Hermione glared at him but turned an innocent look at Harry. "He just wanted to know what I was writing my Transfiguration paper on." She said unflappably.

Harry was not sure he believed them but remained silent.

"Well, what are you writing your paper on?" Asked Ron.

"I told you, I haven't decided yet, and even if I did, I'm not going to tell you." Hermione snapped as she continued with her meal.

"Oh, come on Hermione, at least give me a hint." Ron cajoled.

"No. You have to come up with the subject on your own." Hermione said. "McGonagall will know if I gave you any ideas."

Harry left them to their bickering and turned back to his meal. His mind had been preoccupied all day with what he had seen the night before, and he chided himself for letting his preoccupation show. He knew his friends were worried and wondered what had happened, and he was sure they worried it had to do with Voldemort. Yet, how was he to tell them that Voldemort had nothing to do with his preoccupation but an unknown ritual that seemed to have been of great importance.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

The rest of the week passed by for Harry. He busied himself with lessons, school work, Quidditch practice and meetings with Lupin to plan the next session for the D.A.

The training he was doing with Neville also helped to keep his mind off things; and he enjoyed them immensely, even if Neville was not the partner he would've chosen to hone his dueling with. But the training seemed to have a good effect on Neville. Harry was pleased to see Neville do better at Defense lessons, and he was quickly becoming one of the best skilled members of the D.A. His success seemed to also give Neville a higher sense of self-esteem that affected the rest of his lessons, especially Potions.

Everybody had been surprised to see Neville in Potions lessons at the beginning of the school year, and Snape made sure everybody knew of his dissatisfaction. But as the lessons with Harry continued, Neville showed great progress in Potions and Snape's malingering seemed to affect him less and less as his attention remained in his work. Harry was proud of his friend, and he was glad that he had helped somewhat.

But at the end of the night, when everything was silent and Harry lay on his bed hearing his roommates' soft breathing and snores, he could not help but return to the memory of the ritual he had witnessed. He was more curious about it as the days passed and wished there was some way to quench that curiosity.

He could not ask anybody about it, he knew. If he asked any of the professors, or Brenna herself, they were sure to know that he had seen what had happened. He could ask Hermione if she had read something like it, but she was sure to ask questions he was not keen to answer. He could look for it himself, he thought, but he didn't know where to begin to look and he was not much of a reader as his friend was.

He sighed with exasperation. The longer he thought on the subject, the more determined he became to find the answers to his questions, but how to go about it. At the end, he didn't have to wait and it was Hermione who unwittingly gave him the answer.

The weekend had arrived once more and the students were eager to rest from lessons. Breakfast had commenced and everybody seemed to be making plans for the day.

"Hermione, you should be thinking of things other than school work." Ron complained as he glanced at her notes spread before her among the plates.

"This is important." Hermione glared at Ron. "Just because you don't want to complete your work doesn't mean you should inconvenience me as well." She snapped.

Ron rolled his eyes at Harry. Harry smiled.

"What are you studying anyway?" Asked Harry curiously.

"Ancient Runes." Replied Hermione, her eyes were riveted on her notes. "I have a test coming up and I don't want to make any mistakes reading this section."

"You should've chucked that class." Ron said. "You did better than you expected in your OWLs and I don't see what this is supposed to prepare you for."

Hermione sighed in exasperation and started to pile her parchment. "It is important to understand the ancient history and legends of the magical world." She said. "And I'm sure it also helps if you want to go into research."

"What is it that you're doing there now?" Asked Harry before Ron could say anything that would antagonize their friend.

"Oh, we've been discussing this ancient legend and reading some of the early writings of it. The most interesting thing about it is that it's the only piece of its size and age ever known that has been completely written in rune." Hermione exclaimed with excitement.

"But there are a lot of rune passages." Ron said looking confused.

"Oh, they're just that, passages, they're not really long and not so old. But this piece is the oldest document ever known and that it tells this legend is astonishing." Said Hermione.

"But what's so important about this legend then?" Asked Ron.

"Well, it talks about the Lady of the Isle and a ritual performed in ancient times." Hermione said as she put her papers in her bag.

"The Lady?" Asked Harry, he remembered Hermione and Ron had mentioned that particular legend before but he couldn't remember much now.

"Yes, we spoke about it before, remember?" Said Hermione looking at her friend with exasperation. "You don't, do you?"

"Well, I remember some." Confessed Harry.

"The legend of the Lady is very ancient." Began Hermione. "According to the legend, she was the first human to have been born with magical talent. She was worshiped as the personification of the goddess by the early Druids. Her children were, of course, born with magical blood and eventually the first wizarding community was created in the island where they lived. But the island was too small and people began to disperse, thus, witches and wizards were born outside of the island. In the Dark Ages, there was a lot of anti-witchcraft sentiment, the Wizarding world went into hiding and the island is said to have disappeared. Other legends say that it's merely hidden but that it becomes visible when things are hard for the Wizarding world. It is said that it's the place where the most magical items are stored, and the Lady is its guardian."

"Yeah, I remember that." Said Harry. "But is that what this paper is about?"

"Well, yes and no." Hermione said.

"How could it be yes and no?" Asked Ron.

"Well, the document is about the Lady, but it talks about a ritual that usually took place once in many decades." Hermione explained.

"And what's so important about it." Ron asked even though his attention seemed to be more on his food than in Hermione's explanation.

"Well, the ritual was supposed to be very rare and it signified a sort of transition. Nobody really knows what the purpose of the ritual meant, we can only theorize from the little that is mentioned. But we do know that the ritual in itself had great significance." Hermione was saying. "It could only take place on especial nights, you see. The stars had to be aligned in a specific way during a new moon, and that is very rare, it can only happen every twenty years or so. The Lady is supposed to go to this sacred pool, the location is not specified, and a sort of dancing or chanting is done. Well, I haven't really finished translating the piece but from what I can gather, only the Lady and her priestesses are to be present and some sort of power transfer takes place."

Harry was surprised by the similarities between Hermione's explanation and the ritual he had witnessed the other night. Was this purely coincidence or had he witnessed something that was thought of as only a legend?

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

That thought followed Harry through most of the day. It wasn't until he was in bed that night that he allowed himself to think about what Hermione had told them that morning.

He had remembered a little of the legend of The Lady. And now this. What was it supposed to mean?

Harry was curious, but also worried that something was going to happen and he had no control over it.

He felt things were coming to a head, and he didn't know what he was supposed to do about it. He had this nagging feeling since the beginning of the summer that soon things would not be as they had been.

Sirius' death and the revelations of the prophecy and of his family's inheritance had kept him distracted, but now he was noticing things.

The teachers seemed to be warily keeping an eye on the students. Filch was seen to keep constant vigilance in the halls, more so than in the past. And people were more concerned about safety than ever before.

The D.A. meetings had continued for the past two months and in each meeting they had seen new faces joining. At the beginning, it was mostly fifth, sixth and seventh years. He had thought that the reason fifth and seventh years had joined in large numbers was because of the O.W.L.S and N.E.W.T.S that they had to pass at the end of the year. Most of the sixth years had been those who had joined the previous years. But in the last meetings many younger students had also joined and much to his surprise, quite a few were from Slytherin. Because of the number of students that now belonged to the club, Professor Lupin and Harry had decided to divide the club into groups according to their Defense level.

Harry and Professor Lupin were in charge of the Advance Level, and they met in the Room of Requirement. Professor Holmes had volunteered to help, and along with Hermione and Ron, was in charge of the Intermediate level, which met in the Defense classroom. Much to everyone's surprise, Harry had paired Neville with Ginny to lead the Beginning Level.

Neville had been nervous but pleased that Harry had given him that responsibility. Everybody had something to say on the matter, but Harry had been adamant that he wanted Neville to be part of the leading group that everybody had just remained silent on the matter. But Neville seemed to want to show everybody, especially Harry, that he could do it, and worked hard with his group to catch up with the rest of the club. And much to his joy, as well as Harry's, it seemed to be working, as many of the young students were turning to be quite adept in Defense Class.

Harry was only too happy to allow Neville the chance to show his newfound talent to the world. Their secret training continued to take place but with less regularity, as Harry seemed to think that Neville's skills were up to par with the rest of his friends'.

Harry closed his eyes and sighed. When he opened up his eyes once more, he was surprised to note the bright rays of the sun flow through the almost empty dormitory.

He rubbed his eyes and reached for his glasses.

"I was about to wake you." Ron said as he sat on his own bed tying his shoes on.

"What time is it?" Asked Harry as he looked around the room. Only Ron and himself were left. Neville, Seamus and Dean weren't anywhere in sight.

"Ten." Said Ron. "If we hurry, we can still get some breakfast."

Harry yawned but left his bed in a hurry as he ran to the bathroom. He had a long day ahead and he would need his breakfast to get through the day.

It didn't take long for him to get ready and the two young men were just in time to get their breakfast before it disappeared from the Great Hall tables.

Harry had just started his meal when the owls flew into the hall. The volley of owls swooped toward their masters as they delivered packages, letters, and newspapers.

Harry wasn't surprised to see Hedwig fly toward them. Ever since the beginning of term, Hedwig had been a constant messenger, Mrs. Nichols sent packages full of Otty's pastries and forwarded notes from his solicitor and estate manager relaying the latest news in estate management. Thus, he was not surprised to see a message from Mrs. Nichols being delivered by his faithful owl.

He was however, surprised by the message.

His friends had noticed his abstraction and were quick to question him.

"Anything wrong, Harry?" Asked Hermione putting away the book she had been reading during breakfast.

"Bad News?" Ron glanced at the note in his friend's hand warily.

"No. Just a note from Mrs. Nichols." Harry said with a sigh. "She says that Dumbledore thinks it would be better if we spend the holidays in the town house instead of the Manor."

"And you don't want to go?" Asked Hermione curiously.

"It's not that. I've never seen the town house, so I don't know if I prefer it instead of the Manor." Harry explained. "It seems rather redundant that she asks me for orders when Dumbledore already said what should be done."

"Well, I suppose she just wants to know what you wish to do. After all, you are her employer, not Dumbledore." Said Hermione.

"Perhaps, but if he thinks that it would be safer in town than at the Manor, why ask if we want to do otherwise? If it's safer, it's safer. We should go to the London House." Said Harry, putting the note aside.

"And I suppose at one time or another you would've seen it anyways, so why not go now?" Said Hermione with a shrug as she turned back to her book.

"Where is the house?" Asked Ron with curiosity.

"Rowe Square, I think." Harry frowned. He could not remember the exact location of all the properties belonging to his estate. They were not many, but as he had only been in the Manor, he tended to disregard the rest. But there was one that easily took hold of his imagination. The cottage in Godric's Hollow was still part of the Potter estate that he had inherited from his father. He had known about the cottage since Hagrid had given him his letter on his eleventh birthday. But he had never been curious about it until he found out about his inheritance. The solicitor had said that the cottage had been rebuilt after the attack that resulted in his parents' death and his survival, which resulted in his original popularity.

"Mum always said that Rowe Square was the wealthiest neighborhood in the Wizarding World." Said Ron, snapping Harry from his thoughts. "The best and most expensive hotel is there, as well as the Diplomatic Entrance to the Ministry."

"I don't remember what Mr. Nicholei said about it. I must confess that I didn't pay much attention to the specifics when we spoke about it." Said Harry.

"If you spend the holidays at the London house, does that mean that everybody will move to it?" Asked Ron.

"I suppose. Your mum and dad are my guardians after all. You don't want to go the London House?" Asked Harry looking at his friend.

"It's fine with me. I could do with a change." Said Ron with a smile. "And dad doesn't have to go far for work."

"What about you, Hermione? Do you want to spend the holidays with us?" Harry asked turning to her.

"I'll have to ask my parents." She said. "I spent the summer with you, after all, they might want me to spend the holidays with them."

"Why don't you all come?" Harry asked.

"Are you sure?" Asked Hermione, putting her book aside once more. "Won't it be any trouble?"

"I don't think so." Said Harry, happy to know that he could invite his friends and their families to spend Christmas with him, without worrying that the Dursleys would have anything to say about it. "I'm sure there's enough room in the house, and Mrs. Nichols would take care of it. Would your parents mind Ron? If we ask the Grangers to stay with us?"

"I don't think so. I know dad would enjoy having Muggles with us." He said with a cheery smile. "He is, after all, the Head of the new Muggle Relations Department."

"I'll owl them and ask." Said Hermione. "But I can't guarantee that they'll agree."

"Just ask." Said Harry. "We'll see what happens after."

Hermione nodded and turned back to her book.

"You know what this means, don't you?" Asked Ron looking morosely into his plate. "The holidays coming near, I mean."

"What?" Asked Harry having found a new interest in his food at the thought of having friends with him over the holidays.

"Exams are coming up. Loads of work and things to do." Ron sighed.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

The day was as busy as Harry had expected it to be.

After breakfast, Harry, Ron and Ginny were joined be the rest of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team in the Quidditch Pitch for their weekend practice. They had a game the next week to prepare for and they needed to win in order to remain in the first place with a guaranteed place in the finals.

After a strenuous training session, Harry led his team back to the castle for a quick clean up to be followed by a light luncheon.

Hermione waited for Harry and Ron in the common room after their trek back from the Pitch

"Okay, I'm ready for lunch." Said Ron as he and Harry returned to the common room from their dormitory.

"Ginny said to wait for her." Hermione said when they joined her.

"That's fine. I can do with a little rest." Harry said with a sigh and flopping into one of the chairs nearby.

"I gather it was a good session." Said Hermione as she watched Ron fall heavily into the seat next to Harry.

"Yeah." Sighed Ron. "If we don't win the cup, it is because we were cheated out of it."

Ginny came tumbling down the stairs.

"Oh, good. I thought you might leave without me." She said as she spied them.

"Why would we do that? You wanted us to wait for you." Said Ron.

"Yes, but when have you ever done something I wanted you to do." Complained Ginny.

"Always." Replied Ron. "If you wanted to play tea party with our toys, we had to give them to you. If you wanted mashed potatoes for dinner, we had mashed potatoes. Mum always made us do whatever you wanted to do. You are the baby." He smiled wryly. "I think you were spoiled."

"That's not true." Exclaimed Ginny.

"Yes it is."

"No, it's not."

"Let's just go to lunch, and then you can decide who is right, and who isn't." Interrupted Harry, knowing full well that this argument could be a long one if he let it continue.

The siblings nodded but glared at each other as they followed Harry and Hermione out of the common room.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

Luncheon was the usual boisterous time of day, especially with Ginny and Ron bickering with each other across the table.

A D.A. session was to take place after luncheon, one that Harry was really looking forward to.

"I have to meet Professor Lupin." Announced Harry as he hurried through his meal. "There are some things to prepare for today's D.A. session."

"You still haven't told us why you wanted all the teams to meet here in the Great Hall." Ron said.

"You'll see." Harry said after gulping down his pumpkin juice. After he finished, he hurried out of the Hall.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

He knew his friends and the rest of the D.A. members were curious about that day's training session. He and Professor Lupin had planned a special session and he was eager to see if everything was in readiness.

Professor Lupin was waiting for him in his office.

"Ah! Is it time then?" Lupin asked the moment Harry opened his door.

"Lunch is almost over." Harry replied.

Lupin nodded. "Professor Dumbledore had allowed us to use part of the Forbidden Forest for this session." He said. "But the rest is still out of limits. Wards have been erected around the perimeter to alert us if anybody steps out of the area. Hagrid and Madam Hooch will keep a look out. Professors McGonagall, Holmes, Sprout and Flitwick will help us inside.

"Everything is ready then?" Harry asked with banked excitement.

"As ready as we can be." Smiled Lupin.

"This is going to be great." Exclaimed Harry.

Lupin laughed at his excitement.

Soon, both were walking down the corridors toward the Great Hall. As they got near, they could hear the sound of excited voices beyond the door.

Harry was happy to note that everybody in the D.A. was present. Ron, Hermione, Ginny and Neville had divided the students into their respective groups and they all waited patiently for Harry and Lupin to join them.

Professors McGonagall, Holmes, Sprout and – to Harry's surprise – Dumbledore, stood waiting by the staff table. Hagrid and Madam Hooch were standing by the doors. Madam Hooch had her broom in her hand.

"Okay, listen up!" Said Harry as he and Lupin stood before the large group. "We have an especial session this afternoon, so you better pay attention to what is going to happen." He then turned to Lupin. "You better explain."

"If you wish." Said Lupin quietly before turning to look at the curious sea of students waiting before them. "We are going to train in the Forbidden Forest."

This statement surprised everyone and a roaring of exclamations were heard across the hall.

"Silence!" Yelled Harry. "You need to pay attention if we don't want anybody getting hurt in this."

This warning made many of the younger students to look apprehensively to their leaders, while the rest remained curious.

"I think we should go down to the Forest, it would be easier to explain from there." Said Lupin. "Everybody take out your wand. Any books, or bookbags leave them behind, the elves will take them back to your dorms later."

There were a few moments of confusion while everybody took their wand from their pockets or placed their bags against one of the walls.

"Everybody line up within your groups. Leaders, please make sure that you have all your people." Ordered Harry as everybody scrambled to find their groups.

Lupin and Harry led the club through the entrance hall and out to the school grounds. Madam Hooch and Hagrid walked quickly before them toward the Forbidden Forest.

Harry was aware of the curious glances and the chattering among the members of the club. And he knew that Ron and Hermione were among those curious to see what their training session would entail.

Professor Holmes and Dumbledore walked beside the group talking, while Professor Sprout and Professor McGonagall brought up the rear.

Lupin led them all into the Forest. It was silent and dark, and Harry could see that some of the younger students huddled with others as they looked around them with trepidation. He was sure that this was the first time for some of these young students to walk into the Forest. Some of the older ones just seemed curious, and he knew that most of them had been here at least once during their stay at Hogwarts. They walked into the clearing, where Professor Flitwick was waiting for them.

"Please for a circle around this clearing." Lupin ordered. "I want everybody to listen carefully. Stay within your groups, don't get separated."

Harry could see the group leaders, Ron, Hermione, Ginny and Neville take this warning seriously as they looked among their groups to make sure they had everybody. The Advanced group, which was usually led by Harry and Lupin, was today under Ernie and Hanna's charge, who were only too happy to lead this group when Harry asked them to.

"We are having a practical session today. It is all right to practice defensive techniques under observed situations, but it isn't until you have to put them in practice that we each know how well we can protect ourselves." Lupin said as the group turned silent and they were all looking expectantly to begin. "For this purpose, we have set up this session. The professors here have agreed to help and Professor Dumbledore himself has given us especial permission to use the Forest for this training."

The students turned to look at the professors with mounting excitement. What kind of training session was this that required especial permission from the Headmaster and the presence of some of the professors to help?

"We're going to divide you into teams." Lupin was explaining. "Each team will have three members of each level. Three member from the Advanced group, three from the Intermediate group, and three from the Beginning group. There will be a total of six different teams. Each team will need to wear one of these." Lupin held up six strips of ribbon of different color. "Beyond these trees." He pointed to the trees around them. It's a maze of sorts." The students turned to look at the trees with interest. "There are three different mazes, each with two entrances. Two groups will enter each maze from different entrances. Along the way, you will meet. You are adversaries, you must use all the spells and jinxes you have come to learn in training to gain the upper hand against each other. The group that comes out first from each maze will win this round."

Some of the older students looked at each other with gleeful smiles. Many, especially those in the Advanced group, had been asking for some sort of exercise that would allow them to use many of the skills they had learned through the training.

"The professors, Harry and I will walk among the mazes and keep an eye out for you. If anybody is hurt or cannot continue on, just point your wand up to the sky and shoot red sparks. Everybody take out your wand and try it once." The students pointed their wands above their heads and red sparks shot out of them. "Good. Madam Pomfrey is standing by in the Hospital wing in case we need her. You can use any of the incantations you have learned and practiced in our sessions, any spell that may cause serious damage and has not been used in our lessons may result in you being expelled from the club and lose you house points with a week long detention."

Professor McGonagall looked warningly to the Gryffindors and they were sure that their Head of House was more than ready to make sure to punish anyone who would step out of bounds.

"There are parts of the Forest that are still out of bounds. Wards have been placed around the mazes that will let us know if anybody has stepped out of them. Hagrid and Madam Hooch will keep guard in case that happens." Hagrid and Madam Hooch nodded their heads as the students turned a wary look their way. "Just stay with your team. You must not leave anybody behind, unless he or she has been taken out of the maze by on of the professors."

Harry watched as Hagrid and Madam Hooch walked into the trees. He knew they were gone to take their posts. Professors Holmes, McGonagall, Sprout and Flitwick also walked into the Forest, only Professor Dumbledore remained behind.

"We're going to divide you into teams now." Lupin said.

He conjured a small table in the middle of the clearing, where several strips of ribbon appeared, grouped by different colors.

Lupin and Harry walked among the students dividing them into teams. Once each team was formed, they were directed to the middle table to choose a color for their team. Each ribbon was tied around one arm, distinguishing the members of each team.

"Choose a leader in your team." Ordered Lupin as each student looked around to see who was in the other groups. "The person chosen will be in charge of each member of the team. You have to make sure that the group stays together and they survive each battle against he rival team. I also have to warn you. There are some creatures in there that you have to get past by. Hagrid lend us some of his pets for this session."

This warning caused many to look more apprehensive about the exercise, while others looked eager to start.

"Look around the trees." Harry ordered. "You will find a set of trees with ribbons tied around them. Find the ones that match the color of the ribbon you wear."

Each group scrambled to find the trees with the ribbons matching their own. Once they found them, they lined up next to them.

"Okay. That's your entrance to the maze. We'll see you at the end." Harry said and each team hurried through the trees and lost themselves into the thick forest.

"I see you have everything in hand." Said Dumbledore as the last group walked out of the clearing and into the forest.

"It will help us to see how much they've learned." Lupin replied.

Dumbledore nodded. "It is a good idea. As you said earlier, sometimes, only in battle we know how much we know to defend ourselves."

With a smile to Harry and a nod to Lupin, Dumbledore walked out of the clearing and toward the castle.

"Shall we go in then?" Asked Lupin looking at his young apprentice.

"Oh, yes." Exclaimed Harry, and together, they walked into the maze.

-/-/-/--/-/-/-/

The exercise took most of the afternoon. By the time all six teams were out of the mazes, dinner had started and all the members of the club had to hurry to the Great Hall to make sure they could at least eat something before going to bed.

Harry stayed behind with Professor Lupin to gather anything that may have been left behind.

"It went well, I think." Said Lupin as they walked back to the castle.

"I think so." Harry said. "They seemed to like it."

"I'm just glad there were no major injuries." Lupin sighed with relief. "I don't think Madam Pomfrey would have liked it."

"Yeah, a bloody nose is not too bad." Said Harry.

The Great Hall was almost empty by the time they arrived to the castle. Only a few students stayed behind, but it was clear that the food platters had been already taken away.

"I'm sorry you missed your dinner." Said Lupin looking down at Harry.

"That's alright. I'm sure I can get something from the kitchens." Harry said with a shrug. "I should go to the Tower, I think I'll take a quick shower."

"Yes. See you in class then." Said Lupin.

Harry hurried through the corridors toward the Gryffindor Tower. He knew he didn't need to worry about his dinner, Lotty would have something set aside and waiting for him in the dorm. The elf was really good about taking care of his needs. He waved aside the calls from others as he hurried. Most were D.A. members who were also on their way to their dormitories to wash away the dirt they may have collected during their exercise.

He arrived to the portrait of the Fat Lady only to find a group of Gryffindors lined up waiting to go in.

"Hey, Harry." Neville called from the front of the queue. "Come up here."

Nobody complained as Neville made room for Harry in the line. "We made it just in time for a quick meal. Did you get a chance to get something to eat?"

"No, but Lotty will have something ready for me." Harry said.

"Yeah, grandma always said that personal elves were dead useful." Neville said.

"Yeah, well, I've never had a personal elf until this past summer." Said Harry as he climbed into the portrait hole and into the common room.

The common room was not as full as it usually was on the weekends, he climbed up the stairs to his dormitory, closely followed by Neville who was excitedly talking about the D.A. session and the success of his team to finish the maze before their rivals.

Ron and Seamus were already in the dormitory when they entered.

"Dean is in the bathroom." Said Seamus when asked about their remaining roommate.

"Lotty left a plate by your bed for you, Harry." Ron said as he changed into his pajamas. "I told him he didn't have to wait for you."

"That's fine. I still haven't gotten used to him waiting here for me." Harry said, walking to his bed and finding a plate by his bedside table.

He ate while the others finished washing and dressing. Once he had eaten his fill he made his way to the bathroom.

His friends were still talking about the D.A. session after he stepped out of the bathroom.

"She's not too happy, let me tell you." Laughed Ron.

"Well, they did lose a lot of ground after that second battle." Said Neville.

"Hey, Harry. When are we having the next round of tonight's session?" Asked Dean as Harry closed the bathroom door behind him.

"After the holidays." Said Harry fighting a yawn from escaping.

"But we still have a couple of weeks before we have exams." Said Seamus. "Couldn't we have it before?"

"It takes some time to prepare it all." Said Harry. "It would still be a little time after our return before we can set up the next round of tonight's session."

"Well, I suppose." Seamus groaned. "But it was great. You should've seen us, Harry. The other team didn't have a chance against us."

Harry smiled. It seemed that their training session had been a great success, he could only hope that they would be ready for the next round.

He fell asleep before the others did. He could still hear their excited whispers as his eyelids fell heavily in sleep.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

Harry spent the rest of the week evading questions from the members of the D.A. They all wanted to know when the next training session would be and if they would continue with the session they had started that last week. He had to tell them that even though they would continue with the D.A. sessions before they left for the Christmas break they would not have another one like they did the last week until after their return. Most were disappointed but followed his lead.

It wasn't until some days after the training session in the forest that he noticed Hermione's cold reaction to Ron and others.

"What's wrong?" Asked Harry one night at dinner after he noticed Hermione ignore Ron's request for the salt.

"Nothing." She said, nibbling on a piece of bread.

Ron snorted from Harry's other side.

Hermione frowned but didn't turn to look his way.

"She's still miffed because my team beat hers in the last session." Replied Ron.

Hermione sniffed angrily at Harry's side.

Harry smiled and turned to look at Hermione.

"I don't see why that should anger you. I thought you were a good sport." Harry told her as he turned his attention back to his food.

Hermione nodded her head grudgingly but didn't respond.

"It's galling, that's all." She finally said. "I don't like the thought of the likes of Seamus and Luna to be able to beat my team. Now we won't be able to take part of the next part of the session."

"We'll have other training session like it." Harry said with a shrug.

"Oh, will we?" Hermione asked with interest.

"We might. I haven't spoken to Lupin about it yet, but I don't think it would be a problem if we want to." Harry replied.

"At any rate, we should start turning our minds to the tests coming up." Said Hermione choosing a couple of small cake pieces from one of the dessert platters.

"Hermione, we still have four more weeks until the tests." Said Ron, who had been listening to his friends' conversation in silence.

"For your information, we only have three weeks and a half." Replied Hermione. "I don't know why I haven't started with my reviewing yet. I've just had so many things in my mind lately."

"We only have three weeks?" Asked Harry with surprise. "I thought we still had more time left." He sighed resignedly. "Snape is just going to make our lives miserable for the next couple of weeks."

"Not to mention McGonagall, Flitwick and all the others." Groaned Ron.

"Oh, honestly. You should be used to all this by now." Hermione said. "It's our sixth year here, not our first."

"Our first what?" Asked Ginny as she sat across the table from her brother.

"Never you mind. Where have you been?" Asked Ron as he noticed his sister flushed countenance and rapid breathing.

"With Hagrid. I told him during lessons that I would help him round up the nifflers we've been working with and I forgot the time. I came running all the way from his cottage. I didn't want to miss dinner." She said as she started to pile food into her plate. "He offered to make dinner for me, but I decided I rather run here."

Ron snorted with laughter. "Anybody would rather run than have any of Hagrid's food."

"Oh, he's not that bad." Said Hermione.

"Hermione, you've tasted his food, it is bad." Harry said.

"Well, maybe. But some of his food must be good. He would starve otherwise." Hermione replied.

"He has no taste buds left." Said Ron. "He's so used to his own food, he doesn't know how it's supposed to taste. And even if he did, he has most of his meals at the Staff Table along with the rest of the professors."

The students had started to disperse. Harry, Ron and Hermione stayed to keep Ginny company as their fellow Gryffindors started to leave the table.

It wasn't long until the foursome left the Great Hall and started to make their way to the Gryffindor Tower.

The Gryffindor Common Room was full as many students struggled to finish their work for the next day's lessons. Ron, Harry and Hermione took over one of the remaining tables to finish their own work, while Ginny joined her friends sitting at another table.

"Hermione, let me borrow your Potions notes." Ron pleaded after taking a look at his own notes.

"What happen to yours?" Hermione asked suspiciously.

"I can't read them." Growled Ron.

"What do you mean you can't read them?" Snapped Hermione and snatched Ron's parchment from his hand.

Ron protested but didn't snatch them back.

Hermione took a quick look at Ron's notes and with a lift of her brow turned to look at him.

"What did you do to them?" She asked.

"I don't know, maybe my bag got damp or something." Ron said with a shrug of his shoulders.

Harry looked over at his friends and noticed that the ink on Ron's parchment had smeared, making his notes unreadable.

"Alright, you can borrow mine. But you should be more careful with your things." Hermione said, passing her notes to Ron.

"Thanks." Said Ron and with a cocky smile at Harry – one that Hermione missed as she was pulling her books from her own bag – he turned his attention to his work.

-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/-/

N/A: Here you go, my latest completed chapter. As I said before, I only have one more new chapter that I have yet to complete and then edit. As those of you who may be following it on know, I have not able to add anything new yet in quite a while. I'll post it, as I don't want to leave this story as it is. But after that, I'm thinking on putting this story on hold and take a look back, maybe then I can get back on track and finally finish this story. As it's plain to see, this story has been AU, specially since HBP came out. Maybe as I read back I'll make some editions and I can incorporate some HBP facts to make it more close to the books as it once was. Again, I want to thank you all for staying with this story, and for being so patient with me.

_Alexa aka Lady of the Lake_


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